Washington news

• Small earthquake recorded in downtown Seattle

  03-12-2015 22:49
  
  A small 2.5 magnitude earthquake was recorded Thursday afternoon in Seattle.
  
  Read more

• Family sues after police question 3rd-grader for hours

  03-12-2015 21:36
  
  PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A third-grader was taken off a school bus and questioned for hours by police because another girl falsely reported the 8-year-old had chemicals in her backpack, her family said in a lawsuit Thursday. The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island, which filed the federal lawsuit against the town of Tiverton, […]
  
  Read more

• Fire in baggage loader delays Sea-Tac flight

  03-12-2015 21:25
  
  A Virgin America flight heading to Los Angeles was delayed after the device used to move baggage onto the plane caught fire.
  
  Read more

• Man sentenced to 6 years for violent Bellingham home invasion

  03-12-2015 21:15
  
  A 19-year-old man has been sentenced to six years in prison for breaking into a Bellingham apartment, beating a resident and holding the occupants at gunpoint.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Bill Clinton postpones Seattle fundraiser for his wife

  03-12-2015 20:56
  
  Former President Bill Clinton postpones Seattle political fundraiser.
  
  Read more

• Lawyer for indicted Auditor Kelley to hold disputed $1M

  03-12-2015 20:52
  
  A federal judge ordered the Justice Department to turn over nearly $1 million to a lawyer for indicted State Auditor Troy Kelley, but he can’t spend it without permission.
  
  Read more

• Driver in Tulalip crash that killed 4 was drunk, says sheriff’s office

  03-12-2015 19:50
  
  The 21-year-old driver whose pickup went over a concrete barrier and into a pond in Tulalip, killing four, was drunk at the time of the August crash, officials say.
  
  Read more

• Snow report: Stevens Pass opening Friday; Mount Baker to get up to 4 feet of snow

  03-12-2015 19:41
  
  Skiers and snowboarders will relish what is being termed as an “atmospheric river” stirring off Washington’s coast that will bring plenty of moisture to the Cascades Thursday through Sunday. Stevens Pass Mountain Resort announced they will be open beginning Friday for daily operations weather permitting. Skiers and snowboarders will have access to Steven’s Daisy chairlift, […]
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Snow report: Mount Baker to get up to 4 feet of snow; Stevens Pass could open by Friday

  03-12-2015 19:41
  
  Skiers and snowboarders will relish what is being termed as an “atmospheric river” stirring off Washington’s coast that will bring plenty of moisture to the Cascades Thursday through Sunday. Many local ski areas like Stevens Pass Mountain Resort are right on the verge of opening for winter operations, and plan to make an official announcement […]
  
  Read more

• Taylor Swift donates $50,000 to Seattle Symphony

  03-12-2015 19:00
  
  From one Grammy winner to another: Taylor Swift donates $50,000 to the Seattle Symphony, inspired by its commission and performance of John Luther Adams’ award-winning “Become Ocean.”
  
  Read more

• Pop megastar Taylor Swift donates $50,000 to Seattle Symphony

  03-12-2015 19:00
  
  From one Grammy winner to another: Taylor Swift donates $50,000 to the Seattle Symphony, inspired by its commission and performance of John Luther Adams’ award-winning “Become Ocean.”
  
  Read more

• NASA counting on 1st US space station shipment in months

  03-12-2015 18:41
  
  CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA is looking to get back on track with the first U.S. delivery to the International Space Station in nearly eight months. An unmanned Atlas rocket was poised to blast off at 5:55 p.m. Thursday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, with 7,400 pounds of supplies. But clouds and rain threatened to […]
  
  Read more

• Weekend traffic tie-ups ahead from bridge construction, Figgy Pudding event

  03-12-2015 18:32
  
  Westbound I-90, eastbound Highway 520 and Westlake Center are expected to be traffic trouble spots this weekend.
  
  Read more

• Professor who created Peace Corps language method dies at 90

  03-12-2015 17:56
  
  HANOVER, N.H. (AP) — John Rassias, a Dartmouth College professor who created a unique method to teach languages that was adopted by the Peace Corps, has died. He was 90. Rassias died Wednesday at his home in Norwich, Vermont, according to a statement from college President Philip Hanlon. Rassias was a consultant and developer with […]
  
  Read more

• Centralia woman drowns under mysterious circumstances

  03-12-2015 16:59
  
  Officials say a 33-year-old woman whose body was found in the Cowlitz River died from drowning, but the manner of her death has been ruled undetermined.
  
  Read more

• More high winds on the way; Eastside reports power outages

  03-12-2015 15:46
  
  Gusts at high as 60 mph could cause problems in the Puget Sound area Thursday. Freezing rain and snow will hit the mountain passes.
  
  Read more

• Europe probe tests tech for detecting ripples in space time

  03-12-2015 15:35
  
  BERLIN (AP) — The European Space Agency launched a rocket Thursday carrying two cubes of gold and platinum almost a million miles from Earth so scientists can see how they’ll behave in a freefall — at a cost of more than $450 million. What may sound like a frivolous enterprise is actually the prelude to […]
  
  Read more

• No Child revision easily clears House, would reduce testing, Common Core

  03-12-2015 15:24
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Long outdated and widely criticized as unrealistic, the 2002 No Child Left Behind education law is on track for a major revision after the House voted to dramatically limit the federal government’s role in education policy but keep the annual testing requirements for the nation’s public schoolchildren. A bipartisan compromise measure worked […]
  
  Read more

• No Child revision easily clears House, would reduce feds’ role in education

  03-12-2015 15:24
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Long outdated and widely criticized as unrealistic, the 2002 No Child Left Behind education law is on track for a major revision after the House voted to dramatically limit the federal government’s role in education policy but keep the annual testing requirements for the nation’s public schoolchildren. A bipartisan compromise measure worked […]
  
  Read more

• More rains coming as south India grapples with massive flood

  03-12-2015 15:22
  NEW DELHI (AP) — The heaviest rainfall in more than 100 years has devastated swathes of the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, forcing thousands to leave their submerged homes as schools, offices and an airport remained shut for a second day Thursday. Chennai, the state capital, received more than 330 millimeters (13 inches) of […]
  
  Read more

• Report: WSU a standout in improving grad rates for minority students

  03-12-2015 15:02
  
  College graduation rates are improving for all students, but minority student rates continue to lag behind those for white students, according to a new national report that highlights efforts at Washington State University to close the gap.
  
  Read more

• Democratic state lawmaker to take on Jim McDermott in next year’s House race

  03-12-2015 14:30
  
  Fourteen-term U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott will face an intraparty challenge in 2016 from a fellow Democrat: state Rep. Brady Walkinshaw.
  
  Read more

• Democrat, 31, to take on Jim McDermott in 2016 House race

  03-12-2015 14:30
  
  Fourteen-term U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott will face an intraparty challenge in 2016 from a fellow Democrat: state Rep. Brady Walkinshaw.
  
  Read more

• Startup Nohla Therapeutics to build on Hutch cord-blood work

  03-12-2015 14:00
  
  Nohla Therapeutics is working to improve the use of umbilical-cord blood and its application in helping patients at risk of low white-cell counts from chemotherapy.
  
  Read more

• Almost ready to ride: tours of delayed First Hill streetcar line

  03-12-2015 06:04
  
  The public can tour Seattle’s new First Hill streetcars Thursday during a walk-through and safety event midday Thursday — a sign they’re almost ready to ride.
  
  Read more

• Virginia Mason named a top hospital for 10th straight year

  03-12-2015 05:55
  
  Seattle’s Virginia Mason Medical Center has been named a top hospital for the 10th straight year by The Leapfrog Group.
  
  Read more

• Norovirus fears close Main Street Gyros in Seattle

  03-12-2015 05:33
  
  Main Street Gyros in Seattle was closed Tuesday after three people who ate there were reported to have symptoms of norovirus, health officials said.
  
  Read more

• Lawyer for indicted state auditor grills FBI accountant in second day of hearing

  03-12-2015 05:16
  
  The attorney for indicted State Auditor Troy Kelley continued his assault on the government’s theft and money-laundering case Wednesday, questioning a key investigator about his role in a Chicago tax-evasion investigation.
  
  Read more

• Burgess admits Twitter account violated Seattle elections code

  03-12-2015 03:40
  
  Seattle City Council President Tim Burgess has admitted to violating the city’s elections code by using an official Twitter account for campaigning. He’ll pay a $150 fine.
  
  Read more

• Two months later, victim of Ride the Ducks crash struggles with recovery, expenses

  03-12-2015 03:07
  
  Phuong Dinh, 18, and her lawyer say initial response of aid has since subsided.
  
  Read more

• Man’s request for names of all Block Watch captains puzzles SPD

  03-12-2015 02:50
  
  A self-proclaimed privacy advocate seeking the names of all of the city’s Block Watch captains has left Block Watch captains scratching their heads wondering what he wants the information for.
  
  Read more

• Disclosure commission set to vote on streamlining, penalty hikes

  03-12-2015 02:24
  The state Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) is expected to vote Thursday morning on changes intended to help reduce the time it takes to resolve some disclosure complaints, as well as proposals to raise the penalties for some violations.
  
  Read more

• Historian Patricia Limerick: We can’t change history, but we can change how we understand it

  03-12-2015 02:21
  
  Filling in neglected parts of history is ongoing and necessary work.
  
  Read more

• Northgate’s ‘singing tree’ in 1963

  03-12-2015 01:10
  
  Oh, Christmas tree! Northgate Mall’s 40-foot artificial “singing tree” was constructed in the summer of 1958. In the daytime, music from the tree would come from an audio tape and an artificial choir. A 1958 Seattle Times article described the structure as “an artificial evergreen which has lifelike plastic choir boys and girls peeking through its […]
  
  Read more

• Seattle police roll out special protocol after California shootings

  03-12-2015 01:05
  
  When news of the mass shooting in San Bernardino reached the Seattle Police Department, Assistant Chief Robert Merner put into place a protocol that has become standard procedure around police headquarters.
  
  Read more

• Nevada judge sets more hearings in Reno end-of-life case

  03-12-2015 00:46
  
  RENO, Nev. (AP) — A Nevada judge won’t decide for several weeks whether a Reno hospital can withdraw life-support from a 20-year-old woman who was declared brain-dead more than six months ago. Washoe County Family Court Judge Frances Doherty on Wednesday set additional hearings Dec. 29 and Jan. 22 to hear evidence in the case […]
  
  Read more

• Skull found near Highway 2 between Gold Bar and Index

  03-12-2015 00:13
  
  A logger found the human skull last week in woods west of Highway 2 in Snohomish County.
  
  Read more

Follow @newsWashington_ on Twitter!