SEE INSIDE: Traffic signal being installed at intersection near schools, Page 4 . . . . Make a game plan to grab summer tourism dollars, Page 5 . . . White River grad finishes fourth in New York Dream Mile, Page 10. . . . White River Class of 2012 take their final bows at White River Amphitheater, Page 3
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Wednesday, June 13, 2012
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Detectives say wound was selfinflicted
Parry! Thrust!
This year’s pruning brings additional challenges for gardeners. | Going Green, 8
Sumner police press charges after victim initially told officials he was stabbed. Updates daily at
By Brian Beckley Staff Writer
BLSCourierHerald.com
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Weather
The forecast calls for mostly cloudy skies with a 50 percent chance of showers today, Wednesday, with highs in the mid-60s. The chance of rain begins to drop Thursday and clear skies are expected for Friday with a high near 70. The weekend should bring mostly cloudy skies with highs in the upper 60s.
Graduation Graduation ceremonies for Bonney Lake High School and Sumner High School occurred too late for this edition of the Courier-Herald, but check www.blscourierherald.com for complete coverage.
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A pair of Live Action Role Players—LARPers—battle during the Fantasy Faire Sunday at the Swiss Sportsmen’s Club in Bonney Lake. The Fantasy Faire is an annual festival featuring merchants, cannon and other weapon demonstrations, music and games. Attendees wear costumes that fit medieval, renaissance, pirate and steampunk aesthetics. Photo by Daniel Nash.
Sumner Police investigating a reported stabbing along state Route 410 East June 5 have concluded the wounds are most likely self-inflicted. According to Acting Chief Brad Moericke, an investigation by Sumner Detectives contradict the man’s initial story of being thrown from a car along the highway. The incident began at approximately 10:30 p.m. June 5 with calls from motorists about a bleeding male on the shoulder of eastbound SR410 between the Valley Avenue and Traffic Avenue exits. Police responded and contacted a man in his 20s with a laceration wound to his abdomen. East Pierce Fire and Rescue transported the man to St. Joseph’s hospital in Tacoma.
See Stabbing, Page 11
Fire department plans August levy Falling property values have cost East Pierce Fire and Rescue nearly $3 million By Brian Beckley Staff Writer
For the first time, East Pierce Fire and Rescue will ask voters this summer to approve a maintenance and operations levy to help battle the continuing drop in assessed home values. “This is a new thing for us,” Chief Jerry Thorson said. The measure will be on the Aug. 7 ballot.
According to Thorson, if approved, the $3 million levy will counteract the drop in home values, to which 90 percent of East Pierce’s funding is tied. “Every time they take a hit it affects our budget directly,” he said. Thorson said the fire agency has been forced to cut $2.9 million for its budget over the past several years due to declining assessed
valuation, a trend the department expects will continue for at least two more years, including an approximately 7 percent reduction in 2013. “We’ve cut the budget every year,” he said. “The $3 million kind of gets us back to where we were.” Thorson said East Pierce has taken pay cuts, furlough days, delayed maintenance and left positions open to save money. Training has been cut by approximately 30 percent and the department has reduced overtime by 48 percent. But any further cuts
could mean residents see the effects. “If we don’t have this approved, we’ll have to do some cuts into areas Chief Jerry Thorson of service the citizens see,” Thorson said. “And we’re trying to avoid that.” In 2011, East Pierce firefighters responded to 8,362 total emergency calls. Of those, 6,163 were
See Levy, Page 4