Bulletin column - Nov. 4, 2010

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.

Bickle admits burglaries

Paul Bickle, 34, suspect in a series of burglaries and thefts last summer, entered guilty pleas Friday in Whitman County Superior Court. Bickle admitted charges listed in a plea bargain agreement which had been offered Aug. 26 by Prosecutor Denis Tracy.

Bickle was arrested Aug. 9 at LaCrosse where Pullman police and sheriff’s deputies found a large amount of stolen property at a mobile home he had rented.

Bickle has been in jail under a $200,000 bond. He originally pleaded not guilty to 21 different charges and was slated for a Sept. 13 trial which had been rescheduled after he waived his speedy trial right.

Under the plea bargain, Bickle admitted burglarizing Arrow Equipment north of Colfax July 28 and the Department of Transportation shops next to Arrow on the same night. He also admitted burglarizing the Wal-Mart construction site in Pullman Aug. 9 and burglarizing Ace Hardware in Pullman.

At the time of his arrest, Bickle was listed as a suspect in eight different break-ins, including an earlier version of the Arrow and DOT episode. In those burglaries, windows were broken out at Arrow and inventory items, including Stihl equipment, taken. In both cases a truck, discovered missing from the neighboring DOT shop, was found on a county road a few miles from the scene.

Bickle’s extensive criminal record will bump his offender score to 22, according to Tracy’s offer to Bickle and his defense attorney, Steve Martonick. The record in Kitsap County includes six convictions for burglary, three for theft and one for possession of stolen property. The record goes back to 1996.

Tracy in his plea offer said restitution due for Bickle’s summer crime spree totaled $27,285.

The court ordered an evaluation of Bickle to determine if he qualifies for a drug offender sentencing alternative. Sentencing has been slated for Dec. 3.

Tracy’s plea bargain offer said he will ask the court for the maximum sentence under the state’s standard range.

Steptoe driver jailed

Colleen Lathrop, 29, Steptoe, was booked into the county jail early Saturday morning after Colfax police investigated a report that her former boyfriend jumped out of a car she was driving on Morton Street when she refused to stop. She was booked into jail on probable charges of unlawful imprisonment and fourth-degree assault involving domestic violence. She was released on her own recognizance after a first appearance in court Monday morning. Formal charges are expected to be filed in municipal court.

According to the Colfax police report filed with the arrest, Lathrop and her ex-boyfriend were having an argument after going trick-or-treating with their son at the mall. Driving northbound on Main, she failed to stop at the Rosauers lot where he had parked his truck. She turned off Main onto Tyler and then north on Morton. The alleged victim said he grabbed the gear shift in the car and pulled it to neutral, but she put it back in drive. He said he shifted the car to neutral again and that’s when she hit him in the ensuing struggle. He said he managed to jump out of the car.

Colfax driver hurt

Ronald Dennison, 21, Colfax, sustained possible head and neck injuries Sunday when he lost control of the 1999 Camaro he was driving and crashed on Highway 195. He was taken by ambulance to Whitman Hospital.

According to the Washington State Patrol report, Dennison was driving southbound at 6:46 p.m. when a deer ran onto the highway 9.75 miles north of Colfax. He swerved to avoid the deer, struck the guardrail along the southbound side of the roadway, crossed the highway and came to a halt in the ditch on the northbound side of the highway.

Wells auction-dinner benefit

A ham dinner and auction and raffle to benefit Mike Wells, who is under treatment for cancer, has been scheduled for Nov. 20 from 5 to 7 a.m. at the Palouse Empire Fairground. Donations of auction items are now being accepted. A silent auction will be conducted during the dinner and a live auction will follow. To donate auction items, contact Chuck Lyman or Wilbur-Ellis in Colfax.

Wells has been employed at Wilbur-Ellis since operating Wells Steak & Seafood in Colfax. He has also operated restaurants in Palouse and Pullman.

For those unable to attend the dinner auction, an account has been set up for donations at Sterling Savings Bank.

Driver hits parked car

A 2009 Subaru Outback driven by Barbara Broesch, 33, Colfax, struck a 1999 Ford Escort which was parked on Alley Street in the Hamilton Park area of Colfax Oct. 26. The accident report said Broesch was driving northbound on Alley and struck the back of the Ford owned by Jim Stubbe.

Boot swap box returns

Colfax Parent Teacher Organization is again sponsoring a boot swap box which will be located outside the Jennings Elementary Library starting Monday. The goal is to help parents save money by donating, trading, and providing winter boots for elementary students. Parents can drop off clean winter boots in good condition. They can also take boots out of the box which will be outside the library through this week and conference week, Nov. 8 - 12.

New pastor starts

The Rev. Phillip Misner gave his first sermons at Peace Lutheran Church in Colfax and Trinity Lutheran Church in Endicott Sunday. The Rev. Misner, 29, and his wife Jamie have moved here from Minneapolis to begin serving the two churches. He will be the first full-time pastor to serve both churches.

The Rev. Phyllis Stromme has served both churches as interim pastor for the past three years. The Rev. Stromme, who has a permanent home in Kennewick, will now serve as interim pastor for a church in Ephrata. She came here after the Rev. Glenn Petersen departed to serve Central Lutheran Church in Anchorage. The Rev. Petersen served Peace Lutheran for 16 years.

The Misners have two children, Kaylynn, 4, and John, 6 months. They are now making their home at the Trinity Lutheran parsonage in Endicott.

A potluck followed at the Trinity Church social room following the second service.

Campus computer arrest

Vu Tuong Nguyen, 19, was booked into jail here Oct. 27 at 5:04 p.m. on a probable charge of possession of stolen property. A WSU police report filed with the arrest said the Apple laptop computer was found in his room at Honors Hall after officers obtained a search warrant for the room.

The report said a student at Regents Hall reported the laptop was taken from her desk Oct. 25 while she was attending a class. The report said they obtained the warrant for the room in Honors Hall after obtaining information from the campus information technology office which indicated the missing computer was being used and tracked the suspect’s identification number.

The report said they also discovered a computer in the room which had been reported missing in Kenosha, Wis. Nuguyen was later released on his own recognizance.