Bulletin Column

These reports are from the previous four issues of the Daily Bulletin in Colfax. They are reprinted here for the benefit of Gazette readers who reside outside of Colfax. Some accounts have been updated.

POLICE PAY PACT ON CITY TABLE

Colfax City Council members Monday night delayed any decision of a proposed three-year contract with the City Police Guild. The contract, which calls for three-percent wage increases per year, is the result of extended negotiations between city officials and the guild which is made up of the four officers in the department.

The present contract, which expires at the end of the year, includes a four percent wage increase factor.

Assistant Chief Dave Szambelan and Officer Chris Olin, who attended Monday night’s council session, said after the meeting they had expected the contract would be approved by the councilthat night.

Members of the council were advised that they had the option of going into executive session if they wanted to discuss strategy for additional negotiations on the proposed contract, but the council opted to keep the meeting open and express their views.

Councilman Jim Kackman said he was concerned the guild contract would put the city on a financial track that it couldn’t sustain. He noted the city’s revenue has been restricted by the annual one percent limit on property tax increases.

Mayor Todd Vanek said property taxes are the primary revenue source for the city. He noted the other main revenue source, sales taxes, are unpredictable from year to year.

Councilman Al Vorderbrueggen said he was also concerned about the impact the guild contract has on the morale of other city employees. Councilman Don Henderson said he also has concerns about the ability of the police department to upgrade equipment if it has to face increased wage costs under the guild contract.

The city at its previous meeting approved a 2014 budget which provides for a four percent budget hike which is in the present contract. The figures were left in the budget because negotiations on the new contract were unfinished.

Any wage hike approved next year would be paid retroactive to the start of the year.

Szambelan noted members of the guild are aware of the realities of the city’s revenue. He also noted the city’s police force had been reduced by one because the city no longer provides an officer for the Quad Cities Drug Task Force.

DRIVER HURT IN HONDA ROLL

Tracey E. Patrick, Spokane Valley, sustained knee and shoulder injuries early Sunday morning in a one-car accident on Highway 27 two miles south of Garfield. According to the Washington State Patrol report, Patrick was driving a 1999 Honda Accord southbound on the frost-covered highway and slid into the southbound ditch. He over-corrected and the Honda rolled once before coming to a halt on its wheels.

TOY BOX

SERVES 220

The Firemen’s Toy Box opened for its three-day run at the fire station Monday morning. The toy box had families waiting before the 7:30 starting time, and served a total of 220 on its first day. The Toy Box also operated Tuesday and Wednesday.

HARVEY

SENTENCED

TO A YEAR

James W. Harvey, 53, Tekoa, was sentenced to 12 months in jail Friday on a conviction of child molestation in the third degree. The 12-month sentence was the maximum he could receive under the state’s standard sentencing range.

Harvey pleaded guilty to the charge Nov. 8, and was taken into custody at that time. He previously had been held in custody for his own protection after attempting to take his own life by cutting himself with a power saw.

He was ordered to have no contact with the victim after his release.

ARRESTS IN MALDEN

Amy Annette Baird, 42, Malden, was arrested on probable drug charges early Sunday morning. The deputies’ report said Baird was arrested in a barn at the north end of Malden after they responded to a report of the suspected presence of Robert McBride at a house on Broadway in Malden. The report said McBride was found at the residence and taken into jail on two warrants which had previously been issued for his arrest.

The report said McBride and two other people found at the house admitted they had been using methamphetamine at the residence. Questioning led them to suspect Baird had also been present at the residence and she was later located at the barn.

She was booked into jail at 6:30 a.m. Monday.

The report alleged a baggie of methamphetamine was found in the residence after deputies obtained a search warrant via telephone.

McBride was sought on warrants for alleged possession of methamphetamine and failure to pay child support.

KIRK SENTENCED TO 2 MONTHS

Emily Kirk, 31, Pullman resident who pleaded guilty to taking money from the Whitcom Guild fund while she was an officer, was sentenced to two months in jail Friday afternoon in Whitman County Superior court.

Kirk pleaded guilty Sept. 6 to charges of first degree theft and forgery. At the time she entered the pleas, the court was informed she had already made restitution for the missing funds.

A Washington State Patrol investigation placed the total amount taken from the fund at $13,901. The report listed instances dating back to June 11, 2011, when funds were diverted from guild deposits. The report also listed dates when checks were drawn from fund accounts with the guild president’s signature forged as a co-signer by the defendant.

Kirk was allowed to serve 240 hours of community service to work off half of the 60 day sentence. She was ordered to begin serving the remaining 30 days no later than Jan. 3.

HOSPITAL MECHANICAL

PERMIT

A building permit for plumbing and mechanical work in the Whitman Hospital project was issued to McClintock & Turk of Spokane as a subcontractor on the project. Permits for mechanical work are issued according to a fee schedule for fixtures listed on the project.

The permit for the hospital work included 44 different fixtures with two high pressure boilers and two water heaters among the key items in the project which aims at energy efficiency.

Total amount of the permit was $545.

ISSUE WARRANT IN RAPE CASE

A warrant for the arrest of Richard J. DeVaney, 41, has been issued in Whitman County Superior Court. The prosecutor’s office sought the warrant after DeVaney failed to appear Dec. 6 for a pre-trial hearing.

Bond amount on the bench warrant was set at $25,000.

DeVaney, whose last known address was listed at Tempe, Ariz., has been charged here with two counts of rape of a child. According to the arrest report, the investigation began here after police received a tip from Arizona about DeVaney’s alleged conduct while he resided here. The charges allege DeVaney had sexual contact with a juvenile girl in November of 2012 and January of this year.

JAIL CREDITS FOR RICHARDSON

A warrant of commitment for Cody Richardson, 22-year-old Colfax resident who was sentenced to a state prison term, was filed Dec. 10 in superior court. Richardson was credited for 172 days already served in jail while awaiting resolution of the case. Richardson last Friday pleaded guilty to three different charges and sentenced to a year and a day on one of them and eight months on the two others.

DAM CROSSING REMINDER

The Army Corps of Engineers Dec. 12 issued a reminder that the Snake River dams will be closed to crossings on Christmas Day and New Years Day. The corps follows a policy of closing the crossings on federal holidays.

Normal schedule for crossing Lower Granite Dam is from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. except for federal holidays. Tour busses and school busses are required to contact the dam at least 24 hours in advance to arrange for crossing authorization.

At Little Goose Dam the corps opens for crossings once an hour between 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

PICKET SIGNS AT TERMINAL

A deputy was dispatched last Wednesday morning, Dec. 11, on a report of possible trespassing at the Columbia Grain Terminal at Central Ferry. The deputy confiscated two picket signs which had been posted in outdoor grain piles at the terminal.

Sheriff Brett Myers said the posting of the picket signs is believed to be part of union activities connected with the Longshoremen’s strike in the Portland area.

The sheriff said they have been monitoring the union activities at Central Ferry this fall but the union actions generally have been lawful.

Previous episodes have included union members on private boats attempting to signify a picket line in an effort to halt union crew members aboard tug boats on the river from crossing the line while bringing tows to the terminal.

The sheriff noted that going onto the property at the terminal to stick the signs in the grain piles could constitute trespassing, but nobody was present at the scene when the deputy arrived.

METER TOLL

SAID 16

City crews have repaired a total of 16 meters in the wake of a cold spell which hit in early December.

Meters are fitted with a frost plate which breaks off to prevent extensive damage in the event water freezes at the meter, according to Public Works Director Andy Rogers.