May 2012

By Cassandra Baker, Intern

4:47 a.m. on May 7th. 15th block of NW 56th St

A Seattle Police officer stopped a burglary at a construction site early on the morning of May 7th. The officer was patrolling the Ballard area when he observed a blue van backing toward a gated construction site. As the officer drove by, the van pulled out of the driveway and sped away. The officer ran the license plate and went to check the gate. It was still locked, but it had been bent enough to allow a person to enter the construction area. The officer then received information on the van’s license plate; the van had been used in a commercial burglary in February. The officer did an area check but did not locate the vehicle.

It all came down to the bottom of the seventh inning with one out and the bases loaded.

Before the inning started with the score tied at two, the Seahawks got together and fired themselves up by exclaiming they were not ready to turn in their uniforms.

Ingraham began the inning by walking the first batter and two pitches latter a slap single past the Rams shortstop put the winning run on second base.

The next Sealth batter faked a bunt that got by the catcher allowing both base runners to advance to second and third. The Rams walked the next batter loading the bases bringing outfielder Maximus Sarver to the plate.

Ingraham pulled starting pitcher Nic Layton and brought in Ryan Korling in the hopes of getting out of the inning but Maximus Sarver had other ideas, bashing Korling's pitch deep into left center field to drive in the winning run.

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Dozens of members, allies, and friends of the Seattle LGBTQ community came out to rally outside the Paramount Theater on Thursday afternoon where President Obama held a fundraiser.

The President's visit was his first public appearance since Wednesday's televised interview with ABC in which President Obama stated that he believes same-sex couples should be allowed to marry.

As people lined the streets in front of the theater the atmosphere was joyful and the collective message was that of gratitude.

Signs read "Thank You Mr. President", "Standing on the side of LOVE", and "Thanks for evolving on same sex marriage."

"We are here to say 'Thank You'. It's so exciting that Seattle is the first major city Obama visits since the announcement," said Holly Teige of Monroe, Wash., who together with a group of children represented the Sky Valley GLBTQ Alliance.
"We dedicated today as a gay holiday and brought the kids out here to see political activism in action. They are the next generation of constituents," said Teige.

It took only six innings of play for the West Seattle Wildcats to defeat Nathan Hale due to the 10 run mercy rule in the two teams first game of the 2012 playoffs Thursday, May 10.

That’s relatively easy when the opponent is held scoreless. To single out any one player for this win would be inappropriate. This was a team victory all the way around. The Cats scored immediately in the bottom of the first inning and never looked back.

In the fifth inning with the bases loaded catcher Jimmy Mai launched a shot deep into right center field that ended up as a bases clearing double, giving the Wildcats a 9-0 lead.

Pitcher Jeff Freeman didn’t allow a Hale runner past second base until the top of the sixth when Nathan Hale had runners on the corners with two outs. The next batter hit an easily caught fly ball to end the threat.

In the bottom of the sixth with one out Sam Hellinger crossed the plate when Tim Adams lined a shot into the outfield giving the Cats ten runs and ending the game 10 - 0.

Their next opponent has yet to be announced.

Burien Arts sponsors "Sing and Sketch" on the second Thursday of the month, 6:30 p.m to 8:30 p.m. Musicians and visual artists can bring instruments and sketch pads and "perform" together at Gassho Gallery at 827 SW 152nd St. in Olde Burien. The next get-together will be June 14.

"This space is donated for our use by Jimi Lou Steambarge who rents the Gassho Gallery, so we're very grateful for that," said Linda Dougherty, Burien Arts Board President.

The MossyBack Morris Men, a Folklife Festival favorite, converged on the sidewalk in front of the West Seattle Wine Cellars, 6026 California Ave. SW, and favored customers and passersby with traditional English dance routines during the Thursday night Art Walk.

To the untrained eye, nothing seemed routine about them, as they performed the ancient Morris Dance from the Cotswold area of England. Most are handkerchief dances, while some utilize long wooden sticks the dancers cut from vine maple trees that grow in this area. Most dances are "six up" where six men stand side by side.

SeaTac lawmakers will discuss locally the global issues of climate change and sustainability at their May 22 study session.

The local issue is a $600 dues payment for membership in ICLEI, an international organization concerned with sustainability issues on a local level.

On May 8, six speakers, including three SeaTac residents, urged SeaTac council members to reject a voucher payment to ICLEI that was originally on the council’s consent agenda.

That led to a mini-debate between council members Barry Ladenburg and Rick Forschler on climate change.

Ladenburg said he found it almost laughable that people would still question the existence of global warming or climate change.

“The discussion over the question is over,” Ladenburg declared. “The question now is what do we do about it.”

He added that the problem must be dealt with on an international scale.
Forschler countered, “It is far from a settled issue.”

Press release:

Jenny Gao has been named a National Merit Scholar, one of just 700 high school seniors in the nation to achieve this exclusive academic honor. She is Aviation High School’s first National Merit Scholar. Jenny will attend Harvard University, where she plans to study engineering and applied sciences.

National Merit Scholarship winners are selected for their abilities, skills, and accomplishments in addition to SAT scores in the highest one-half of one percent.

Davis Yoshida from Aviation High school was a National Merit Finalist. He will attend the University of Colorado Boulder. He will study physics and plans to pursue graduate studies in astrophysics. Finalists test in the top one percent in the nation.

Highline also had three Commended Scholars, whose SAT scores are in the top two percent nationally:

Tyler Hall, from Mount Rainier High School, will attend University of Portland in the fall.

James Talbot, Mount Rainier High School, plans to double major in electrical engineering and computer sciences at Case Western University.

Sean Crowley, Aviation High School, has been appointed to West Point military academy.

A family quarrel turned dangerous on the 7500 block of 21st Ave S.W. on May 10, resulting in a 29-year-old male suffering a stab wound to the back.

According to Det. Renee Witt with the Seattle Police Department, an argument started between two brothers, 20 and 18 years old, at a home just off Delridge Way S.W. and within a half block of the SPD Southwest Precinct.

The argument escalated into two separate parties fighting and at some point in the melee a knife was produced and the victim was stabbed in the “lats” area, Witt said.

Ambulance, fire and squad cars responded en masse. EMTs were working on the victim at the scene before transporting him by ambulance. A male was placed into the back of a squad car, but it is unclear at this time if he is the stabbing suspect.

The stabbing occurred around 1:15 p.m.

This story will be updated when police finish their investigation.

On Monday afternoon, May 14, the city of Des Moines named its five finalists for police chief.

They are George Delgado, Commander, Vancouver, WA;
Charlie Dennis, former Chief of Police, Page, AZ;
John Dyer, Commander, Oak Harbor, WA; Stephen MacKinnon, Chief of Police, Santa Paula, CA; and Christopher Shawkey, former Chief of Police, Costa Mesa, CA.

Here is our previous coverage:

The public is invited to meet the five finalists for the Des Moines Chief of Police at a reception hosted by the City on May 21st from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Des Moines Activity Center, 2045 South 216th Street.

The position has been vacant since the retirement of Chief Roger Baker in June 2010, with Commander John O’Leary serving as interim chief since then.

The public will be able to informally meet and interact with the candidates during the reception.

No formal presentations or question and answer process will be conducted; however, a short written biography for each will be available. Comment forms will be on hand for citizens to offer their impressions of each candidate.