Whatcom County jury clears on all charges man who fatally shot his father in 2022, Police say Sehome HS “threat” was misunderstanding, Two drug dealers sentenced after arrest in Bellingham, Ski to Sea selling out months early, plans to modify race in the works, Whatcom Chief ferry dry dock schedule pending shipyard bids, From Bellingham to Hoquiam, temps hit record highs this weekend, WSP pays $1.4M to settle lawsuit alleging trooper targeted drivers of color, Alaska Airlines blames Boeing for blowout, wants out of passenger lawsuit
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STORY: Whatcom County jury clears on all charges man who fatally shot his father in 2022
An Everson man who was accused of the 2022 murder of his father has been cleared of all charges.
A jury acquitted 23-year-old Ethan Michael Knight following 2 days of deliberation. The jury ruled that Ethan Knight acted in self-defense, protecting both himself and his mother, when he pulled the trigger, killing his 46-year-old father. The verdict was read aloud to a packed courtroom late Friday afternoon.
After Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Rob Olson excused the jury and released members of the public from keeping decorum in the courtroom, numerous people cheered and broke into tears.
His 3-week jury trial was successfully argued by the Whatcom County Public Defender’s Office.
STORY: Police say Sehome HS “threat” was misunderstanding
After a lockdown last week at Sehome High School, police are now saying that it was all a misunderstanding.
The High School was locked down on Friday at 1:15pm due to reports of an active shooter. The lockdown was then downgraded to a Hold, and students were kept in classrooms while the school was swept. The Bellingham Police Department and Western’s university police found no threat and the hold was lifted.
The next day, BPD reported that the threat was all a misunderstanding when a situation elsewhere got mistaken for Sehome. Social media users say the miscommunication happened when the Sehome Drama department was competing at Central Washington University, where an active shooter situation was happening. One of the students called their parents and during the exchange, a misunderstanding happened and the parent called 911, assuming the shooter was at Sehome.
One person was killed in the shooting near Central Washington University.
STORY: Two drug dealers sentenced after arrest in Bellingham
Two Mexican citizens, Juan Manuel Lugo Enriquez and Guillermo Vieyra (VEE-era) Salas, were sentenced to federal prison on Friday for selling over 75,000 fentanyl pills in Bellingham.
Lugo Enriquez received a 38-month sentence while Vieyra Salas was sentenced to 48 months. The investigation, aided by the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office as well as Homeland Security, involved undercover officers arranging a deal at Bellingham International Airport in September of 2022. Vieyra Salas had previous charges including a drive-by shooting and cocaine trafficking.
A third defendant who delivered the fentanyl, Jaime (HIGH-may) Alonso Hernandez-Hernandez, is awaiting sentencing on June 7.
STORY: Ski to Sea selling out months early, plans to modify race in the works
Ski to Sea participation tickets are selling out quickly.
The event, scheduled for May, is a 7 leg multi-sport relay race. Out of the 500 slots in total, 416 have already been claimed.
To address concerns of low snowpack levels, organizers are developing contingency plans and will make a final determination during the first week of April. If necessary, the ski portion will likely be replaced by an alpine run and a coastal mountain bike ride.
Registration is open until May 24th, with the fee for high school teams being waived.
STORY: Whatcom Chief ferry dry dock schedule pending shipyard bids
Whatcom County Public Works Ferry Division scheduled dry dock for the Lummi Island ferry has been pushed back.
Officials now say they expect the Whatcom Chief to be in a four-week dry dock sometime from April 18th to May 17th. This adjustment may result in pedestrian-only service during Memorial Day weekend.
Bids for the upcoming ferry maintenance project will open on March 26th— officials expect to announce finalized dates after the bid is awarded.
STORY: From Bellingham to Hoquiam, temps hit record highs this weekend
This St. Paddy’s day weekend showed summer-like record high temperatures for Western Washington.
According to the National Weather Service, Seattle, Olympia, and Bellingham broke temperature records. On Saturday, SeaTac airport reached 74 degrees, beating the last record high of 72 degrees set back in 1947. Sunday was slightly colder, but was still warm enough to beat the Bellingham record set in 2019.
According to meteorologist Steve Reedey, the unexpected warmth was caused by a high pressure ridge arriving a month earlier than normal. Typically, our first 70-degree day is April 15th on average, and last weekend was one of 15 instances in the past 78 years in which this has occurred.
However, temperatures are expected to return to the mid 50s with rain by midweek, according to the weather service.
STORY: WSP pays $1.4M to settle lawsuit alleging trooper targeted drivers of color
The Washington State Patrol has settled a federal lawsuit alleging one of their officers targeted people of color and immigrants with pretextual stops.
The plaintiffs are all Black immigrants, and were arrested for impaired driving, though subsequent blood tests showed no intoxication. Internal documents revealed Trooper Cameron Osmer had a high number of arrests without intoxicants, with the majority being people of color. Osmer faced previous disciplinary actions for misconduct, including falsifying overtime.
The lawsuit points out that despite other troopers’ concerns over the number of negative toxicology reports and arrests by Osmer without charges, he was recognized and given a commemorative plaque by patrol leadership for having the most DUI arrests in 2021. WSP spokesperson Chris Loftis reiterated the agency’s commitment to unbiased police work, pointing out Osmer’s arrests identified “deficiencies” but revealed no violation of WSP policy.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs say the $1.4 million dollar settlement reflects a systemic issue within the State Patrol, and concerns over biased policing remain unresolved. The plaintiffs expressed relief but noted Osmer still remains employed, highlighting ongoing issues within law enforcement.
WX: Sun
Your Whatcom County weather – today will be mostly sunny, with a high of 64 degrees and calm winds. Tonight expect clear skies with a low of 43. Tomorrow will be just as sunny but a touch colder.
OUTRO:
Today’s newscast was produced by volunteers AnThu Nguyen (ANNE-two new-WIN), Carlos Braga, Connor O’Boyle, Jayne Kuhlman and Tristan Trudell. Tune in to local news on KMRE weekdays at 3, 4 and 5 p-m. For news tips and feedback, send us an email at news@kmre.org or call 360-398-6150. KMRE is a nonprofit community radio station, powered by listener donations. If you would like to help keep local news accessible, check out our new Patreon page at patreon.com/kmrenews or go to kmre.org and click on the banner. I’m ________________, and thanks for listening.
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STORY: Alaska Airlines blames Boeing for blowout, wants out of passenger lawsuit
Alaska Airlines has redirected the blame of the flight 1282 fuselage panel malfunction onto Boeing after being sued by passengers.
The accident, which occurred in January, caused the fuselage panel to fall off the plane – leaving a gaping hole on its side. No one was hurt but many claim to have experienced headaches and sensitivity to loud noises following the flight. In court filings this week, Alaska asked U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez to dismiss any claims regarding the incident against their company.
Alaska’s attorney argues that the alleged damages were caused by, quote, “entities out of the company’s control.” They direct the responsibility toward Boeing as well as its supplier Spirit Aerosystems, the company who made the fuselage panel that malfunctioned.
Lawyer Mark Linquist, who is representing passengers in one lawsuit, argues that both companies are to blame. He says Alaska allowed the plane to fly despite there being a restriction on the plane from flying over large bodies of water, while Boeing failed to properly test the plane for safety.
Both companies claim they are not responsible for the harm put on these passengers, and say they are limited on what information they can release due to an investigation led by the national transportation safety board.
