Luis Gonzales to the rescue; weevil roundup; sentence in nude blackmail
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Odd and interesting news from around the West.
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PHOENIX (AP) — Former major league baseball player Luis Gonzalez says he was just trying to help when he got a woman out of a crashed car next to another vehicle that had burst into flames.
Gonzalez was driving with two friends when two other vehicles collided head-on in a Phoenix suburb Friday.
Gonzalez told media outlets it was a "pretty scary incident" but that he "just reacted" to get the dazed and groggy woman out of her car and to safety as quickly as he could.
Meanwhile, one of his companions helped the other driver while the second companion called 911.
Gonzalez is a Phoenix-area sports hero since having the game-winning hit for the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. He now works in the team's front office.
- By ROB CHANEY Missoulian
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MOIESE, Mont. (AP) — The thumping of tubs and whipping of toadflax signaled the start of the National Bison Range's great weevil roundup of 2017.
Within minutes, more than a thousand of the little black bugs had been knocked from their leafy hideouts and tucked into waiting coolers, not to be mixed up with the other coolers full of soda for the volunteer wrangler crew.
About 40 people gathered by the Montana Noxious Weed Trust Fund recently and spent a morning literally beating the bushes on the far western edge of the 18,000-acre range for Mecinus janthiniformis, which loves to eat and lay eggs in Dalmatian toadflax. It may be the only thing that appreciates toadflax.
"This way the range staff can get a bunch of biocontrol done in one day," Melissa Maggio-Kassner told the volunteers at the start of the effort. "We should be able to collect about 20,000 bugs," which will be deployed against other toadflax infestations on the refuge.
Dalmatian toadflax and its cousin, yellow toadflax, came to the United States from southern Europe and Asia hundreds of years ago. While they have pretty yellow flowers, they also grow and spread uncontrollably. They outcompete native plants for water and soil nutrients, and produce scads of seeds that can lie dormant for 10 years (most native seeds only remain viable for two years). Bison don't graze on it, while elk and antelope only nibble the tops off without slowing it down.
"We feel that the toadflax just laughs and thumbs its nose at us," Revais Creek resident Sally Baskett said of her efforts to stop the weed from invading all of her property near the Bison Range. "We've even tried hard blasts of herbicide. It's very expensive and time-consuming. And this is a banner year."
And the problem may get worse. Dalmatian and yellow toadflax can cross-pollenate, creating a hybrid that's both hardier and harder to control. Colorado State University plant geneticist Sarah Ward explained that while the Dalmatian variety was common in Eastern Europe, the yellow species grew mainly in Great Britain.
"Once they were introduced in North America, they met, fell in love and had babies," Ward joked. "And they are not populations that come and go. If I may say so, these things kick ass. They outperform the parents."
The first hybrid toadflax was detected near Radersburg, Montana, in 2005. Since, it's been reported in Colorado, Idaho, Washington and Wyoming. The new version can be hard to separate from the yellow version, unless you look at their seeds.
"The Dalmatian seeds look like flying saucers, while the yellow toadflax seeds looks like Brazil nuts," Ward said. "The hybrid seeds look like Brazil nuts with wings."
To control invasive toadflax without chemicals, you need an exotic bug that targets it while ignoring more popular or valuable plants. Montana State University Professor Robert Nowierski brought the first Mecinus weevils from Switzerland. We've since discovered that while Mecinus janthiniformis likes Dalmatian toadflax, we need Mecinus janthinus weevils to fight yellow toadflax. And no one's sure which weevil might take on the hybrid toadflax.
Fortunately, the hybrids haven't made an impact on the Bison Range yet. Wednesday's biggest challenge was keeping the captured weevils from blowing out of the tubs in the breezy morning. The volunteers fanned out on hillsides, gently whipping toadflax stems and knocking the weevils into their tubs. A couple hundred weevils would fill a whisky shot glass.
"It's been a really amazing success story for biocontrol in Montana," said volunteer collector Tracy Sterling, who came over from Bozeman to help with the roundup. "Growers know about it. High school kids know about it. It works."
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Information from: Missoulian, http://www.missoulian.com
- By KURT LIEDTKE Herald and News
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KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. (AP) — Through a seemingly endless parade of books, movies, documentaries, archival footage and photographs, World War II and its impact still seem so accessible even though its origins began over 75 years ago.
Among the items on display at a new exhibit at the Klamath County Museum of one of the key battles of that war are handmade aircraft models, showing a unique and local perspective of life on the homefront during the war.
While Klamath County sent many of its young men and women off to war, the effort at home was dedicated as well. Timber mills and factories churned out wood products for the war effort at a frantic pace, and the rail lines steadily shipped materials to the front. Families grew victory gardens, bought war bonds, and kids collected scrap metal.
Among those young kids in Klamath Falls doing their part was Chuck Johnson, now 88, who vicariously connected with the epic air battles of the war by developing a passion for wooden World War II aircraft models.
In 1942, Johnson saw a peer with an aircraft model and bought it from him for a quarter. He soon found out that Wes Withrow, owner of a woodshop in the Mills Addition, had made it, and, along with other students, an after-school model-making club soon formed.
Using magazines and an Aeronautic Aircraft Spotters Guide for Civil Defense, kids ages 12-13 carved wood blocks leftover from local mills into intricate models of the fighters and bombers immersed in combat overseas.
Using pieces from orange crates and wood tailings blocks, Johnson would slowly shape remarkably detailed airplanes true to the real thing. Popsicle sticks were used for propellers, nails and pens added for guns. Plastic packaging of everyday products were shaped for cockpit canopies.
A local bicycle shop downtown provided other parts necessary to create miniaturized versions of the now iconic warbirds, though due to shortages from the warm Johnson and his friends had to often use their imagination to find the right piece to complete the model.
While many of Johnson's peers eventually grew out of the hobby, he stuck with it through the war. By war's end he had built 40 different war planes from single blocks of wood, from small single-engine aircraft to massive four-engine bombers like the Boeing B-17.
"Later on, during the war, there were things we couldn't get because of the rationing, but we'd go to a bicycle shop downtown that had a lot of model parts in the scale we worked in," explained Johnson.
"The rest of the work was all solid models carved out of tailings from the timber mills. It was fun making things, and it gave me something to do during my free time."
As the war progressed and Johnson got into high school, he joined the war effort through the trades and industries program, allowing half his school day to be spent as a machinist apprentice. He earned $0.37 an hour for his labor at the Great Northern Railroad Depot, though, after two years, he received a massive boost in pay to a whopping $1.92 an hour.
Eventually, the models were relegated to the attic and largely forgotten. Johnson would go on to join the U.S. Army in an artillery battalion during the Korean War, though he never shipped out to participate in combat.
He flew often in airplanes during his time in the military and took a couple rides in small civilian aircraft, but never had an interest in acquiring his pilot's license due to the expense.
It was 45 years later that Johnson's childhood crafts were rediscovered, buried in the attic of his recently deceased mother's home, still intact from his model-making days during World War II. They had suffered inevitable damage from curious dogs and excited children, but were still mostly intact.
After retiring in 1990, Johnson decided to restore the wood models to their former glory. After completion, many were displayed for a time at the Klamath County Museum by then museum manager Judith Hassen.
She traveled to Midway to research the important World War II-era battle that turned the tide of the Pacific Theater, and later moved to Washington D.C., but she never forgot about Johnson's collection of vintage wooden models.
Recently the Klamath County Museum established an exhibit highlighting the Battle of Midway, and Hassen, having returned to Klamath County, reached out to Johnson to see if the World War II-era models were still intact. They were, in fact, all hanging from the ceiling of the guest bedroom in Johnson's home, recreating an epic aerial battle from the war.
Johnson still possesses many of the vintage World War II-era publications he used to base his models on, including the old civil defense guidebook that inspired many of his original models.
"I picked up the hobby again," said Johnson. "I got lucky that my mother saved them from when I was a kid."
Several of Johnson's aircraft now highlight the Midway display at the museum, Japanese and American aircraft encased alongside vintage newspapers and photos showcasing the importance of that battle.
More than just a representation of warbirds of yesteryear, the aircraft models are a physical relic showing how citizens on the homefront connected with the war effort, did their part for victory, and found ways to cope through shortages and rationing.
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Information from: Herald and News, http://www.heraldandnews.com
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CASTLE DALE, Utah (AP) — Authorities say a Utah woman was rescued after she hung onto a canoe for four hours as it floated down a river for eight miles after capsizing and tossing her into the cold water.
The incident occurred Thursday on the San Rafael River in the Castle Dale area of Emery County in central Utah.
A state Department of Public Safety helicopter spotted the woman wearing a life jacket and still hanging onto the canoe, and other floaters pulled her out of the river.
The helicopter and ground searchers began looking for the woman after being alerted by her husband. He also was thrown into the water but made it to shore and used another person's satellite phone to call for help.
The woman wasn't seriously injured. Her name wasn't released.
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DRAPER, Utah (AP) — Utah State Prison inmates are taking up crocheting and making blankets with intricate, patriotic designs for to hospitalized military veterans.
Vietnam Navy veteran Brian Mildenhall was overwhelmed when he learned of the source of his new crochet blanket, KSL-TV (http://bit.ly/2qNa1Xq) reported.
"This just gives me hope in humanity," he said.
Mildenhall was once in prison himself, and he said he also took up crocheting during that time. For him, the activity became an escape.
"I had a plastic coat hanger that I broke and fashioned it into a crochet hook," Mildenhall said. "I know how it feels, and I know how to be grateful for the things you take for granted so much in your life."
Crocheting is still a popular prison pastime, inmates said.
There are about 70 members in the Draper prison's crochet class that make anything from booties, hats, blankets and scarfs, instructor Danny Pitcher said. He is constantly trying to recruit more to join.
"It's a diversion for them," Pitcher said. "It takes their mind off of their misery, and it allows them to do something creative and give back to the community, which is so important for people incarcerated."
The class recently participated in a Memorial Day event where members prepared 150 blankets for veterans. The inmates said they have many loved ones in the military and decided to add patriotic symbols, words and aircraft carriers to add more of a personal touch to the work.
Members of the class say it was important for them to honor their sacrifice.
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Information from: KSL-TV, http://www.ksl.com/
- By SCOTT SONNER Associated Press
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RENO, Nev. (AP) — With Western American art long dismissed as unworthy of the fine art world, few collectors would have even cared 25 years ago if an early 20th century oil painting of cowboys or Indians on the frontier was authentic or not.
Now, the owner of galleries in New Mexico and New York City is suing one of the world's largest Western American art auctions, a Nevada gallery and others for defamation, accusing them of falsely claiming a $1 million painting he sold is a fake.
Gerald P. Peters of Santa Fe seeks unspecified damages from Peter Stremmel Galleries of Reno, the Coeur D'Alene Art Auction of Nevada and auction partner Mark Overby of Hayden, Idaho. The defendants' lawyers say the claims have no legal basis. They filed motions in federal court in Reno last week to dismiss the suit.
The high-society legal battle offers a glimpse into the high-stakes Western art market that's evolved from California to Manhattan, with many millions of dollars in sales of paintings, sculptures and pottery annually.
"It wasn't really until the late 1980s or mid- to early-1990s that a lot of art historians and museums began to start taking Western American art seriously," said Amy Scott, chief curator of the Autry Museum of Western Art founded in Los Angeles in 1988.
The lawsuit centers on "The Rain and the Sun," which Peters says is the work of Iowa-born Frank Tenney Johnson (1874-1939), a one-time illustrator for Field and Stream magazine who became famous for his oil paintings of nighttime frontier scenes.
Peters sold it years ago for $750,000 as part of a trade with other artwork to R.D. Hubbard, a well-known Western art collector, business tycoon and horse-track owner.
Peters says he took back the painting from Hubbard last year after Stremmel, of Reno, repeatedly insisted it was a forgery.
In its current tainted state, the painting is worthless, his lawsuit says.
"Word travels quickly within this small community when a work of art is called a fake," the suit says. "It is hard, if not impossible, to unring that bell."
Peters should know. He was at the center of an unrelated forgery caper 30 years ago and ended up refunding $5 million to a Kansas City, Missouri, museum after a series of watercolors that were purported to be the work of Georgia O'Keefe turned out to be fakes.
In this case, he insists the work is that of Johnson, dubbed the "master of moonlight" for his nocturne paintings known for their remarkable depth and color.
Court documents don't include an image of the painting, and Peters' lawyers declined to describe it to The Associated Press.
But Johnson almost exclusively painted scenes of cowboys, Native Americans and their horses. More than a dozen have sold at Nevada's massive annual Coeur D'Alene Auction, most recently "Cowboys Roping the Bear" for $965,250 in 2012.
In 2008, when the auction sold a record $36.8 million worth of art, Johnson's "The Sheriff's Posse" went for nearly $1.1 million.
Less famous than Frederic Remington and Charles Russell, Johnson is of special interest because he worked with Hollywood studios to create backdrops after he moved to Los Angeles in the 1920s when the Western movie genre was being invented, said Scott, of the Autry Museum.
Hubbard founded the Hubbard Museum of the American West in Ruidoso, New Mexico, in 1992 and is a former chairman of the board of the Pinnacle Entertainment Group, a Las Vegas-based casino holding company.
Before this dustup, Peters said, he and Hubbard traded art worth millions and were friends and neighbors at Hubbard's Palm Desert, California, golf development.
That started to change in 2013 when Hubbard sent Stremmel images of art he wanted to sell at the Coeur D'Alene Auction, and Stremmel replied one was "not, in fact, by Frank Tenney Johnson."
A Hubbard associate sent a clearer image, but according to the lawsuit, Stremmel responded in an email, "We wouldn't touch it for our auction."
Beyond a signature that looked "labored," nothing about the painting suggested it was Johnson's, he wrote. "I really hope he (Hubbard) didn't pay a lot for it."
After another email exchange, Stremmel said he wanted to modify his statements because he hadn't seen the painting firsthand, the lawsuit said.
"Our position is that this painting would not be acceptable for the Coeur d'Alene Art Auction. Let's leave it at that," Stremmel wrote in November 2015.
Days later, a Hubbard Museum lawyer demanded Peters' gallery buy it back.
The embarrassing allegation was an insult to Peters' reputation, according to the suit filed April 28.
Peters said he reaffirmed the painting's authenticity but agreed to exchange it for another to "preserve a valued friendship and business relationship." But the men haven't done business since.
Lawyers for Stremmel and Overby, his auction partner, said there's no evidence anyone has been defamed and no way Peters can prove he's been harmed.
"If they can prove the painting is authentic, then they will not have suffered any damages," Reno lawyer Mark Gunderson wrote in a May 22 motion to dismiss.
Colette Loll, founder of the Washington-based consulting firm Art Fraud Insights, said lawsuits over forgeries are rare. But in criminal cases, prosecutors carry a "very heavy burden" to prove a work is fake, and judges and juries often have difficulty sorting out the claims, Loll said.
"You can have experts on each side, and one says it's real and one says it's not," said Loll, who has trained U.S. Homeland Security agents in forgery investigations. "A lot of experts are afraid to even testify at such a trial because they're afraid they could face their own litigation."
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ALADDIN, Wyo. (AP) — A big part of a small Wyoming town has sold at auction for a price lower than expected.
The town of Aladdin is home to 15 people near the South Dakota line. Up for sale Friday were the town store, liquor license, post office, gas station, a two-bedroom home, an outbuilding and a seven-unit mobile home park.
A 17-acre tract also was included in the package bid up to $500,000.
The Casper Star-Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/2qMUGX9 ) the winning bidders were Maynard Rude and son Lee Rude of Piedmont, South Dakota. Lee Rude says the price was much less than he expected.
Owners Rick and Judy Brengle also expected a higher price for their properties.
A cafe and motel offered separately by another couple failed to sell after getting few bids.
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Information from: Casper (Wyo.) Star-Tribune, http://www.trib.com
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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Police say an Australian tourist has been killed in a scuffle outside a San Francisco hotel.
Authorities say 33-year-old Matthew Bate got into an argument with two men that turned physical around 2 a.m. Friday outside the Da Vinci Villa hotel in the Russian Hill neighborhood.
He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Two men were detained for questioning.
Police say no weapons were involved in the fight.
Bate lived in Woolner, a suburb of Darwin. He was an analytical chemist with SGS Australia, which offers a range of testing and certification services to businesses.
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was providing Bate's family with consular assistance.
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BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — The number of people killed in crashes on Montana roads last year was second-lowest in a decade but alcohol continues to be the main factor.
The Montana Highway Patrol says in its annual report 190 people died in crashes on Montana roads in 2016, down from 224 the previous year.
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/2qMUwyJ ) alcohol factored into 74 of the fatalities. Not using a seat belt also plays a role. Of the 190 who died, 69 were not wearing seat belts.
Patrol Col. Tom Butler says highway drug seizures are on the rise.
Last year, troopers seized 1,279 pounds of drugs including marijuana, hash oil, meth, cocaine, heroin and synthetic marijuana. That's up from 452 pounds in 2012.
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Information from: Bozeman Daily Chronicle, http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com
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SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A group of men in their 20s has posted a Craigslist ad seeking a generic dad to grill burgers and hotdogs for a gathering set for the Saturday of Father's Day weekend in mid-June.
Qualifications include a minimum of 18 years of experience as a dad and 10 years of grilling experience. The successful dad must bring his own grill, but burgers and hotdogs will be provided.
Dane Anderson tells KHQ-TV (http://bit.ly/2qLjxGt) that the young men in Spokane don't live with their fathers and, the ad says, none are prepared to fill the role of barbecue dad.
Additional requirements include talking about dad things like lawnmowers, building your own deck and musician Jimmy Buffet. Payment is food and beer.
Anderson says several potential barbecue dads have responded.
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Information from: KHQ-TV, http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3082888/
- By KIMBERLY CAUVEL Skagit Valley Herald
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HOPE ISLAND, Wash. (AP) — In the wake of an August fire on Deception Pass State Park's Hope Island, park staff and volunteers weren't sure if spring would bring an abundance of wildflowers or the return of invasive scotch broom.
"It will be a revelation," volunteer Rick Machin while hiking to the island's meadow. "I'm predicting an explosion of color."
They found just that — a hillside bright with a variety of pink, yellow and white flowers buzzing with bees.
"It's just an outstanding transition. This was all overgrown with scotch broom before," Deception Pass State Park Manager Jack Hartt said. "This is just a wildflower garden of species we haven't seen in a while."
Last month marked the 11th spring Hartt has taken volunteers to the island to tackle the invasive scotch broom that threatens to crowd out the island's native wildflowers and grasses.
Those wildflowers, including yellow monkey flowers, pink sea blush, cream-colored death camas and white field chickweed, could be seen throughout the meadow.
"I was not expecting this prolific abundance of wildflowers. It's like someone sprinkled seeds around, which the fire essentially did," Hartt said.
Yet among the flowers scotch broom was also making a comeback.
The troublesome plants were harder to spot because of the fire. They were only inches tall and without their recognizable mustard-yellow blooms.
Hartt and 15 volunteers pulled as many young scotch broom plants as they could during their 2-hour visit to the island.
"We did a lot of work, but there's a lot more to do," Hartt said.
Beverly Dresen said the meadow looks different from the previous years she volunteered pulling scotch broom on the island.
"Before it was this tall and all flowering, so it was really easy," she said, holding her hand at hip height.
Scotch broom is native to Europe, but has cropped up throughout the Pacific Northwest. Its yellow flowers are easily spotted along the Interstate 5 corridor.
The state Noxious Weed Control Board deemed the plant an invasive species in 1988 because it spreads aggressively.
Hartt said volunteers have made progress getting rid of the plant on Hope Island over the years.
Whether that work will be helped or hindered by the August fire that burned 7 acres, including 4 acres of the 5-acre meadow, is not known.
With the mix of wildflowers and new sprouts of scotch broom, it remains unclear which plants will get the upper hand.
Hartt said he plans to organize more than one volunteer trip a year to the island to help improve the odds for the wildflowers.
"We have a better chance if we catch up on them (the scotch broom) while they're small," he said. "If we let them go they will get thicker. We just need more fingers working on them."
Hope Island, a natural area preserve in Skagit Bay west of La Conner, is managed as part of Deception Pass State Park.
Hartt said about 95 percent of the 200-acre island has the state's highest level of protection for natural areas. Primitive camping is allowed on the other 5 percent of the island.
A recreational fire got out of control Aug. 11, causing part of the island to burn, state Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Janet Pearce said.
Because the island is a natural preserve, chemicals were not used to fight the fire, and the land has been left to recover naturally.
With few visitors, the island is somewhat mysterious. That's what drew several volunteers who can see the island from their home.
"It's a real treat to get out here because it's only accessible by boat," said Nancy Drake, who lives on Fidalgo Island.
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Information from: Skagit Valley Herald, http://www.skagitvalleyherald.com
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SEATTLE (AP) — North America's shortest scheduled international flight — at less than 20 minutes — will soon leave daily from Friday Harbor Airport in Washington and land in Victoria, Canada.
The Seattle Times reports (https://goo.gl/vfFHLN ) it took three years, but Friday Harbor Airport received official clearance this week for the flight. Pending FAA approval, a Canadian airline anticipates beginning to book passengers within the next month.
Northstar Air Tours owner Henry Emson says a one-way ticket will start at $49 on a nine-passenger plane.
Friday Harbor, on San Juan Island, and Victoria, on Vancouver Island, are 20 miles from each other but separated by a strait and an international border.
Travelers' options have been restricted to driving, taking a seasonal ferry or chartering a plane.
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Information from: The Seattle Times, http://www.seattletimes.com
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BEAVERTON, Ore. (AP) — A 21-year-old Beaverton man has been sentenced to prison for attempting to blackmail a woman to get nude photos and for tricking a juvenile into sending him nude photos of herself.
The Washington County Sheriff's Office says Sean Spaulding was sentenced to 30 months in prison Friday.
He pleaded guilty in May to encouraging child sexual abuse, identity theft, invasion of privacy, and coercion.
In January a Tigard woman reported to authorities that she received text messages with nude photos of herself from an unknown person found to be Spaulding.
The sheriff's office says Spaulding tried to blackmail her, saying he'd post them on social media if she didn't send more images.
Detectives also determined Spaulding had tricked a juvenile into sending photos and discovered he had posed as a Portland woman online in an attempt to obtain additional nude images.
PHOENIX (AP) — Former major league baseball player Luis Gonzalez says he was just trying to help when he got a woman out of a crashed car next to another vehicle that had burst into flames.
Gonzalez was driving with two friends when two other vehicles collided head-on in a Phoenix suburb Friday.
Gonzalez told media outlets it was a "pretty scary incident" but that he "just reacted" to get the dazed and groggy woman out of her car and to safety as quickly as he could.
Meanwhile, one of his companions helped the other driver while the second companion called 911.
Gonzalez is a Phoenix-area sports hero since having the game-winning hit for the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. He now works in the team's front office.
- By ROB CHANEY Missoulian
MOIESE, Mont. (AP) — The thumping of tubs and whipping of toadflax signaled the start of the National Bison Range's great weevil roundup of 2017.
Within minutes, more than a thousand of the little black bugs had been knocked from their leafy hideouts and tucked into waiting coolers, not to be mixed up with the other coolers full of soda for the volunteer wrangler crew.
About 40 people gathered by the Montana Noxious Weed Trust Fund recently and spent a morning literally beating the bushes on the far western edge of the 18,000-acre range for Mecinus janthiniformis, which loves to eat and lay eggs in Dalmatian toadflax. It may be the only thing that appreciates toadflax.
"This way the range staff can get a bunch of biocontrol done in one day," Melissa Maggio-Kassner told the volunteers at the start of the effort. "We should be able to collect about 20,000 bugs," which will be deployed against other toadflax infestations on the refuge.
Dalmatian toadflax and its cousin, yellow toadflax, came to the United States from southern Europe and Asia hundreds of years ago. While they have pretty yellow flowers, they also grow and spread uncontrollably. They outcompete native plants for water and soil nutrients, and produce scads of seeds that can lie dormant for 10 years (most native seeds only remain viable for two years). Bison don't graze on it, while elk and antelope only nibble the tops off without slowing it down.
"We feel that the toadflax just laughs and thumbs its nose at us," Revais Creek resident Sally Baskett said of her efforts to stop the weed from invading all of her property near the Bison Range. "We've even tried hard blasts of herbicide. It's very expensive and time-consuming. And this is a banner year."
And the problem may get worse. Dalmatian and yellow toadflax can cross-pollenate, creating a hybrid that's both hardier and harder to control. Colorado State University plant geneticist Sarah Ward explained that while the Dalmatian variety was common in Eastern Europe, the yellow species grew mainly in Great Britain.
"Once they were introduced in North America, they met, fell in love and had babies," Ward joked. "And they are not populations that come and go. If I may say so, these things kick ass. They outperform the parents."
The first hybrid toadflax was detected near Radersburg, Montana, in 2005. Since, it's been reported in Colorado, Idaho, Washington and Wyoming. The new version can be hard to separate from the yellow version, unless you look at their seeds.
"The Dalmatian seeds look like flying saucers, while the yellow toadflax seeds looks like Brazil nuts," Ward said. "The hybrid seeds look like Brazil nuts with wings."
To control invasive toadflax without chemicals, you need an exotic bug that targets it while ignoring more popular or valuable plants. Montana State University Professor Robert Nowierski brought the first Mecinus weevils from Switzerland. We've since discovered that while Mecinus janthiniformis likes Dalmatian toadflax, we need Mecinus janthinus weevils to fight yellow toadflax. And no one's sure which weevil might take on the hybrid toadflax.
Fortunately, the hybrids haven't made an impact on the Bison Range yet. Wednesday's biggest challenge was keeping the captured weevils from blowing out of the tubs in the breezy morning. The volunteers fanned out on hillsides, gently whipping toadflax stems and knocking the weevils into their tubs. A couple hundred weevils would fill a whisky shot glass.
"It's been a really amazing success story for biocontrol in Montana," said volunteer collector Tracy Sterling, who came over from Bozeman to help with the roundup. "Growers know about it. High school kids know about it. It works."
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Information from: Missoulian, http://www.missoulian.com
- By KURT LIEDTKE Herald and News
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. (AP) — Through a seemingly endless parade of books, movies, documentaries, archival footage and photographs, World War II and its impact still seem so accessible even though its origins began over 75 years ago.
Among the items on display at a new exhibit at the Klamath County Museum of one of the key battles of that war are handmade aircraft models, showing a unique and local perspective of life on the homefront during the war.
While Klamath County sent many of its young men and women off to war, the effort at home was dedicated as well. Timber mills and factories churned out wood products for the war effort at a frantic pace, and the rail lines steadily shipped materials to the front. Families grew victory gardens, bought war bonds, and kids collected scrap metal.
Among those young kids in Klamath Falls doing their part was Chuck Johnson, now 88, who vicariously connected with the epic air battles of the war by developing a passion for wooden World War II aircraft models.
In 1942, Johnson saw a peer with an aircraft model and bought it from him for a quarter. He soon found out that Wes Withrow, owner of a woodshop in the Mills Addition, had made it, and, along with other students, an after-school model-making club soon formed.
Using magazines and an Aeronautic Aircraft Spotters Guide for Civil Defense, kids ages 12-13 carved wood blocks leftover from local mills into intricate models of the fighters and bombers immersed in combat overseas.
Using pieces from orange crates and wood tailings blocks, Johnson would slowly shape remarkably detailed airplanes true to the real thing. Popsicle sticks were used for propellers, nails and pens added for guns. Plastic packaging of everyday products were shaped for cockpit canopies.
A local bicycle shop downtown provided other parts necessary to create miniaturized versions of the now iconic warbirds, though due to shortages from the warm Johnson and his friends had to often use their imagination to find the right piece to complete the model.
While many of Johnson's peers eventually grew out of the hobby, he stuck with it through the war. By war's end he had built 40 different war planes from single blocks of wood, from small single-engine aircraft to massive four-engine bombers like the Boeing B-17.
"Later on, during the war, there were things we couldn't get because of the rationing, but we'd go to a bicycle shop downtown that had a lot of model parts in the scale we worked in," explained Johnson.
"The rest of the work was all solid models carved out of tailings from the timber mills. It was fun making things, and it gave me something to do during my free time."
As the war progressed and Johnson got into high school, he joined the war effort through the trades and industries program, allowing half his school day to be spent as a machinist apprentice. He earned $0.37 an hour for his labor at the Great Northern Railroad Depot, though, after two years, he received a massive boost in pay to a whopping $1.92 an hour.
Eventually, the models were relegated to the attic and largely forgotten. Johnson would go on to join the U.S. Army in an artillery battalion during the Korean War, though he never shipped out to participate in combat.
He flew often in airplanes during his time in the military and took a couple rides in small civilian aircraft, but never had an interest in acquiring his pilot's license due to the expense.
It was 45 years later that Johnson's childhood crafts were rediscovered, buried in the attic of his recently deceased mother's home, still intact from his model-making days during World War II. They had suffered inevitable damage from curious dogs and excited children, but were still mostly intact.
After retiring in 1990, Johnson decided to restore the wood models to their former glory. After completion, many were displayed for a time at the Klamath County Museum by then museum manager Judith Hassen.
She traveled to Midway to research the important World War II-era battle that turned the tide of the Pacific Theater, and later moved to Washington D.C., but she never forgot about Johnson's collection of vintage wooden models.
Recently the Klamath County Museum established an exhibit highlighting the Battle of Midway, and Hassen, having returned to Klamath County, reached out to Johnson to see if the World War II-era models were still intact. They were, in fact, all hanging from the ceiling of the guest bedroom in Johnson's home, recreating an epic aerial battle from the war.
Johnson still possesses many of the vintage World War II-era publications he used to base his models on, including the old civil defense guidebook that inspired many of his original models.
"I picked up the hobby again," said Johnson. "I got lucky that my mother saved them from when I was a kid."
Several of Johnson's aircraft now highlight the Midway display at the museum, Japanese and American aircraft encased alongside vintage newspapers and photos showcasing the importance of that battle.
More than just a representation of warbirds of yesteryear, the aircraft models are a physical relic showing how citizens on the homefront connected with the war effort, did their part for victory, and found ways to cope through shortages and rationing.
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Information from: Herald and News, http://www.heraldandnews.com
CASTLE DALE, Utah (AP) — Authorities say a Utah woman was rescued after she hung onto a canoe for four hours as it floated down a river for eight miles after capsizing and tossing her into the cold water.
The incident occurred Thursday on the San Rafael River in the Castle Dale area of Emery County in central Utah.
A state Department of Public Safety helicopter spotted the woman wearing a life jacket and still hanging onto the canoe, and other floaters pulled her out of the river.
The helicopter and ground searchers began looking for the woman after being alerted by her husband. He also was thrown into the water but made it to shore and used another person's satellite phone to call for help.
The woman wasn't seriously injured. Her name wasn't released.
DRAPER, Utah (AP) — Utah State Prison inmates are taking up crocheting and making blankets with intricate, patriotic designs for to hospitalized military veterans.
Vietnam Navy veteran Brian Mildenhall was overwhelmed when he learned of the source of his new crochet blanket, KSL-TV (http://bit.ly/2qNa1Xq) reported.
"This just gives me hope in humanity," he said.
Mildenhall was once in prison himself, and he said he also took up crocheting during that time. For him, the activity became an escape.
"I had a plastic coat hanger that I broke and fashioned it into a crochet hook," Mildenhall said. "I know how it feels, and I know how to be grateful for the things you take for granted so much in your life."
Crocheting is still a popular prison pastime, inmates said.
There are about 70 members in the Draper prison's crochet class that make anything from booties, hats, blankets and scarfs, instructor Danny Pitcher said. He is constantly trying to recruit more to join.
"It's a diversion for them," Pitcher said. "It takes their mind off of their misery, and it allows them to do something creative and give back to the community, which is so important for people incarcerated."
The class recently participated in a Memorial Day event where members prepared 150 blankets for veterans. The inmates said they have many loved ones in the military and decided to add patriotic symbols, words and aircraft carriers to add more of a personal touch to the work.
Members of the class say it was important for them to honor their sacrifice.
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Information from: KSL-TV, http://www.ksl.com/
- By SCOTT SONNER Associated Press
RENO, Nev. (AP) — With Western American art long dismissed as unworthy of the fine art world, few collectors would have even cared 25 years ago if an early 20th century oil painting of cowboys or Indians on the frontier was authentic or not.
Now, the owner of galleries in New Mexico and New York City is suing one of the world's largest Western American art auctions, a Nevada gallery and others for defamation, accusing them of falsely claiming a $1 million painting he sold is a fake.
Gerald P. Peters of Santa Fe seeks unspecified damages from Peter Stremmel Galleries of Reno, the Coeur D'Alene Art Auction of Nevada and auction partner Mark Overby of Hayden, Idaho. The defendants' lawyers say the claims have no legal basis. They filed motions in federal court in Reno last week to dismiss the suit.
The high-society legal battle offers a glimpse into the high-stakes Western art market that's evolved from California to Manhattan, with many millions of dollars in sales of paintings, sculptures and pottery annually.
"It wasn't really until the late 1980s or mid- to early-1990s that a lot of art historians and museums began to start taking Western American art seriously," said Amy Scott, chief curator of the Autry Museum of Western Art founded in Los Angeles in 1988.
The lawsuit centers on "The Rain and the Sun," which Peters says is the work of Iowa-born Frank Tenney Johnson (1874-1939), a one-time illustrator for Field and Stream magazine who became famous for his oil paintings of nighttime frontier scenes.
Peters sold it years ago for $750,000 as part of a trade with other artwork to R.D. Hubbard, a well-known Western art collector, business tycoon and horse-track owner.
Peters says he took back the painting from Hubbard last year after Stremmel, of Reno, repeatedly insisted it was a forgery.
In its current tainted state, the painting is worthless, his lawsuit says.
"Word travels quickly within this small community when a work of art is called a fake," the suit says. "It is hard, if not impossible, to unring that bell."
Peters should know. He was at the center of an unrelated forgery caper 30 years ago and ended up refunding $5 million to a Kansas City, Missouri, museum after a series of watercolors that were purported to be the work of Georgia O'Keefe turned out to be fakes.
In this case, he insists the work is that of Johnson, dubbed the "master of moonlight" for his nocturne paintings known for their remarkable depth and color.
Court documents don't include an image of the painting, and Peters' lawyers declined to describe it to The Associated Press.
But Johnson almost exclusively painted scenes of cowboys, Native Americans and their horses. More than a dozen have sold at Nevada's massive annual Coeur D'Alene Auction, most recently "Cowboys Roping the Bear" for $965,250 in 2012.
In 2008, when the auction sold a record $36.8 million worth of art, Johnson's "The Sheriff's Posse" went for nearly $1.1 million.
Less famous than Frederic Remington and Charles Russell, Johnson is of special interest because he worked with Hollywood studios to create backdrops after he moved to Los Angeles in the 1920s when the Western movie genre was being invented, said Scott, of the Autry Museum.
Hubbard founded the Hubbard Museum of the American West in Ruidoso, New Mexico, in 1992 and is a former chairman of the board of the Pinnacle Entertainment Group, a Las Vegas-based casino holding company.
Before this dustup, Peters said, he and Hubbard traded art worth millions and were friends and neighbors at Hubbard's Palm Desert, California, golf development.
That started to change in 2013 when Hubbard sent Stremmel images of art he wanted to sell at the Coeur D'Alene Auction, and Stremmel replied one was "not, in fact, by Frank Tenney Johnson."
A Hubbard associate sent a clearer image, but according to the lawsuit, Stremmel responded in an email, "We wouldn't touch it for our auction."
Beyond a signature that looked "labored," nothing about the painting suggested it was Johnson's, he wrote. "I really hope he (Hubbard) didn't pay a lot for it."
After another email exchange, Stremmel said he wanted to modify his statements because he hadn't seen the painting firsthand, the lawsuit said.
"Our position is that this painting would not be acceptable for the Coeur d'Alene Art Auction. Let's leave it at that," Stremmel wrote in November 2015.
Days later, a Hubbard Museum lawyer demanded Peters' gallery buy it back.
The embarrassing allegation was an insult to Peters' reputation, according to the suit filed April 28.
Peters said he reaffirmed the painting's authenticity but agreed to exchange it for another to "preserve a valued friendship and business relationship." But the men haven't done business since.
Lawyers for Stremmel and Overby, his auction partner, said there's no evidence anyone has been defamed and no way Peters can prove he's been harmed.
"If they can prove the painting is authentic, then they will not have suffered any damages," Reno lawyer Mark Gunderson wrote in a May 22 motion to dismiss.
Colette Loll, founder of the Washington-based consulting firm Art Fraud Insights, said lawsuits over forgeries are rare. But in criminal cases, prosecutors carry a "very heavy burden" to prove a work is fake, and judges and juries often have difficulty sorting out the claims, Loll said.
"You can have experts on each side, and one says it's real and one says it's not," said Loll, who has trained U.S. Homeland Security agents in forgery investigations. "A lot of experts are afraid to even testify at such a trial because they're afraid they could face their own litigation."
ALADDIN, Wyo. (AP) — A big part of a small Wyoming town has sold at auction for a price lower than expected.
The town of Aladdin is home to 15 people near the South Dakota line. Up for sale Friday were the town store, liquor license, post office, gas station, a two-bedroom home, an outbuilding and a seven-unit mobile home park.
A 17-acre tract also was included in the package bid up to $500,000.
The Casper Star-Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/2qMUGX9 ) the winning bidders were Maynard Rude and son Lee Rude of Piedmont, South Dakota. Lee Rude says the price was much less than he expected.
Owners Rick and Judy Brengle also expected a higher price for their properties.
A cafe and motel offered separately by another couple failed to sell after getting few bids.
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Information from: Casper (Wyo.) Star-Tribune, http://www.trib.com
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Police say an Australian tourist has been killed in a scuffle outside a San Francisco hotel.
Authorities say 33-year-old Matthew Bate got into an argument with two men that turned physical around 2 a.m. Friday outside the Da Vinci Villa hotel in the Russian Hill neighborhood.
He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Two men were detained for questioning.
Police say no weapons were involved in the fight.
Bate lived in Woolner, a suburb of Darwin. He was an analytical chemist with SGS Australia, which offers a range of testing and certification services to businesses.
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was providing Bate's family with consular assistance.
BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — The number of people killed in crashes on Montana roads last year was second-lowest in a decade but alcohol continues to be the main factor.
The Montana Highway Patrol says in its annual report 190 people died in crashes on Montana roads in 2016, down from 224 the previous year.
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/2qMUwyJ ) alcohol factored into 74 of the fatalities. Not using a seat belt also plays a role. Of the 190 who died, 69 were not wearing seat belts.
Patrol Col. Tom Butler says highway drug seizures are on the rise.
Last year, troopers seized 1,279 pounds of drugs including marijuana, hash oil, meth, cocaine, heroin and synthetic marijuana. That's up from 452 pounds in 2012.
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Information from: Bozeman Daily Chronicle, http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A group of men in their 20s has posted a Craigslist ad seeking a generic dad to grill burgers and hotdogs for a gathering set for the Saturday of Father's Day weekend in mid-June.
Qualifications include a minimum of 18 years of experience as a dad and 10 years of grilling experience. The successful dad must bring his own grill, but burgers and hotdogs will be provided.
Dane Anderson tells KHQ-TV (http://bit.ly/2qLjxGt) that the young men in Spokane don't live with their fathers and, the ad says, none are prepared to fill the role of barbecue dad.
Additional requirements include talking about dad things like lawnmowers, building your own deck and musician Jimmy Buffet. Payment is food and beer.
Anderson says several potential barbecue dads have responded.
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Information from: KHQ-TV, http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3082888/
- By KIMBERLY CAUVEL Skagit Valley Herald
HOPE ISLAND, Wash. (AP) — In the wake of an August fire on Deception Pass State Park's Hope Island, park staff and volunteers weren't sure if spring would bring an abundance of wildflowers or the return of invasive scotch broom.
"It will be a revelation," volunteer Rick Machin while hiking to the island's meadow. "I'm predicting an explosion of color."
They found just that — a hillside bright with a variety of pink, yellow and white flowers buzzing with bees.
"It's just an outstanding transition. This was all overgrown with scotch broom before," Deception Pass State Park Manager Jack Hartt said. "This is just a wildflower garden of species we haven't seen in a while."
Last month marked the 11th spring Hartt has taken volunteers to the island to tackle the invasive scotch broom that threatens to crowd out the island's native wildflowers and grasses.
Those wildflowers, including yellow monkey flowers, pink sea blush, cream-colored death camas and white field chickweed, could be seen throughout the meadow.
"I was not expecting this prolific abundance of wildflowers. It's like someone sprinkled seeds around, which the fire essentially did," Hartt said.
Yet among the flowers scotch broom was also making a comeback.
The troublesome plants were harder to spot because of the fire. They were only inches tall and without their recognizable mustard-yellow blooms.
Hartt and 15 volunteers pulled as many young scotch broom plants as they could during their 2-hour visit to the island.
"We did a lot of work, but there's a lot more to do," Hartt said.
Beverly Dresen said the meadow looks different from the previous years she volunteered pulling scotch broom on the island.
"Before it was this tall and all flowering, so it was really easy," she said, holding her hand at hip height.
Scotch broom is native to Europe, but has cropped up throughout the Pacific Northwest. Its yellow flowers are easily spotted along the Interstate 5 corridor.
The state Noxious Weed Control Board deemed the plant an invasive species in 1988 because it spreads aggressively.
Hartt said volunteers have made progress getting rid of the plant on Hope Island over the years.
Whether that work will be helped or hindered by the August fire that burned 7 acres, including 4 acres of the 5-acre meadow, is not known.
With the mix of wildflowers and new sprouts of scotch broom, it remains unclear which plants will get the upper hand.
Hartt said he plans to organize more than one volunteer trip a year to the island to help improve the odds for the wildflowers.
"We have a better chance if we catch up on them (the scotch broom) while they're small," he said. "If we let them go they will get thicker. We just need more fingers working on them."
Hope Island, a natural area preserve in Skagit Bay west of La Conner, is managed as part of Deception Pass State Park.
Hartt said about 95 percent of the 200-acre island has the state's highest level of protection for natural areas. Primitive camping is allowed on the other 5 percent of the island.
A recreational fire got out of control Aug. 11, causing part of the island to burn, state Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Janet Pearce said.
Because the island is a natural preserve, chemicals were not used to fight the fire, and the land has been left to recover naturally.
With few visitors, the island is somewhat mysterious. That's what drew several volunteers who can see the island from their home.
"It's a real treat to get out here because it's only accessible by boat," said Nancy Drake, who lives on Fidalgo Island.
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Information from: Skagit Valley Herald, http://www.skagitvalleyherald.com
SEATTLE (AP) — North America's shortest scheduled international flight — at less than 20 minutes — will soon leave daily from Friday Harbor Airport in Washington and land in Victoria, Canada.
The Seattle Times reports (https://goo.gl/vfFHLN ) it took three years, but Friday Harbor Airport received official clearance this week for the flight. Pending FAA approval, a Canadian airline anticipates beginning to book passengers within the next month.
Northstar Air Tours owner Henry Emson says a one-way ticket will start at $49 on a nine-passenger plane.
Friday Harbor, on San Juan Island, and Victoria, on Vancouver Island, are 20 miles from each other but separated by a strait and an international border.
Travelers' options have been restricted to driving, taking a seasonal ferry or chartering a plane.
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Information from: The Seattle Times, http://www.seattletimes.com
BEAVERTON, Ore. (AP) — A 21-year-old Beaverton man has been sentenced to prison for attempting to blackmail a woman to get nude photos and for tricking a juvenile into sending him nude photos of herself.
The Washington County Sheriff's Office says Sean Spaulding was sentenced to 30 months in prison Friday.
He pleaded guilty in May to encouraging child sexual abuse, identity theft, invasion of privacy, and coercion.
In January a Tigard woman reported to authorities that she received text messages with nude photos of herself from an unknown person found to be Spaulding.
The sheriff's office says Spaulding tried to blackmail her, saying he'd post them on social media if she didn't send more images.
Detectives also determined Spaulding had tricked a juvenile into sending photos and discovered he had posed as a Portland woman online in an attempt to obtain additional nude images.
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