Shard of glass kills man as lava lamp explodes

A 24-year-old man who placed a lava lamp on a hot stove top was killed when the lamp exploded and sent a shard of glass into his heart, police said.

"Why on earth he was heating a lava lamp on the stove, we don't know," Kent police spokesman Paul Petersen said yesterday.

Phillip Quinn's parents found his body in his Kent trailer home about 8 p.m. Sunday. They went to check on him after his girlfriend reported that she couldn't get in touch with him.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office estimated the time of death at 2 p.m. Sunday.

After the lamp exploded, Quinn apparently stumbled into his bedroom, where he died, Petersen said.

Everett

84-year-old man identified as victim of house fire

An Everett man who died Sunday in a house fire has been identified as Arthur Hopkins, 84.

Hopkins was found dead in the living room of his house in the 4800 block of Colby Avenue, authorities said. The blaze was caused by a portable heater near the living room, said Everett Fire Marshal Warren Burns.

It took firefighters several searches of the wood-frame house to find the man amidst a pile of newspapers, boxes and other "combustible" items, Burns said. The debris piles were several feet tall, he said.

When Everett firefighters arrived at the house at 4:39 p.m., the fire was confined to one or two rooms, Burns said.

Pendleton, Ore.

Teens bummed about daytime curfew

Please forgive Pendleton teenagers if they're not looking forward to the new year. A daytime curfew proposed by Police Chief Stuart Roberts starts Jan. 3, and the kids aren't happy about it.

David Dunn, 17, said he'd planned to be a police officer. Not anymore.

"A lot of people are really mad at them. I know I am," Dunn said. "I am seriously sick of this town."

The ordinance bans minors from being out in public during school unless they're traveling to and from classes or are accompanied by a parent or guardian.

A first violation means police will take students home or back to school and send a letter to their parents. Students caught a second time must report to the county juvenile department, and their parents must tell a judge why their children were out.

Federal Way

Boy injured in fire continues to recover

A 4-year-old boy whose neighbor rescued him from his Federal Way home during a fire Sunday has been moved from intensive care to the pediatric ward at Harborview Medical Center.

While Joshua McClellan continues to recover from burns and smoke inhalation, his father, Steve Schnitger, was released yesterday from the hospital, said Debbie Goetz, a Federal Way Fire Department spokeswoman.

Investigators have not determined what caused the fire, which destroyed the family's house in the 30800 block of Seventh Avenue Southwest. Red Cross officials are helping Schnitger and his family find housing, Goetz said.

Portland

Attorney offers free defense for bicyclists

An attorney who claims police unfairly target bicyclists on the road is making his case in court, free of charge.

Mark Ginsberg, 34, has represented dozens of bicycle riders ticketed over the years during a monthly group bicycle ride called Critical Mass.

At its peak, the ride drew more than 1,000 riders to downtown Portland in the evening rush hour on the last Friday of every month. Portland police say it's a public-safety problem, snarling traffic and frustrating drivers. There also have been a few reports of vandalized cars.

Ginsberg says a resulting crackdown amounts to harassment. He has emerged as the unofficial lawyer for Critical Mass, dispensing free legal advice on bike laws and defending citations he thinks he can beat.

Times staff and news services