Top stories of 2014

These are the stories deemed by Press newsroom staff members to be the most-read, most talked about, most memorable of 2014.

Beginning Thursday, we'll offer a series of stories that look ahead at what government leaders expect the new year will bring.

1. Justice for Arfee

The death of a dog in July, shot by a Coeur d'Alene police officer while the animal was inside its owner's vehicle, drew national media attention and local outrage.

Arfee, a black Lab mix, was killed when Coeur d'Alene Police Officer Dave Kelley and police recruit Officer Jason Weidebush responded to a report of a suspicious van parked outside a Sherman Avenue coffee house. The police department initially reported that the animal was a "vicious pit bull" that was shot when it lunged at the officer through a partially open vehicle window. The owner, Craig Jones, was inside the coffee house at the time and was unaware of what was unfolding outside.

The incident led to a public outcry for "Justice for Arfee," the name of a Facebook page that had 2,843 followers as of Tuesday.

A use-of-force investigation that lasted more than a month was launched by the police department.

On Sept. 5, newly hired Coeur d'Alene Police Chief Lee White announced that Kelley's use of force in the incident violated department policy.

Kelley remained on the force. Police and city officials would not reveal whether any disciplinary action was taken, stating that it is a personnel matter and exempt from the state's public records law.

Through a records request, The Press was able to ascertain that Kelley's hourly wage of $34.17 was reduced by $3.15 per hour beginning Oct. 1.

2. Samuel murders

The community was stunned when the details of a March double-homicide, believed by police to have been committed by a 14-year-old, were released by the Coeur d'Alene Police Department.

Eldon Samuel III allegedly killed his father, Eldon G. Samuel Jr., 46, and his younger brother, Jonathan Samuel, 13, at the Coeur d'Alene home in which they lived.

Police records show the boy called in the report himself at 9:09 p.m. and told the police dispatcher he had shot and killed his brother and father. The teen allegedly told detectives he had "mentally prepared himself" for the alleged double homicide for eight months.

Samuel was charged as an adult with one count of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree murder. A jury trial is scheduled for March of 2015 and the teen faces life in prison if he is found guilty.

3. Hitching Post hullabaloo

Coeur d'Alene was pushed to the center of a national media frenzy in October when - within days of same-sex marriage being legalized in Idaho - lawyers representing the owners of an iconic wedding chapel filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city of Coeur d'Alene. The suit claims that under the city's anti-discrimination ordinance, the owners of the Hitching Post, pastors Don and Lynn Knapp, are being forced to violate their religious beliefs and perform same-sex unions.

News of the lawsuit prompted dozens of online reports, mainly by conservative media outlets, claiming that the city was threatening to arrest and jail the Knapps. City officials announced that they have never taken any action against the couple.

The city of Coeur d'Alene's anti-discrimination ordinance was adopted in 2013. It forbids discrimination in housing, employment and other public accommodations based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression. Religious entities are exempt.

Several days after the lawsuit was filed, city officials announced that the Knapps' wedding business is exempt under the anti-discrimination ordinance, because it was registered in September with the Idaho Secretary of State's office as a limited liability company that is a religious corporation.

The case is still proceeding in federal court.

4. Greensferry finally gets going

After 20 years of planning, construction on the Greensferry overpass along Interstate 90 at Post Falls began in October.

The $15 million project between the Highway 41 interchange and the Seltice Way overpass is scheduled to be completed late next summer or early next fall.

It is being funded by local taxpayer funds generated through the Post Falls Urban Renewal Agency.

The project - which will include two lanes in each direction, bicycle lanes and sidewalks on both sides - is intended to improve connectivity, traffic mobility and emergency response time between the business districts and residential areas north and south of the interstate.

5. Diamond Cup sunk

The summer of 2014 saw no hydroplanes racing across the waters of Lake Coeur d'Alene.

Kootenai County Sheriff Ben Wolfinger announced in July he would not approve a water-event permit for the organizers of Labor Day weekend Diamond Cup races. The organizers had failed to meet several required criteria by a deadline set by the sheriff.

Then, the hydroplane race sanctioning organization H1 Unlimited cut all ties with Doug Miller and Keith Kroetch, the two main organizers behind Diamond Cup.

The head of H1 said Miller and Kroetch racked up debts owed to the organization that weren't getting paid. H1 later filed a lawsuit against Miller and Kroetch.

Multiple businesses that worked with Diamond Cup in 2013, when races returned to the lake for the first time in years, also went public with complaints that they were owed money by race organizers.

6. Same-sex marriage

The first same-sex marriage license issued in Kootenai County history was processed on Oct. 15.

The recipients, Jennifer Currie and Kim Malar, went to the courthouse and applied for it after a federal appeals court struck down the state's ban on gay marriages.

But state officials are still fighting the federal court decision.

Following the ruling, Gov. Butch Otter petitioned the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals for a full review of the ruling shortly after the initial ruling, and the court's answer is still pending.

Meanwhile the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld same-sex marriage bans in four other states, which was in direct contrast to the 9th Circuit ruling.

That prompted Idaho to ask the Supreme Court of the United States to reconsider hearing the state cases and to rule once and for all on the issue. To date, the U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear the issue.

7. McEuen opens

After nearly a decade of planning, construction and controversy, McEuen Park finally opened to the public on May 2.

The $19.6 million project was funded with tax increment financing that was generated by an Urban Renewal District in the area.

That financing method drew the ire of some politically conservative residents, who eventually organized and attempted to recall former Mayor Sandi Bloem and three city council members.

The recall failed, so the opposing group members challenged the targeted council members and mayor positions in the general election, where they also failed to prevail.

Coeur d'Alene's newly elected mayor, Steve Widmyer, ran a successful campaign for Bloem's open seat, on the platform that he would make sure McEuen was opened on time and on budget.

His target goal was May 2, when most of the park was opened to the public. Mothers and children flocked to the new park.

That day, Doug Eastwood, the city's former parks director who spent years working on the project, assessed the public's reaction.

"You know, you always wonder how something like this is going to be received," Eastwood said in May. "And wow, this has exceeded all of my expectations - even before it is completely opened."

8. Remembering Scotty

Hundreds of people in August attended memorial services for Gary Scott "Scotty" Shawver, a well-known Post Falls auto body shop owner, after he drowned in Lake Coeur d'Alene during a boating accident.

His body was recovered from the lake a week after the accident. He reportedly jumped into the water to retrieve a hat that had fallen into the water.

Shawver, who was 57, hosted a popular community summer block party at his former shop on Third Avenue. He was a generous benefactor to local organizations and inspired many with his kindness, hard work, humility and giving heart.

9. Nickel sack

A video of two young men who were detained by Kootenai County Sheriff's deputies in June went viral nationwide, and raised questions throughout the county on police tactics and filming encounters with law enforcement officers.

Dylan Swinford, 23, and Riker Morrow, 22, both of Coeur d'Alene, were parked at Maverik gas station when they were confronted by the deputies - who told the men they heard one say, "Yeah, a nickel sack for sure," when getting out of a vehicle.

In the video, Swinford and Morrow can be heard trying to explain that they were not discussing a bag of marijuana, but rather, the Canadian rock band Nickelback, which was being played loudly by another vehicle in the parking lot.

The video shows the deputies using aggressive language and behavior throughout the incident and at one point a deputy allegedly drew his weapon on the passenger.

An internal investigation into the incident was conducted and both of the involved deputies are still working. The Press was unable to determine if any disciplinary action was taken due to state personnel law.

10. Owl kills canary

One of the more unique stories of 2014 remained on the national media radar for a short time, but while it was there, it made a big splash.

The first five pages of a Google search of "Owl kills canary" reveal a lengthy list of media outfits - from the Boston Globe to the Parrot Forum - that published the story detailing what happened to Coeur d'Alene residents Don and Sue Sausser's canary.

On a Sunday morning in August, the couple discovered an owl in the living room of their 10th-story Lake Tower apartment. They also found the remains of one of their pet canaries. The owl had flown in the window, and somehow removed the bird from its wire birdcage and killed it. Another pet bird was slightly injured.