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The latest news from around the Chewelah Valley
Chewelah Golf Update: A better, more consistent drive
(By Jason Pitt/Chewelah Golf Pro)
“If I could only hit my drives 10 yards further” is a statement I’ve heard countless times over the years of instructing golfers of all abilities. It’s a tough proposition to add yardage to a drive, but not impossible. In the pro tips below I will share a few ideas on how to add distance.
Distance does not come from a forced golf swing or trying to swing harder. In reality you maximize your distance by taking a nice smooth tempo swing and timing it out so the ball hits in the center of the club head. An off center hit is never going to go as far as a centered hit, no matter who is swinging the club.
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Valley Fair books available
The Valley Community Fair books are available in many locations: Valley Fuel, The Valley Store, Bells and Whistles, Mama’s and Dan and Jo’s in Valley. The Chewelah Independent, Aker’s United Drug and The Valley Drug. Books are also available at the Stevens County Extension Office in Colville. This year’s fair is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, August 11 and 12. Registration forms for livestock, fun run, the 3-on-3 basketball tournament and parade entries are due on August 1. When you pre-register by August 1, or bring items down to the Exhibit Hall on Friday, August 11, your name will automatically be entered into a special drawing to receive a gift certificate from local businesses in Valley. These gift certificates are donated by the families of Ernie Franks in his memory. Names will be drawn at 2:30, 3, 3:30, 4 and 4:30 p.m. Exhibitors must be present to win. If you enter an item in the fair, stick around and see what you can win!
Don’t forget when you’re picking up your fair books at any of the above businesses to also buy a ticket or two for the 85th Annual Ticket (aka “button“) Drawing. The top prize is $100 or an iPod. There are also lots of miscellaneous prizes you can win when you stay for the drawing. Stick around to see what local business may have put in a bottle, envelope or even a brown paper bag! Tickets are just $1 each. The proceeds for the Ticket Sales go toward the purchase of ribbons, trophies and the premium pay-outs for our youth entries at the fair. Please help support this year’s event. 85 years is cause for a celebration…there will be commemorative “buttons” available the weekend of the fair. For information please contact Theresa Carr at 937-2635. The next fair meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, July 5 at 5:30 p.m.
Akina sentenced to over seven years’ jail
(By Jamie Henneman/Chewelah Independent)
Judge declines exceptional sentencing requests from defense, prosecution…
At a sentencing hearing last Tuesday, Judge Pat Monasmith sentenced Sherman Akina, 21, to 90 months jail for the crime of first degree manslaughter.
Akina was convicted of the crime in a jury trial in May for hitting Jon Bumatay with his car on a residential street in Chewelah during a dispute about Akina’s girlfriend. The jury found Akina guilty of first degree manslaughter, a lesser charge than the second degree murder sought by the prosecution.
The jury found that Akina was guilty of killing Bumatay due to reckless behavior, as in the case of manslaughter, and not due to intent, as required by a murder charge. The standard sentencing range for first degree manslaughter is six and a half to eight years in prison.
Stevens County Prosecutor Tim Rasmussen said the prosecution had argued that Akina’s actions did show intent and deserved more than the usual manslaughter sentence, manslaughter sentence, recommending 102 months jail with three years’ probation. More
Police Blotter for June 25-July 1, 2017
(By Chewelah Police Chief Mark Burrows)
The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty, and the destiny of the Republican model of government, are justly considered as deeply, perhaps as finally staked, on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people. – George Washington
The Chewelah PD handled approximately 62 calls, here’s the rundown. Officers responded to three alarm calls; assisted the Sheriff’s Office on several calls near town; and a citizen filed an information report after an ex-boyfriend made threats. A civil standby; a disturbance complaint; a person was reminded that camping is not allowed in the park unless you’re in the RV park; and a man was refused service and trespassed from a convenience store for exhibiting very strange behavior. We received a complaint of a distressed puppy; a welfare check; civil papers were served; two collisions were reported; and a young woman was taken to jail on warrants. A Juvenile problem was reported; an anonymous person complained of an unattended fire at a yellow house near Colville Ave and 4th St. W.; and we received two reports of vehicle prowls. Please remove your valuables from your vehicles and keep them locked. One citizen said his vehicle wouldn’t lock & the only things stolen were a jacket and a bottle containing 104 pain pills…..pretty obvious what’s going on there. Officers responded to two dog complaints. One was in the W. 500 block of Main Ave. If you own a black and white Boxer-mix, your neighbors would really like it if you’d keep your dog on a leash and/or in your own yard! Another dog complaint was ongoing barking at Court Ave. and Victoria St. A vehicle was repo’d; a fireworks complaint; an eviction; 27 traffic stops; another warrant arrest; two DV calls; and a complaint of loud music at just before midnight. On one of the traffic stops, K-9 Rebel indicated the vehicle smelled funny. A very small amount of meth and paraphernalia was found inside the vehicle. Officers also responded to calls of traffic hazards and traffic situations; an abandoned vehicle; another suspicious person; an incomplete 911 call.
Man attempts to walk across Canadian-US border with meth
(By Jamie Henneman/Chewelah Independent)
County law enforcement responds…
A man carrying a laptop and a large duffel bag attempted to cross the U.S.-Canadian border on foot last month before he was detained and found to have meth and weapons.
Terrence James Fedora, 31, was detained by U.S. Custom and Border Patrol agents in mid-June for attempting to walk across the border with .32 grams of methamphetamine, a collapsible baton, knives and an M80 firecracker. Fedora told agents he was a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen and was traveling to his father’s house in Seattle and didn’t have any drugs. However, a search of Fedora’s bags found the meth and Fedora then told officials he had been “clean” and not taken drugs for “a day and a half.” More
Man charged with passenger’s death in high speed crash
(By Jamie Henneman/Chewelah Independent)
Witnesses say car was going over 100 m.p.h….
A Colville man was recently charged with vehicular homicide for rolling his car over a guardrail on Aladdin Road and killing his passenger late last fall. Witness reports suggested the car may have been traveling at over 100 m.p.h.
Jacob Lee Kunze, 26, was driving on Aladdin Road on Nov. 6, 2016 when his Mitsubishi Eclipse left the road at a high rate of speed, struck a rock and dirt embankment, went over the guard rail and then rested on its roof in North Fork Mill Creek. Kunze’s passenger, Monica Robinson, 38, died on the scene. Kunze tested positive for marijuana the day of the accident and told witnesses he had crashed while trying to avoid a deer.
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Fifth hantavirus diagnosis confirmed, most reported since 1999
(By Washington State Department of Health)
The Department of Health confirmed today that the number of people diagnosed with hantavirus this year has reached five, the highest number reported in the state since 1999.
Three deaths have been reported in 2017. The people who died are from Franklin, King, and Spokane counties. The two additional people who contracted the disease and survived are from King and Skagit counties.
Deer mice are known to carry hantavirus. People can become infected by breathing in air contaminated with the virus, through direct contact with hantavirus-infected deer mice, and from saliva, urine, droppings, or nesting material. More
Montana quake felt in Chewelah
(By Staff Reports/Chewelah Independent)
The epicenter of the July 5, 2017 quake in Montana.
Chewelah feels the shaking from hundreds of miles away…
An earthquake in Lincoln, Montana (northwest of Helena) shook the ground for hundreds of miles on Wednesday night, being felt as far away as Eastern Washington and Billings. The magnitude of the earthquake was 5.8 on the Richter Scale
Lincoln has a population of just 1,100 people and was at the epicenter of the quake.
An earthquake of that magnitude can cause damage to poorly constructed buildings but as most, none to slight damage to all other buildings. Quakes like these are very easily felt by people. Stores in Montana dealt with products falling off of shelves. According to the National Weather Service, residents in Lincoln briefly lost power and there was gas leak in Helena. No injuries were reported.
After the initial quake, the USGS reported at least nine aftershocks ranging in magnitude from 4.9 to 3.1. More
Fire Danger moving to HIGH in Southern Stevens County
The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced today the following changes in the fire danger rating and burn restrictions on DNR-protected lands.
Effective 12:01 a.m., Wednesday, July 5, 2017:
– Fire danger will increase from moderate to high Chelan, Douglas, Kittitas, Grant, Yakima, Klickitat, Walla Walla, Columbia, Garfield, Asotin, Whitman and Adams counties.
– Industrial Fire Precaution Levels move to a Level 2 in Zone 675.
– Campfires allowed in Approved Designated Campgrounds ONLY.
Effective 12:01 a.m., Friday, July 7, 2017:
– Fire danger will increase from moderate to high in Stevens inside Fire Districts 1 & 2, Spokane, Okanogan, and Lincoln counties.
– Industrial Fire Precaution Levels move to a Level 2 in Zone 684.
– Campfires allowed in Approved Designated Campgrounds ONLY.
Daily updates on burn restrictions are available at 1-800-323-BURN or on the Fire Danger and Outdoor Burning risk map at https://fortress.wa.gov/dnr/protection/firedanger/.