Othello officers sworn in, Dorow appointed mayor pro tem

OTHELLO — Monday’s regular Othello City Council meeting featured a ceremony for the promotion and oath of office for Othello Police Officers Bryan Jacobsen and Omar Ledesma respectively, as well as a motion to approve a new Mayor Pro Tempore.

Officers soon will be allowed to work part-time

OLYMPIA – Washington remains 51st in the nation for police officers per capita, and one answer to that problem might be allowing officers to work part-time. Senate Bill 5424, sponsored by Sen. John Lovick, D-Mill Creek, would do just that. It awaits the governor's signature.

WA pursuit pivot

State Legislature passes people’s initiative to lighten police pursuits criteria

OLYMPIA – A legislative initiative to amend the existing statute regulating vehicular pursuits, successfully passed through the state Senate with a vote of 36-13 and the House with a vote of 77-20. Nevertheless, law enforcement emphasizes the need to reevaluate training methods for a safer and more comprehensive approach.

BBCC men finish season on a high note

MOSES LAKE — The Big Bend Community College men’s basketball team finished its season on a high note, according to an announcement from BBCC.

A pot of yum

Greenpoint Technologies chili cookoff showcases the variations on a traditional dish

MOSES LAKE — “What doesn’t kill you can turn your kidneys into a cinder brick.” That’s how Gary Neu, principal engineer at Greenpoint Technologies, summed up the tasty, yet sometimes powerful, dish known as chili.

Moses Lake Council hears downtown parking frustrations

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake City Council got an earful at its regular meeting Tuesday night, as owners and employees of downtown businesses expressed their feelings about the two-hour parking limit in the city’s center.

Law enforcement logs for March 22, 2024

The reports below were provided by the sheriff’s office or police department indicated. All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Ephrata PD March 13 Report of a vehicle stolen in the 400 block of Basin Street Northwest. Report of a vehicle damaged overnight in the 200 block of E Street Southwest. Report of a residential burglary in the 1200 block of D Street Southwest. A welder was stolen from inside the garage. Report of a two-vehicle collision on SR 282. Vehicle 1 passed vehicle 2 westbound but did not allow enough time to get back into the westbound lane and struck vehicle 2, smashing the driver’s side window and damaging the mirror. Vehicle 1 continued and was contacted by the Grant County Sheriff’s Office. Vehicle 2’s driver and a passenger sustained minor injuries.

MLFD firefighter sworn in at council meeting

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Fire Department welcomed its newest firefighter, Gary Lebacken, Tuesday with a swearing-in at the Moses Lake City Council meeting. The ceremony, which was originally scheduled for the end of the meeting, but the time was taken up with an unusually long period of citizen comments.

Law enforcement logs for March 15, 2024

The reports below were provided by the sheriff’s office or police department indicated. All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

SGL Carbon chief executive officer to resign

WIESBADEN, Germany — The Chief Executive Officer of SGL Carbon, parent company of the facility in Moses Lake, has announced his resignation effective May 31, 2025. Torsten Derr will stay on as CEO until his replacement is appointed or until May 31, 2025, according to a company press release issued Wednesday. Derr said the company is in a good financial position. “SGL Carbon is once again a strong and stable company whose profitable development I will continue to work on with all my strength until the last day. SGL Carbon is now sailing in stable waters and my transformation work will be completed shortly,” he said.

Building trust in police a key goal, Lovick says

OLYMPIA – Sen. John Lovick describes himself as a Black man with brown skin who wore a blue uniform for a combined 37 years as a former state trooper and Snohomish County Sheriff.

One dead, one wounded in Royal City shooting

ROYAL CITY – Royal City Police Department officers and detectives from the Moses Lake Police Department responded to a shooting in the 100 block of Grape Drive NW in Royal City Thursday evening, according to an announcement from the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

Virginia Lee Conway

July 5, 1925 — Feb. 28, 2024

Virginia Lee Conway, 98, a longtime Moses Lake resident, passed away February 28, 2024, in Moses Lake at the age of ninety-eight. She was born July 5, 1925, in Spokane, Washington to Joe and May Barnes, the second oldest of four children.

Fentanyl crisis in WA needs a turning point, so what is being done?

SEATTLE —Washington came to understand the scope and severity of the state's fentanyl crisis in 2023 more than any other year. Statistics have gone from bad to worse: Fentanyl set a record of fatal overdoses in 2023, with 1,082 — a 51% increase over record-setting 2022.

Law enforcement reports for March 8, 2024

The reports below were provided by the sheriff’s office or police department indicated. All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Ephrata PD Feb. 28 Report of damage to a fence in the 300 block of Sixth Avenue Southeast. March 1 Report of a speaker stolen from a business in the 1300 block of Nat Washington Way.

Local officers to be honored for bravery

MOSES LAKE — Five law enforcement officers from the Basin will be honored for their bravery in last year’s shooting at the Gorge Campground, according to an announcement from the Moses Lake Police Department. Det. Edgar Salazar, Det. Sgt. Kyle McCain, Det. Corp. Omar Ramirez and Officer Curt Ledeboer, of the MLPD, and Grant County Sheriff’s Office Det. Korey Judkins will receive the Washington State Medal of Honor for Exceptionally Meritorious Conduct in the Performance of Duty in a ceremony May 3 in Olympia, the announcement said. On June 17, 2023, the five detectives were working undercover at a concert at the Gorge Amphitheatre when a man, later identified as 26-year-old James M. Kelly, began shooting in the campground, killing two women and injuring three others, the MLPD wrote in the announcement. Kelly then took a captive female with him out into a field, where he continued to abuse her.

Well-earned retirement

MOSES LAKE – The Moses Lake Police Department announced the retirement of Sgt. Brian Jones after 26 years of service to the Moses Lake community late last week. During his time on the force, Jones served on the Interagency Narcotics Team, Honor Guard and the Moses Lake Regional Response Team. he was promoted to sergeant in 2006 and was assigned as a patrol sergeant. He later moved into Investigations, grew that department, and helped form the MLPD Street Crimes Unit.

‘Parents Bill of Rights’ initiative gains unanimous approval in WA Senate

OLYMPIA- The Washington Senate dolled out a unanimous vote Monday to pass a proposed initiative to clarify parental rights regarding their children’s education and medical records in public schools.

GCSO, Royal PD welcome new K-9 officers

EPHRATA – The Grant County Sheriff’s Office has brought on two new dogs to serve as K-9 officers, and the Royal City Police Department has brought on its first-ever K-9 officer as well, according to announcements from the two agencies.

Same-day report required for stolen guns

OLYMPIA – When a student at Seattle’s Ingraham High School was shot and killed two years ago, an investigation revealed the gun used in the crime was stolen. Now, advocates from that community are speaking out and asking that more be done to curb the use of stolen firearms.