NEW THIS MORNING: Wednesday, Oct. 9
Regina McCrea
1. Former CLN trustees, Kootenai County GOP settle lawsuit
More than a year after two former Community Library Network trustees sued the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee and several of its members for defamation, the matter has been resolved.
Judy Meyer and Regina McCrea originally filed the lawsuit in May 2023, seeking damages in excess of $10,000 and naming multiple Kootenai County residents who distributed letters that accused the former trustees of committing crimes against children amid their reelection campaigns.
In court Monday, attorneys for the parties confirmed that a settlement has been reached and a motion to dismiss the lawsuit will be filed in the near future. A jury trial was previously scheduled for November.
The details of the settlement are confidential, though McCrea described the resolution as “amicable.”
2. Man faces multiple charges following aggravated assault incident in Kingston
A former Shoshone County man is facing multiple charges following an aggravated assault incident in Kingston over the weekend.
34-year-old Devon James Miller, of Colville, Wash., is charged with one felony count of aggravated assault, one felony count of battery on an officer, and five misdemeanor charges.
The charges stem from an incident at the Kings Inn in Kingston, when Miller was allegedly pointing a gun at witnesses following an argument while allegedly under the influence of alcohol.
Miller, who lived in Shoshone County before relocating to Colville, was reportedly visiting the area for the weekend along with his wife to retrieve belongings from a storage unit.
After being put under arrest, Miller also kicked a deputy “in a very deliberate and powerful motion” while lying on the ground, according to court records.
3. Cd'A council OKs nearly $600K for water meters, more
A plan to replace water meters in Coeur d'Alene is underway.
The Coeur d'Alene City Council unanimously approved an agreement with Badger Meter for the purchase of new water meters, registers and endpoints for nearly $600,000.
The Water Department began the Meter Change Out Program in 2005 due to significant undocumented water loss, according to a staff report. Today, the Water Department has an annual plan that will eventually replace all 20,000 meters in the city over a 10-year cycle.
"Once a meter reaches 10 years, it loses accuracy," Glen Poelstra, assistant water director, told the City Council.
4. $8.9 million maximum cost set for Kootenai County jail expansion
The completion of two dormitory pods at the Kootenai County jail will cost a maximum of $8.9 million, according to contractor Sletten Construction Company.
Sky Villasenor, a civil engineer and project manager for Sletten Construction Company, outlined the costs during a Tuesday meeting with commissioners. The total figure includes about $1.3 million “soft costs,” such as permit and impact fees and the costs of design and preconstruction.
The dormitory pod project, which will add 108 beds to the consistently overcrowded jail, has been in the works for years. The “shells” of these pods were built during the last jail expansion in 2018 but have remained unfinished.
Last October, commissioners allocated nearly $10 million to fund capital projects for the sheriff’s office, including $9 million to complete the jail pods and $950,000 to fund the expansion of the sheriff’s office into the county-owned Kootenai North building in Hayden.
“Ultimately, the board is most concerned about the total bottom line,” Commissioner Bruce Mattare said Tuesday. “I have all the confidence in the world that we have the right people who can get this done. We just need to make sure we have a budget and we can stick by that and hopefully come in a little under.”
5. North Idaho agencies send hurricane relief to East Coast
After the destruction of Hurricane Helene and anticipated landfall of Hurricane Milton, the Coeur d'Alene Fire Department, firefighter Chad Matchell and K-9 Scout from Idaho Disaster Dogs Search and Rescue team deployed Sunday to assist with hurricane recovery efforts on the East Coast.
According to a social media post from the Washington State Task Force-1 FEMA team, Matchell and Scout are among a team that left Sunday to assist in either Florida or North Carolina.
Four lineworkers from Kootenai Electric Cooperative began their journey Tuesday to go to Fort Myers, Fla., to help ahead of Hurricane Milton's landfall.
The KEC crew will join forces with crews from Lee County Electric Cooperative as they work to restore any electrical damage sustained during the hurricane.