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ID-XGR-SPECIAL SESSION VETO
Bid to override governor's vetoes bound for Senate
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho lawmakers backed a proposed amendment that could let the Legislature override a governor's veto almost immediately.
Under Dalton Gardens Republican Sen. Steve Vick's proposal, the Speaker of the House and Senate President Pro Tem must agree a rejected bill deserves a second look in order to compel the governor to call a special session.
Currently, the Legislature can override a veto during the next regular session with a two-thirds vote.
Some legislators say the change could upset the balance of power and lacks the hurdles to taking down a veto other states put in place.
The Senate State Affairs Committee voted Wednesday to send the amendment forward.
It needs a two-thirds majority in the Senate and House to get on a ballot next general election.
IDAHO POLICE SHOOTING
S. Idaho prosecutor clears deputy in shooting
(Information in the following story is from: Idaho Statesman, http://www.idahostatesman.com)
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A south-central Idaho prosecutor says a Gooding County sheriff's deputy acted appropriately when he shot a 39-year-old woman following a car chase.
The Idaho Statesman reports that Twin Falls County Prosecutor Grant Loebs announced the decision Tuesday. He didn't release the deputy's name.
The confrontation began when police tried to stop a car in Mountain Home at 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 2. Police say the driver, Hollee Johnston, fled. Two Elmore County deputies chased the car east on Interstate 84 to Bliss, where Gooding County deputies got involved.
Deputies say the passenger, 40-year-old Ronald Walter Rice, got out of the car with his hands in the air and Johnston shot him in the abdomen. Police say Johnston turned her gun toward the deputies and was shot.
Johnston and Rice are currently in the Ada County jail facing a variety of felony charges.
AVISTA COMPENSATION
Morris compensation down at Avista
(Information in the following story is from: The Spokesman-Review, http://www.spokesman.com)
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The total compensation for Avista Corp.'s top executive dropped last year as a result of lower stock awards and changing pension values.
Avista is a Spokane-based utility providing power in parts of eastern Washington, northern Idaho and Oregon.
Scott Morris, the chairman and chief executive officer, received about $2.9 million in total compensation in 2013, down nearly $600,000 from a year earlier.
The Spokesman-Review reports the 56-year-old Morris has led Avista since 2008.
HOUSE VANDALIZED
Inside of southwest Idaho home vandalized
(Information in the following story is from: KTVB-TV, http://www.ktvb.com/)
CALDWELL, Idaho (AP) — Police in the southwestern Idaho city of Caldwell are investigating after vandals broke into a home and did thousands of dollars in damage.
Chris Naillon tells KTVB-TV that he and his family went to church Sunday morning and returned to find the inside of the house ruined
Naillon says he and his wife and their seven children moved into the home last summer to take care of his mom, who is fighting cancer.
He says the home sustained so much damage it can't be lived in until repairs are made.
He says the vandals broke faucets off sinks. They also broke toilets, water heaters and washers and dryers.
Naillon estimates the damage at up to $70,000.
He says the vandals likely know him or his family.
HOSPITAL LAWSUIT
St. Luke's fighting judge's antitrust ruling
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A Boise-area hospital and Idaho's largest independent physicians' practice are seeking to reverse a federal judge's ruling that their joining forces violated federal antitrust laws.
St. Luke's Health System and Nampa-based Saltzer Medical Group on Tuesday filed a motion in U.S. District Court in Boise to stay the court ruling pending an appeal.
U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill in January ruled in favor of a lawsuit filed by Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center and the Federal Trade Commission.
They argued the buyout was an illegal market grab giving St. Luke's an unfair advantage. St. Luke's says its acquisition of Saltzer Medical Group will improve patient care.
St. Luke's in its court filing asks that its purchase of Saltzer Medical Group remain in place pending an appeal of Winmill's ruling.
WOLVES KILLED-COST
Idaho Fish and Game pays $30,000 to kill 23 wolves
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho wildlife officials say it cost $30,000 to kill 23 wolves last month in northern Idaho.
Idaho Fish and Game announced earlier this week the money is coming from licenses the agency sells.
The agency last month said USDA Wildlife Service agents killed the wolves using a helicopter in the Lolo elk zone near the Montana border to improve elk survival in the area.
It's the sixth time the agency has taken action to kill wolves in the Lolo zone in the past four years. Forty-eight wolves have been killed in all.
The state's predator management plan calls for killing wolves when Idaho Fish and Game determines they are causing conflicts with people or domestic animals, or that they are a significant factor in declining numbers of elk or deer.
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