The Spokesman-Review from Spokane, Washington • 9

Ogmi'lTT ijn rT 'Mjfftfttri i giijgrrF5w wmmm BSpra" Hunter mauled Father saves son being mauled by sow black bear Page B3 Opinion84 RoundtableB5 Supreme Court hearing local disputes The court will make its decisions when it sees fit. Justices weigh appeals of rulings In cases ranging from libel to exstudents claim of rape by high school teacher By Winston Ross Staff writer COEUR dALENE Idaho Supreme Court justices filed into the Kootenai County Courthouse Monday morning, here for a week of arguments in an array of notable North Idaho cases. The court listened to an attorney for the Sandpoint Independent Highway District, seeking to block the Bonner County Commission from dissolving the highway district. The judges also heard an argument from Edgar Steele, the attorney who represented the Aryan Nations in the trial which led to its bankruptcy. Steele sued The Spokesman-Review for libel after a story published in July 1999 reporting that the California transplant had been named attorney to the white separatist group.

Today, the Supreme Court will take up the appeal of a former student at Kellogg High School, who claims she had an affair with one of her teachers, Mark Holzer, and sued the school district, citing 17 different causes of harm, including rape. And on Wednesday, judges will consider an appeal from Silver Valley businessman Harry Magnuson, who sued the city of Coeur dAlene in an effort to be reimbursed for extending a sewer line as a condition for developing his own property. All cases are appeals to the high court, Simply by representing the Aryans doesnt mean he chooses to become a public figtire, Steele said. The outcome of this case, he said, could have ripple effects. Other lawyers will decline to take notorious clients if their protection against defamation would be diminished, Steele said.

This case sends a message to attorneys in Idaho. The newspapers attorney, Duane Swinton, argued that Steeles claim is not only meritless, but frivolous. Swinton asked for attorneys fees in the case, something he says hed never done before in a defamation case. Swinton said Steele hadnt even tried Continued: CourtB6 On all three grounds, 1st District Court Judge James Judd ruled against the' Sandpoint attorney in December 2000, ruling that Steele is a public figure, and must meet a higher standard of proof in order to make a case for libel. That burden includes proving actual malice on Morlins part.

Judd said Steele had failed to show malice, or that the reporter falsely printed any facts or intended to inflict emotional distress. In January 2001, Steele filed an appeal with the Supreme Court, claiming he is not a public figure, even in a limited capacity during the Aryan Nations trial. He said the central issue is whether attorneys should enjoy the same First Amendment rights as other citizens. after rulings against them in District Court. The court will make its decisions when it sees fit.

Steele sued The Spokesman-Review over an article by reporter Bill Morlin, published July 23, 1999. Steele claimed the story implied that he shared the beliefs of the Aryan Nations. He called the story libelous, an invasion of his privacy and an intentional infliction of emotional distress. Art under the table Groups say CdA Basin pact illegal Activists say Bush administration agreement caters to interests hostile to Superfund By Karen Dorn Steele Staff writer The Bush administrations decision to put the Superfund cleanup of Silver Valley mine wastes in the hands of an Idaho commission is illegal, six prominent environmental groups say. In a letter Monday to Sens.

Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, they asked for congressional oversight and an independent investigation into the legality of the unprecedented commission. The groups also want the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to amend its recently released $359 million cleanup plan by dropping its formal agreement to work through the new commission. The makeup and powers of the Basin Environmental Improvement Project Commission set an alarming precedent that could undermine how the Superfund law works across the country, said Bonnie Gerstring of the Mineral Policy Center in Washington, D.C., a group that advocates stricter environmental standards for mining companies. Others signing the letter: Lois Gibbs, a nationally known activist at the Love Canal Superfund site in New York; Debbie.

Sease, legislative director of the Continued: PactB6 Mask Intentions. There was no space on the table, so Lanita Perata, 10, moved under the table to paint her mask in Leslie Landwehrs fifth-grade ait class at Winton Elementary School in Coeur dAlene on Monday. The students learned about masks of world cultures and then got to design and paint their own creations. Panhandle plans response to bioterror attack Tribe wants grant for bus New health district office hopes to help combat naturally occurring diseases, too don expect that we have a very high risk of being a target for bioterrorism. Dale Peck, office of Public Health Preparedness director By Benjamin Shors Staff writer Money would be used for free public transport service of people makes it very easy for it to transmit to any part of the country in a short period of time.

Peck has staffed the new office with an epidemiologist, a public information officer, an information technology resource manager and an administrative assistant. Now the staff is focused on gathering information about what North Idahos emergency response needs are and whats currently being done to address them. That information will be used to develop a response plan. The plan will be tailored to North Idaho needs, but also will be the product of collaboration with the state and nation. The plan wont just address the threat of bioterrorism from infectious weapons such as smallpox or anthrax, but all infectious disease outbreaks and other potential public health Continued: PIanB6 By Susan Drumheller Staff writer CbEUR dALENE A new office in the Panhandle Health District is preparing North Idaho for a possible bioterrorist attack.

The office of Public Health Preparedness is the result of a $7.9 million allocation to Idaho made possible by the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Response Act that was signed into law in January. North Idahos share of that funding, disbursed by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is $417,000. The Panhandle Health District hired Dale Peck in July to run the office. Peck spent 20 years in the U.S. Navy as a Civil Engineer Corps officer.

While in the Navy, Peck did a lot of long-range 1 i warfare planning, which isnt too different from what his new position demands, he said. I dont expect that we have a very high risk of being a target for bioterrorism, Peck said Monday. But the nature of bioterrorism and the movement Search for UI students COEUR dALENE -The Coeur dAlene Tribe sought state funding Monday for a bus service that would provide free public transportation in Benewah County. The tribe applied for a $241,000 rural transportation grant from the states division of public transportation; The tribes application was one of four in Region 1, and a dozen statewide competing for $1.8 million. The reservation towns are separated by a lot of miles, said Bob Spaulding, the tribes grant manager.

This service would help the elderly and handicapped get to Plummer for shopping and medical appointments. Spaulding said the grant, along with another $121,000 request from the states transportation department, would allow the tribe to establish the service and to purchase two buses with wheelchair lifts. The tribe plans to donate a third bus to the program, Spaulding said. If approved, the program could start next spring, he said. More than 6,500 people live on the reservation, accounting for two-thirds of the countys population.

The state has funded several similar rural transportation programs, said Butch Ragsdale, a grant officer for District 1. Since this is an unserved area, it could be a great step for it, Ragsdale said. Final grant applications were due Monday. A decision is expected by mid-December. up empty iremains By Hannelore Sudermann Staff writer Idaho Forensic anthropologists, mapping experts and cadaver dogs continued the search for the remains of University of Idaho student Wil Hendrick at a remote Latah County site over the weekend.

i Hendricks skull was found by hunters on comes Authorities hope bones hold clues about how Wil Hendrick died Sept. 7. Searchers later went back to the site and found a lower jaw that was identified as Hendricks through dental records. Police say other than an increased effort to search the area with 45 people over the weekend, theres nothing new to report. Though the local media have been describing the case as a homicide, the Moscow Police Department has yet to determine the nature of Hendricks demise.

Investigators are hoping Continued: HendrlckB6 Police officers, forensic anthropologists and cadaver dogs combed this Potlatch Corp. property over the weekend for the remains of Wil Hendrick, the UI student who disappeared In 1999. His skull was found three weeks ago. Contact the North Idaho office: (208) 765-7100, toll-free (800) 344-6718; fax (208) 344-6718; e-mail newsspokesman.com Online regional news: www.spokesmanreview.com pi I.