News-Times Whidbey
LIVING: Playhouse’s new show is to die for. A10
WEDNESDAY, JULY 11, 2012 | Vol. 113, No. 55 | www.whidbeynewstimes.com | 75¢
Big quack-up slows traffic on Pioneer Way By JUSTIN BURNETT Staff reporter
Justin Burnett / Whidbey News-Times
South Whidbey artist Georgia Gerber (front left) and Oak Harbor Senior Planner Cac Kamak (front right) work with others to set the third duck in Gerber’s “Stumbly Ducklings” piece in downtown Oak Harbor Tuesday morning.
Oak Harbor gained three new and permanent residents Tuesday with the installation of the “Stumbly Ducklings” bronze in downtown Oak Harbor. The piece, which depicts a heart-warming scene of two ducklings being chased by a third that has “stumbled,” was created by renowned South Whidbey artist Georgia Gerber. It is the third and final work specifically commissioned as part of the SE Pioneer Way Improvement Project. “I think they are just fabulous,” said K.C. Pohtilla, a member of the Oak Harbor Arts Commission. She, along with several other arts commission members, city officials and business owners, turned out to watch the installation of the piece on the southern sidewalk between SE Hathaway and SE Ireland Street Tuesday morning. The overwhelming consensus among the crowd was that the ducklings exceeded all expectations. They are certainly a long way from the cardboard cutout displays that were presented to See ducks, A7
Murder suspect’s court appearance ends quickly By JUSTIN BURNETT Staff reporter
Justin Burnett / Whidbey News-Times
2.
Along with owning the Harbor Pizzeria in Freeland, the couple also worked for Raytheon Corporation, a major defense contractor. Baker is a scientist and spent part of each year in Antarctica. See court, A7
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Robert “Al” Baker, 61, makes a brief appearance in Island County Superior Court Monday. His bail hearing and arraignment have been rescheduled.
A Freeland man accused of murdering his wife made a quick appearance in Island County Superior Court Monday. Robert “Al” Baker, 61, was scheduled for arraignment and a bail hearing but the proceedings were cut short when Judge Alan Hancock agreed to a request for continuance. Baker’s counsel, Coupeville attorney Craig Platt, asked to reschedule until next month. His request was in cooperation with Senior Deputy
Prosecutor Eric Ohme of the Island County Prosecutor’s Office. Hancock approved the request and both the arraignment and bail hearing were rescheduled for Aug. 13. Baker is accused of slaying his wife, Kathie Baker, 53, early last month. Her body was found June 9 wrapped in a tarp in a ravine behind the couple’s Greenbank home. She had been hit in the head, possibly with a ball-peen hammer, and strangled with a ligature, according to court records. She was last seen alive on June