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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012 | Vol. 14, No. 3 WWW.BREMERTONPATRIOT.COM | 50¢
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VALENTINE’S EXHIBIT HELPS FIGHT SEX TRAFFICKING POULSBO — The Front Street Gallery in Poulsbo will feature new artists Joanne Scott and Colleen Cotey as part of the Poulsbo Second Satruday Art Walk this weekend. In return for purchases, the gallery will donate 5 percent of sales during the art walk to Scarlett Road, a nonprofit that fights sex trafficking in Washington. The art walk is Feb. 11, 5-8 p.m. For more information, call (360) 598-6133. See pages 5-6 for more upcoming events in Kitsap.
40TH CHILLY HILLY BIKE RIDE IS JUST TWO WEEKS AWAY
BAINBRIDGE — The Chilly Hilly bike ride is just two weeks away and will help kick off the cycling season for the 40th year in a row. The ride, held on Feb. 26, is 33 miles of Bainbridge Island terrain. The 2010 event brought a record 6,000 riders. The event is a fundraiser for the Cascade Bicycle Club. All members receive a discount off registration. Bainbridge organizations will set up tables with home-baked goods and drinks for sale. Riders can stop midway in the ride for free hot apple cider and cookies. There will also be a chili feed at the finish line, benefitting the Squeaky Wheels Bicycle Club. The course is open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. For information about registering or the course, visit blog.cascade. org/category/events/chillyhilly.
The
frugal way of life Lanelle Devlin, left and Cindy Gillick share coupons during a recent coupon swap. Devlin hosts swaps and teaches classes on ways to stretch grocery money.
Couponers share their cash-saving secrets BY ERIN JENNINGS Kitsap Week
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pples may grow on trees, but that doesn’t make them free. If your last grocery trip emptied your wallet, coupon guru Lanelle Devlin has some advice: “Never pay full retail price on the stuff you want. By using coupons and in-store promotions, it doesn’t take much effort for me to save at least 50 percent.” Devlin organizes coupon swaps and teaches classes on ways to stretch your grocery money. She purchases hundreds of dollars worth of groceries for a small fraction of their original price. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the price of groceries rose 6 percent in 2011. In 2010 grocery
Contributed photo
prices increased by 1.7 percent. And while grocery prices have gone up, many households have experienced a decline in monthly income. Ali Perry attended her first coupon swap last week. The Bainbridge Island resident and mother of three encountered a dramatic cut to her work hours. To help close the financial gap, she’s turned to coupons and tries to seek out the best possible deal.
“I don’t have a choice,” Perry said. “I need to feed my kids.” Perry said the real money-saving deals come when she combines a store coupon with a manufacture’s coupon. But she admits matching coupons and store-promotions can be challenging and labor-intensive. “I think of it as a game,” Perry said. “How far can I stretch my money?” Perry posts photos of her grocery
receipts on Facebook, impressing her friends with her savings. One photo shows savings of 98 percent after a purchase. An important part of being frugal is thinking ahead and being prepared. That means being aware of the grocery store cycles, Devlin said. Take Thanksgiving for example. The holiday is a great time See FRUGAL, Page A3
KITSAP WEEK Couponing frugality, the Chilly Hilly and valentine vs. sex trafficking
A section of the Bainbridge Island Review | Bremerton Patriot | Central Kitsap Reporter | North Kitsap Herald | Port Orchard Independent
Minority ratings for Superior Court appointments encouraged Governor’s office asks Kitsap County judicial candidates to prove sensitivity to minority issues BY JJ SWANSON JSWANSON@SOUNDPUBLISHING.COM
courtesy of Bremerton Police Department
Bremerton Police Department released this sketch Feb. 7 of their suspect in the Feb. 3 Melody Brannon murder.
Police release sketch of murder suspect Neighbors concerned by violent crimes; Mayor Lent calls for stronger police presence BY JJ SWANSON JSWANSON@SOUNDPUBLISHING.COM
The body of 61-year-old Melody Brannon was found on the 1300 block of High Avenue around 6 p.m., Feb. 3 and police won’t say by whom. Brannon’s murder now joins the unsolved Warren Avenue murder of 19-year-old Sara Burke in occupying the minds of the Bremerton detective unit who has made it a “top priority,” according to Lt. Peter Fisher. Bremerton police released a sketch of the murder suspect Tuesday and
will be instructed by Bremerton Mayor Patty Lent to increase police presence in the Union Hill neighborhood during coming months to combat the concentrated number of violent crimes that happen there. Brannon’s is the third murder within four years. All three murders were committed within one mile of each other. The suspect in Brannon’s murder investigation is described as a “a light-skinned black or mixed race male, in his late teens or early 20s.” The suspect was last seen near Brannon’s house during the time of the murder, which police will not release. He is believed to be about 6 feet tall and slender, wearing a black or navy blue watch cap and having a blemish near his nose. Brannon lived alone and moved to the neighborhood in 2011. The Kitsap County Coroner’s Office said
that staff contacted her next-of-kin, who live near Federal Way, on the same evening she was found dead. Fisher said that the police will not release details on how Brannon was murdered, where in the home she was found or how long she was deceased when investigators arrived at the crime scene as that information is “still sensitive to the investigation.” Andy Oakley, crime statistician for Bremerton Police Department, said that the one-mile radius around the Brannon murder is known for having “a lot of misdemeanor assaults” as well as minor fights reported around Bremerton High School. In addition, Oakley’s numbers show 33 burglaries and 15 “more serious” assaults, including three with a deadly weapon charges since 2009. SEE MURDER, A8
With the pending passage of legalized marriage, several Washington state judges up for appointment and local Superior Court judges facing reelection later this year, voters should pay attention to what minority groups think of the candidates. Minority bar associations throughout the state are advocating for their community’s interests on the bench by “vetting” judges or judicial candidates through its rankings process, which involves an interview of the candidate, checking professional references, including opposing council, and reviewing the candidate’s legal career through the lens of minority issues. “Voting for judges is tough, even if you are an experienced attorney,” Andy Sachs, board member of the GLBT Bar Association of Washington said. “What a judicial candidate is allowed to talk about is so narrow in scope, sometimes you are just reduced SEE HOMELESS, A8 to
looking at their resume, seeing where they went to law school and that’s all you get.” For example, a Kitsap County judicial candidate may send materials to be evaluated by the Asian Bar Association of Washington or Washington Women Lawyers to see how they measure up to those groups’ criteria. Gov. Chris Gregoire’s office encouraged all Kitsap County Superior Court candidates submit themselves to as many minority ratings as possible before the Feb. 17 deadline. “To her credit, the governor has made it clear that when she’s in a position to appoint, she wants to see the minority bar ratings in addition to more traditional ratings,” Sachs said. Candidates are rated “not qualified,” “qualified,” “well-qualified,” or “exceptionally wellqualified” based on committee vote. Ratings are valid for two to three years. Results are reported directly to the governor’s office, the Kitsap County Bar Association and posted SEE COURT, A8