Whidbey News-Times, September 10, 2011

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NEWS-TIMES WHIDBEY

News: Schools start in Oak Harbor. A2

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011 | Vol. 120, No. 73 | WWW.WHIDBEYNEWSTIMES.COM | 75¢

Skin doctor charged with assault By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter

The banner to be displayed at Oak Harbor’s 9/11 memorial tomorrow features a patriotic image by the artist Jodi Bergsma.

A judge set bail for Dr. Donald “Russell” Johnson at $75,000 during a preliminary hearing in Island County Superior Court Thursday afternoon. The 51-year-old dermatologist appeared in handcuffs and orange jail clothes. He was represented in the hearing by a public defense attorney. Judge Vickie Churchill found there was probable cause to hold Johnson on suspicion of two counts of assault in the second degree and a single count of harassment / threats to kill. Prosecutors charged Johnson with the three counts Friday; the charges

were all filed as domesticviolence related. If convicted of the charges, he could face from 13 to 17 months in prison under the standard sentencing range. At the hearing Thursday, Senior Deputy Prosecutor Eric Ohme argued that Johnson should be held on a significant amount of bail because of the risk he’ll intimidate the witnesses or flee the area. He cited a story the News-Times broke this summer after Johnson abruptly closed his clinics in Coupeville and Anacortes and abandoned his patients because of massive financial problems. Ohme said the troubled doctor tried to strangle or suffocate his girlfriend

Dr. Donald ‘Russell’ Johnson consults with his attorney, Peter Simpson, during a hearing in Island County Superior Court Thursday, Johnson is accused of assaulting his girlfriend.

Big turnout urged for 9/11 ceremony Bones inflate project cost for city SEE JOHNSON, A8

By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter

By JUSTIN BURNETT

Whidbey Island residents will get the chance to commemorate the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and show their support for local firefighters at a ceremony in Oak Harbor Sunday. North Whidbey Fire and Rescue, Naval Air Station Whidbey Island Fire Department and the Oak Harbor Fire Department will co-host a memorial service for the 10-year anniversary of the 2001 attacks. It will begin at 1 p.m. at Windjammer Park in Oak Harbor. “We would like to get a big turnout by the community,” said Ray Merrill, training officer for North Whidbey Fire and Rescue. The ceremony will begin with a fly-over by a Navy searchand-rescue helicopter and will be capped with a parachutist dropping from the sky, carrying an American flag. Merrill said Jeremy Johnson, an Oak Harbor businessman, will make the dramatic entrance. The fire departments from the Naval Air Station Whidbey Island and Oak Harbor will have crossed ladders displaying the American Flag. Guest speakers include Capt. Jay Johnston, Commanding Officer NAS Whidbey; Island County Sheriff Mark Brown; Oak Harbor Mayor Jim Slowik and Marv Koorn, chief of North Whidbey Fire and Rescue. Capt. Johnston was at the Pentagon at the time of the attack.

Staff reporter

SEE CEREMONY, A8

The estimated cost of finding human remains on SE Pioneer Way has passed the half million dollar mark. In a presentation to the city council Tuesday, Project Manager Larry Cort said city officials now estimate the combined cost of the Native American bone drama at about $562,000. That includes $140,000 in unexpected expenses from the contractor, an extra $30,000 for additional survey work and $392,000 for archaeological and related efforts downtown. The tally does not include the cost of SEE PIONEER, A8

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Justin Burnett/Whidbey News-Times

Larry Cort, project manager for Oak Harbor’s SE Pioneer Way Improvement Project, walks down an unfinished sidewalk recently. A lot of progress has since been made, including finished sidewalks, but costs associated with the discovery of Native American remains continues to mount.

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