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Don Day: October 2006 Archives
Jury selection in Duncan case cancelled; plea deal possibleFIRST ON KTVB.COM Fox offered no attribution for the report. NewsChannel 7 has learned the Kootenai Co. Sheriff's Office has cancelled jury selection - originally set to begin this morning. Capt. Ben Wolfinger says he attended a meeting with First District Judge Fred Gibler on Sunday, who called a court hearing at 9am Monday morning. KREM News Spokane has also called several sources and victim's family members. However, they say they are under a court-issued gag order. Duncan is accused of killing Brenda and Slade Groene, and family friend Mark McKenzie in their North Idaho home last year. He is also accused of kidnapping Dylan and Shasta Groene, and killing Dylan in the remote Montana wilderness. Shasta was found with Duncan at a North Idaho restaurant several weeks after her alleged kidnapping. Kootenai County prosecutor Bill Douglas has repeatedly rejected attempts at plea deals - as recently as last Wednesday, according to defense attorneys. An unprecedented 800 potential jurors had been summoned for the jury selection. Duncan faces the death penalty on the Idaho charges. Federal prosecutors are expected to file charges against Duncan in the abduction of Shasta and Dylan, and the slaying of Dylan at a later date. Stay with KTVB.COM for the late-breaking details overnight. KTVB.COM Breaking News E-mail Alert subscribers were the first to learn about this story. Click here to sign up for future alerts.
More than a dozen quakes hit HawaiiTwo quakes shook Hawaii in the 11am MDT hour Sunday. According to the USGS, a 6.6 shook quake 6 miles north-northwest of the big island of Hawaii at 7:07am Hawaii time. Seven minutes later, a 5.8 magnitude aftershock hit. At least 12 other aftershocks shook the island state. The quake is the second largest in Hawaii's recorded history.
MSNBC reports wide-spread power outages and downed phone lines. Hawaii's civil defense system has been activated, and officials are asking people to stay at home. Governor Linda Lingle told KSSK radio that there are no reports of fatalities. A landslide has blocked a major highway on the big island of Hawaii - the main route in that area. KITV-TV reports that several people are stuck in elevators due to power outages. 95% of customers on Oahu are without electricity. Researchers were still trying to ascertain how many aftershocks struck and how large. "There's always a possibility of an even bigger earthquake coming. It's a small chance, but it's one that's much greater at the moment than if these earthquakes hadn't happened," John Vindale, the director of the Pacific NW Seismic Network told MSNBC. An official with the National Earthquake Information Center says there is no risk of a Pacific-wide tsunami, but a possibility of significant wave activity in Hawaii. One eyewitness on the island said the earthquake lasted for nearly a minute. “I felt a rumbling, and the thing just started building and building, and got more powerful and stronger, “ Ken Hupp, news director for KPUA told MSNBC. “Usually these things are pretty short in duration, but this one seemed like it lasted for about 45 seconds. The place was shaking like crazy. My animals were just absolutely terrified.” Betsy Garties, who lives in North Kohala, on the northern tip of Hawaii Island said she was lying in bed with one of her two young children when the quake struck. "First I heard a rumbling. Then the house started to shake. Then broken glass," Garties said. She first stood under a door frame as safety experts advise, then found that too wobbly for comfort and ran into the yard. "It was strong enough that it was wobbling, so you almost lost your balance running out into the yard," Garties said. "The house was visibly rocking."
"I would not expect this to cause any sort of significant eruptions as it doesn't appear to be directly related to the volcano itself," John Bellini with USGS said. This is possibly the largest quake in Hawaii since 1983 according to KITV. Stay with KTVB.COM
Crews respond to reports of a car trapped in a rock slideBoise County dispatchers says rescue crews are responding to reports of rock slide that has trapped a car along highway 55 north of Banks. There is at least one person reportedly trapped inside the car. No word yet if the rock slide has shut down the highway. Stay tuned to KTVB.COM for updated information.
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