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Activists block tracks Five arrested in oil train protest in Everett, A3 WEDNESDAY, 09.03.2014
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EVERETT, WASHINGTON
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Java Juggs owner pleads guilty Woman who ran drive-through brothels could testify against ex-cop By Diana Hefley Herald Writer
MARK MULLIGAN / THE HERALD
Former stripper Carmela Panico, 52, of Snohomish pleaded guilty to second-degree promoting prostitution and money laundering.
EVERETT — A Snohomish woman admitted Tuesday that she operated drive-through brothels out of her bikini espresso stands and laundered the hefty profits to conceal her crimes. Carmela Panico was in Snohomish County Superior Court to answer to allegations that her coffee huts, Java Juggs and Twin Peaks, were prostitution
operations that made her millions. In an agreement reached before the hearing, Panico pleaded guilty to second-degree promoting prostitution and money laundering, both felonies. In exchange, the former exotic dancer will surrender her claims to the nearly $250,000 Everett police seized from her home in 2013. Panico also agreed to walk away from her coffee businesses, turning her five Snohomish County stands over to the city of Everett. She also promised not to
operate any new coffee huts in the county. Panico, 52, also must provide “testimony against others who were involved in her criminal activities.” That could mean she will testify against Darrell O’Neill, a former Snohomish County sheriff’s sergeant accused of helping Panico avoid detection by police. O’Neill allegedly was given sex in exchange for his help. Panico admitted on Tuesday that she personally provided sexual favors to the former
OSO MUDSLIDE
Brothers’ legacy brings joy
sergeant. O’Neill’s trial is scheduled to begin in November. Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Bob Hendrix plans to recommend that Panico be sentenced to two days in jail and be given credit for two days already served. She is scheduled to be sentenced in March and faces up to a year in jail. After Tuesday’s hearing, See GUILTY, back page, this section
Port panel chooses insider for top job Les Reardanz, currently the Everett port’s No. 2 official, will succeed his boss By Dan Catchpole Herald Writer
Playground renovated in boys’ memory By Scott North Herald Writer
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SMOKEY POINT — They remembered two little boys Tuesday with love and generosity and the joyful noise of children at play. Hunter and Wyatt Ruthven were among the youngest victims of the March 22 Oso mudslide. The brothers, 6
and 4, died along with their parents and two of their grandparents when the hill swept away their home along the banks of the North Fork Stillaguamish River. At the Northwest Children’s School in Smokey Point, where the boys had attended preschool classes, surviving family and friends gathered Tuesday to dedicate a renovated playground in their memory.
VOL. 114, NO. 203 © 2014 THE DAILY HERALD CO.
INSIDE
Business . . . . . A9 Classified . . . . B1
Comics . . . . . . D4 Crossword . . . D4
Another crackup Sometimes boys and cars don’t mix: Justin Bieber’s got car trouble again (Page A2). The Canadian pop star faces new charges after he was arrested for dangerous driving and assault following a collision that triggered a physical altercation involving a Dear Abby . . . D5 Good Life . . . . D1
There were tears, but also whoops of delight as children clambered over a new climbing cave and into a multistory fort outfitted with a slide and bars. “Seeing all these kids playing, it is like ‘Wow!’” said the boys’ grandmother, Karen Pszonka. See PLAYGROUND, back page, this section
photographer near his hometown of Stratford, Ontario. Exactly what happened is unclear; perhaps the photographer was simply trying to take Bieber’s car keys away. Frozen tundra: As the world gets warmer, parts of North America could get
Horoscope . . . B6 Lottery . . . . . . A2
Obituaries . . . A7 Opinion . . . . A11
those frigid “polar vortex” conditions more often, a new study says (Page A8). If the trend continues, the only thing colder than our winters will be Justin Bieber’s record sales. That’s a lot of cheap: Dollar General has raised its takeover bid for rival Family Dollar in a new proposal Short Takes . . D6 Sports . . . . . . C1
See PORT, Page A2
aimed at easing antitrust concerns (Page A9). The new bid is $9.1 billion, which would buy a coffee mug with “Great Minds Have Messy Desks” on it for every man, woman and child on Earth, with enough left over to give a bag of stale Halloween candy to everyone in China.
— Mark Carlson, Herald staff
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GENNA MARTIN / THE HERALD
Tom and Karen Pzonka (left) hold their granddaughters Peighton, 6, and Basia, 4, as the Rev. Tim Sauer prays during a dedication ceremony for a new playground at the Northwest Children’s School in Smokey Point on Tuesday morning.
EVERETT — With a stack of ambitious projects in the works or on the planning board, Port of Everett commissioners tapped an insider to take over the port’s top job. The three commissioners on Tuesday voted unanimously to offer the job to Les Reardanz, the port’s deputy executive director. He will succeed his boss, outgoing port director John Mohr, who will stay on through the end of the year to help with the transition. PORT OF EVERETT Reardanz told the Les Reardanz commissioners he is “humbled and honored” by their decision. “I will work very hard to justify that confidence,” he said. The port has a stack of ambitious plans to reinvigorate little-used land, clean up decades of pollution and expand shipping facilities. Some projects are already complete, others are under way and even more have
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