SOUNDER THE ISLANDS’
Serving Orcas, Lopez and San Juan County
The Islands’ Sounder is a proud sponsor of
7pm
WEDNESDAY, July 2, 2014 VOL. 47, NO. 27 75¢ islandssounder.com
Independence day fun
Raccoons causing trouble in North Beach area? by CALI BAGBY Assistant editor
Colleen Smith Armstrong/staff photos
Parade fun and an audience member at the logging show last year. For a schedule of events, see page 11.
Last week, Rene Sturk was horrified as she approached her chicken coop and found one of her birds without a head. “It was quite gruesome,” said Sturk, who lives in the North Beach area. Sturk assumed that a raccoon pulled the chicken half way through the pen’s wiring then bit off its head since the coop was fully enclosed. She didn’t see the attack, but had noticed a raccoon in a tree nearby for the past week. Several residents of the North beach neighborhood have reported raccoon attacks over the past few years. It’s unclear why raccoons are more bold in this location. Shona Aitken, education coordinator of Wolf Hollow Wildlife Rehabilitation, said raccoon attacks are very rare. According to Aitken, if an animal is fed consistently by people they lose their wariness of humans, and they can become more confident. She added that raccoons, which are omnivores, mostly forage for smaller meals like snails, slugs and berries. “They eat a wide range of stuff,” she said. “In general they are not hunters.” Adult raccoons weigh 15 to 40 pounds, their weight being a result of genetics, age, available
Orcas man charged with alleged meth dealing by SCOTT RASMUSSEN Journal editor
An Orcas Island man accused of selling methamphetamine out of his Rosario-area home is slated to stand trial in early September on felony drug and weapons charges. On July 27, David Atanas Andreev, 39, pleaded not guilty in San Juan County Superior Court to three counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, a Class B felony, and to two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, a Class C felony. He was released three days after his arrest, pending a Sept. 5 trial date, on $75,000 bail. Andreev was taken into custody June 13 after local deputies and detectives, backed by a search warrant and assisted by a Bellinghambased K-9 unit, descended on his Geisers Way home. Authorities seized cash, scales, packag-
ing materials, firearms and drugs, including 24 grams of methamphetamine and eight ounces of packaged marijuana, according to a probable cause affidavit filed by the San Juan County Sheriff ’s Department. The bundle of confiscated items include a .22-caliber rifle, a .32-caliber revolver and ammunition. Andreev, convicted in 2005 of first-degree possession of stolen property, is prohibited from possessing firearms as the result of that felony conviction. According to the sheriff ’s department, the arrest was the culmination of a four-month investigation into suspicious activity in and around the Rosario-area home. That activity, such as a steady flow of vehicles at all hours of the day, many of which reportedly stayed for only a brief period, prompted numerous complaints to the sheriff ’s department and a
meeting of concerned neighbors in late April that was attended, at the neighbors’ request, by the county prosecuting attorney. A Class B felony, possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver carries maximum penalties of 5 years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both; however the standard range of sentencing set by the state is 21-27 months for a first offense. According to court documents, authorities believe that Andreev’s alleged drug-dealing may have prompted a break-in and attempted armed robbery at his Geisers Way home in December 2013. Detectives suspect the defendant in that case, Bradley Kenneth Stoner, who has since pleaded guilty to attempted assault and burglary, believed Andreev would be in possession of a good deal of cash because of the alleged sale of illicit drugs.
food, and habitat location. Some males have weighed in at over 60 pounds. The average life span of a raccoon in the wild is two to three years. As long as raccoons are kept out of human homes, not cornered, and not treated as pets, they are not dangerous, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Raccoon populations can get quite large in urban areas, due to hunting and trapping restrictions, few predators, and humansupplied food, according to the USFWS’s website. During this time of year, raccoons are out more frequently in the day searching for food to feed their kits. Aitken added that the best way to deal with raccoons is to make sure they are not enticed to come onto your property. This can be accomplished in a few steps: 1: Spray your yard and deck with unpleasant scents like coyote urine (available for purchase online), lemon juice or vinegar. If you see raccoons in your yard, spray them with a hose to show them they are not welcome. Installing motion sensors for lights or sprinklers also detracts animals from coming closer. 2: Keep compost, garbage and other food contained. Do not leave
SEE RACCOONS, PAGE 7
Sounder deadlines Display advertising: Friday at noon Classified advertising: Monday at noon Legal advertising: Thursday at noon Press releases, Letters: Friday at 3 p.m.
How to reach us Office: 376-4500 Fax: 1-888-562-8818 Advertising: advertising@ islandssounder.com Classified: 1-800-388-2527, classifieds@ soundpublishing.com Editor: editor@ islandssounder.com