North Idaho Briefs October 5, 2011

Absentee

ballots to be mailed Friday

The first absentee ballots for the Nov. 8 election for cities and highway districts will be mailed out Friday, the Kootenai County Clerk announced.

Absentee ballot request forms are available on the county's website, www.kcgov.us, or at the county Elections Office on Third Street.

Return postage on voted absentee ballots will be paid by the county.

The Elections Office will be open on weekdays for in-person absentee voting from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., from Oct. 17 through Nov. 4.

It will also be open for in-person absentee voting from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on two Saturdays, Oct. 22 and Oct. 29.

"We've had a low turnout for Saturday voting in the past," said Clerk Cliff Hayes. "But we're willing to offer this option again."

All write-in candidates for city mayor or council positions must file by Tuesday, Oct. 11.

Filing must be done at the appropriate city hall.

Golden eagle to be set free Thursday

WORLEY - Elders will look skyward this year as they gather Thursday at the Coeur d'Alene Casino.

The main attraction at the annual Coeur d'Alene Tribe Elders Dinner will be a Golden Eagle, set to be released at 9:30 a.m. by raptor biologist Jane Fink on the front yard of the newly expanded Coeur d'Alene Casino Resort.

"The event celebrates a sacred trust that Indian Country holds for one of North America's most magnificent and iconic birds of prey," according to a press release.

The public is welcome.

As many as 1,200 elders, representing tribes and communities from across the Northwest and western Canada, are expected to share in the dinner.

This is the first among the many elders dinners over the years that has featured an event as significant as an eagle release.

"It is the eagle that flies highest, closest to our Creator," said resort Cultural Affairs Director Cliff SiJohn.

The Elders Dinner will include a welcome cheer, a performance by the Shooting Star Dancers and 90 minutes of bingo.

Book grant

applications being accepted

First Book-Kootenai County is accepting book grant applications from local nonprofit programs serving children in need.

The nonprofit hopes to give out 2,000 new books.

Each child participating in a program that receives a grant will receive between six and 12 books.

"The children's faces light up when they discover they can keep these books and take them home to read over and over again," states Yvette Wyatt, co-chair, First Book-Kootenai County. "Our ultimate goal is to provide every child in need in Kootenai County with brand new books."

Teachers and directors of local preschools, child care, after-school, tutoring and mentoring programs are encouraged to apply on behalf of their programs.

Applications are due by Oct. 31.

Info: 666-6755 or [email protected].

State seeks

to bar evidence in theft case

SANDPOINT - The state is trying to keep a former Coldwater Creek employee accused of embezzlement from introducing evidence of company executives' spending habits.

Bonner County Deputy Prosecutor Larry Goins contends that information, in addition to Coldwater Creek's employee reimbursement policies, is irrelevant to the guilt or innocence of Susan Aileen Hopkins, who is facing two felony theft charges.

A hearing on the state's motion to keep such evidence and testimony out of the proceedings against Hopkins is set for Nov. 7 in 1st District Court.

Hopkins, also known as Susan Scott, is charged with grand theft for allegedly fleecing her former employer by running up personal expenses on a company credit card from 2006-2010 and misappropriating funds from the Panhandle Alliance For Education, an organization which has drawn strong support from Coldwater Creek.

Hopkins, a 54-year-old from Kootenai, allegedly ran up as much as $260,000 in personal expenses on the corporate account, according to court documents. The amount of money Hopkins is accused of taking from PAFE is not disclosed in court documents.

Hopkins is pleading not guilty to the charges. She is free on her own recognizance while the case is pending.

Past and present defense counsels for Hopkins have been seeking a variety of records which delve into spending and reimbursement practices at Coldwater Creek through the discovery process in the case. The discovery requests include lists of credit cards used by the company and documents pertaining to employees' personal expenses charged on company cards and how those charges were repaid.