NorthwestMarch 26, 2012

Associated Press

Man dies, woman escapes duplex fire

BOISE - Boise police said a man died Sunday morning and a woman had to be treated for smoke inhalation after a fire at a duplex.

Police and the Ada County coroner are investigating the cause of death of the man. Police said he used a wheelchair and was unable to escape the blaze. Firefighters found him deceased in the residence.

Neighbors reported the fire at 2:37 a.m. When firefighters arrived they found one side of the duplex on fire, but were able to prevent flames from spreading to the adjacent duplex.

The man's name has not been released.

Police investigate accidental shooting

TWIN FALLS - Twin Falls police are investigating a report of an accidental shooting that injured a 27-year-old man.

Police said that following the reported accidental shooting on Saturday afternoon the man was taken to a Twin Falls hospital where he was stabilized and then flown to St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise.

Police said they are continuing to investigate, and that no arrests have been made and they aren't looking for suspects or people of interest.

The man's name hasn't been released.

Idaho women pay more for insurance

BOISE - The National Women's Law Center said women in Idaho pay hundreds of dollar more annually for health insurance than men pay.

The center said Idaho's best-selling insurance plans add more to a 40-year-old woman's insurance premiums than anywhere else in the nation.

The Idaho Statesman reported the center concluded price disparities are so unpredictable and prevalent that it's "difficult to see how actuarial justifications could explain the difference."

Montana, Washington and Oregon outlaw charging women more for health insurance, but Idaho lets insurers factor in a person's sex, age and tobacco use when setting insurance premiums.

But gender-based insurance ratings are being phased out by the 2010 health care reform law.

Ketchum looks at green-building codes

KETCHUM, Idaho - City officials in the central Idaho resort town of Ketchum are proposing a new green-building ordinance that would require construction companies to follow environmentally friendly requirements.

A city planner last week presented the proposed ordinance to the city council.

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The council in 2010 listed as a priority the development of a green-building code, and city leaders last year appointed a team to study green-building codes and educate the public.

Initial ideas for the code were developed in December and January.

Officials told the Idaho Mountain Express the code would require builders to incorporate energy-efficient and sustainable features.

City officials are predicting the building code will be accepted by the construction community.

Bellevue man accused in hatchet slaying

BELLEVUE, Wash. - A 71-year-old Bellevue man accused of using a hatchet to kill his wife of 46 years is in jail in lieu of $1 million bail.

Bellevue police said James Schumacher killed his 71-year-old wife while she was in bed and waited two days before walking into a police station Friday to report that he killed her. Police said Schumacher told detectives that he was tired of his wife's verbal abuse.

The Seattle Times reported a King County judge found probable cause Saturday to hold Schumacher on investigation of first-degree homicide.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office has not released the woman's identity.

Library, Legion battle over cannon

TACOMA - A Tacoma manuscript library and a local veterans group have intensified their fight over a World War II-era cannon.

The cannon stood outside the Karpeles Manuscript Library until the Legionnaires hauled it away earlier this year. It now is displayed outside the post's Parkland hall. The Legionnaires said the gun belongs to them, even though they left it behind when the group moved out of the building 20 years ago.

The library wants the cannon back. The News Tribune of Tacoma reported the library won a temporary injunction requiring the Legion to return the big gun unless it produced paperwork from the Army showing it had the right to move the cannon. The Legion said it has that right.

Pierce County Superior Court Judge Garold Johnson is set to hear the case Friday.

Man arrested after reportedly firing gun

HELENA, Mont. - Police in Helena said a four-hour standoff that started when a man fired a handgun in the direction of his girlfriend ended about 7:35 a.m. Sunday when a SWAT team entered the residence using a key and set off a flash-bang device.

Helena Police Chief Troy McGee said the man was in the bedroom and no one was injured during the arrest. He declined to provide additional details.

Associated Press

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