Vol. 125, No. 50
News-Times Whidbey
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24, 2015
Your hometown newspaper for 125 years
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Photo courtesy of Fountain of Youth Photography
A man who fell out of his kayak clings to the rock face at Deception Pass Saturday.
Kayakers saved from icy waters beneath bridge
By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter
Thanks to Deception Pass Tours, Father’s Day weekend didn’t turn into a tragedy for one man and his son. Jose Garcia, an officer at Whidbey Island Naval Air Station, was taking the boat tour, enjoying the sunny weather Saturday afternoon when the crew noticed that a couple of kayakers were in trouble. One of the men was out of his kayak, clinging to the sheer rocky walls underneath Deception Pass Bridge. The other man, who turned out to be his father, was struggling in vain to help him as a swirling eddy threatened to pull his son under. “He was literally clinging on with his last breath,” Garcia said. “He couldn’t hold on anymore. He was about to drown.” Boat captain and owner Brett Ginther turned the boat to help. Seeing help on its way, the younger man let go of the cliff and swam to his partially submerged kayak. Garcia said he grabbed a boat hook and held it out to the man, who was able to grab it. He and the other crew members pulled him aboard. He said the man was bluish and his arms felt stiff and frozen. Father and son were soon reunited and posed for a photo with their rescuers at Cornet Bay. “It truly was a blessing to be at the right place at the right time,” he said, “and if it wasn’t for Capt. Ginther and his crew, this could resulted in a tragic ending.”
Base opening gates to the public for Prowler Sunset By JANIS REID Staff reporter
Whidbey Island Naval Air Station is inviting the public to its second annual open house Saturday, June 27. The public event punctuates a weekend dedicated to saying goodbye to the EA-6B Prowler and its 45-year SEE PROWLER SUNSET, A5
Photo by Jessie Stensland/Whidbey News-Times
Fred Farris leads more than 250 protesters along Front Street in Coupeville on Father’s Day. The crowd gathered to protest the death of his son, Keaton Farris, in the Island County Jail.
Father of late inmate leads protest of jail conditions
By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter
More than 250 people in black shirts, many holding signs, quietly marched through Coupeville on Sunday to the Island County Jail, where they held hands to form a human chain encircling the facility. There, the protest grew in volume as people called out for justice and passing motorists honked in solidarity. Coupeville resident Fred Farris led the
reading the report, Island County Public Health Director Keith Higman placed nurse Nancy Barker on paid administrative leave pending an internal investigation. Barker is a registered nurse who worked at the jail. The report states that Farris arrived at the facility while Barker was on vacation, so she didn’t see him until jailers summoned her April 6, the day before SEE PROTEST, A8
Three have died inside Island County Jail in nine years By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter
Keaton Farris was the second person to die in the Island County Jail in 18 months and the third in nine years. Critics have pointed to the other deaths as evidence of ongoing and widespread problems at the jail. “I think they are linked,” said Becky Spraitzar, a North Whidbey resident who expressed concerns about the jail since Gregory McBride died there on Jan. 26, 2014.
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procession of mourners who gathered to protest the death of his son, 25-year-old Keaton Farris. The young man was suffering from mental health issues and died in jail from dehydration in April. The protest was spurred by Detective Ed Wallace’s report, which was released last week; it describes how the jailers’ failed to follow basic policies, resulting in the death. The fallout from and reaction to the report began prior to the protest. After
“I think if the sheriff did a thorough investigation when McBride died he would have known there were problems. It should have been fixed.” Law-and-justice officials, however, are quick to distinguish between the cases. No problems with jail operations or policies were identified following McBride’s death, according to Undersheriff Kelly Mauck. SEE JAIL, A8
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