Flathead Valley News Buffet: Kalispell, Montana News

Good morning; on the Beacon today, nearly everybody in Whitefish considers Halloween one of the biggest days of the year for the town, and some stake claim to the holiday as the biggest of all celebrations. More and more gun manufacturing firms are sprouting up in Northwest Montana. Flathead County court officials say they do not expect a new judge to be chosen until early next week in the case against state Sen. Greg Barkus, who faces several charges stemming from an August boat crash that injured all five people aboard. A 62-year-old Kalispell man, Lawrence Sheehan, has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for years-long sexual abuse of his young stepdaughter. A Boston-based investment firm has agreed to pay $1.3 million in restitution to Montana investors for a Ponzi scheme run by an independent broker in Kalispell. Officials say a downed power line near Eureka in northwestern Montana electrocuted more than a dozen animals over a period of months, including a wolf that was "still warm" when it was found earlier this month.

U.S. Sen. Jon Tester told seniors on Wednesday that he may yet support a health care bill that lets people buy into a government insurance plan if they choose — but said he wants to first make sure it works. Some non-Native American bar owners on the Flathead Reservation are defying the statewide smoking ban. A second dead grizzly bear that had its claws removed has been discovered along the Rocky Mountain Front, prompting the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to announce a $3,000 reward for information Wednesday. Gov. Brian Schweitzer defended state law in a flap over a software contract through the Department of Public Health and Human Services that will be exporting labor to overseas workers. And the Bozeman Chronicle's Daniel Person has an interesting story about how the wolf hunt is conflicting with the research of scientists studying the wolf population around Yellowstone.

Good morning; on the Beacon today, with any luck, the first phase of the Kalispell bypass southern portion from Highway 93 South to U.S. Highway 2 West could be completed sometime next summer or fall. Myers Reece previews the three northwest Montana teams headed to the state Class A football championship. An attorney for state Sen. Greg Barkus wants a different judge to preside over the case against the lawmaker, who faces charges stemming from an August boat crash that injured all five people aboard. And business columnist Mark Riffey writes about how being "green" can be one of the best things for a small business.

Figures show occupancy rates in Montana hotels, motels and inns was up 2.2 percent in September compared to the same period in 2008. Truckloads of opulent furniture, including a two-seated throne meant to grace a 53,000-square-foot home that Yellowstone Club founder Tim Blixseth never built, will be on the auction block in Georgia next month. Griz football coach Bobby Hauck is again answering questions from student reporters after he shunned the student newspaper for more than a month following a story about an alleged assault by two members of the team. The Missoulian's Vince Devlin writes about a Bigfork Realtor's effort to help Flathead and Lake County homeowners file their property reappraisal appeals. Montana Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester declined to say specifically whether they support the new government health-insurance plan proposed this week by their majority leader, as part of an overall health-reform bill. After a 31-year wait, the U.S. Department of Interior said Tuesday it will not recognize Montana's Little Shell Tribe.

Good morning; on the Beacon today, Flathead County’s Board of Commissioners voted to pass the 2009-2010 county budget, touting it as an effort that realistically reflects the current recession. State Sen. Greg Barkus pleaded not guilty to three felony charges resulting from an August boat crash on Flathead Lake that injured five people, including Congressman Denny Rehberg. Wildlife officials say a Columbia Falls man has been cited for killing two wolves during a closed season in northwestern Montana. Authorities are investigating after a judge's office in Eureka was broken into and set ablaze over the weekend.

U.S. Sen. Jon Tester says fellow Montana Sen. Max Baucus has co-signed a proposal to both add more wilderness and require more logging on federal land. The federal government dropped murder-related charges against a man in the 2001 deaths of three women at a Florence hair salon shortly after attorneys filed a motion alleging prosecutorial misconduct and outrageous government conduct. Michael Jamison interviews the family and friends of Libby soldier J.R. Stright, who was killed in a training exercise off the coast of Virginia last week. Supporters of the climate bill in Congress are releasing a report that says the measure would create more jobs in Montana. Montana has issued its first license for an industrial hemp-growing operation, setting up a possible test case of whether the Drug Enforcement Administration is willing to override a state law allowing propagation of the plant. The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks to close the state’s inaugural wolf hunt in southern Montana Monday after the quoata of 12 was reached.

Good morning; on the Beacon today, based on a meeting held last week at Flathead High School that drew more than 40 people, wariness and outright opposition to any expansion of the Kalispell city airport appears to be growing. Army Staff Sgt. James R. Stright of Libby, 29, was killed Thursday night when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed on a Navy ship during training off the Virginia coast. The Flathead City-County Health Department on Oct. 20, in collaboration with North Valley Hospital and Mountain Mall gave 667 vaccines for the H1N1 virus. Flathead High's Mary Allen, 17, moved to Kalispell this past summer to be with her father and four younger siblings, but when Allen speaks about volleyball, it is always in terms of her new family on the court. If an informational meeting held recently in Polson is any indication, chances that city voters will approve a 3 percent local option tax, placed on the Nov. 3 ballot by city commissioners, are few and far between.

Montana is redesigning its basic license plate design for the first time in five years, and is looking at a retro-inspired design that harkens back to the plates of the 1970s and earlier. Matt Nichols threw for 327 yards and four touchdowns, lifting Eastern Washington to a 35-24 victory Saturday over Montana State, which was down eight players because of the flu. Running backs Chase Reynolds and Thomas Brooks-Fletcher combined for 245 yards and four touchdowns in Montana's 45-30 victory over Sacramento State on Saturday. State wildlife managers say one wolf kill was reported as Montana's general hunting season opened Sunday with an estimated 100,000 hunters spreading across public and private lands. Montana Public Radio is dropping "Car Talk" from its schedule. A long-awaited decision is due today on whether the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Montana deserves federal recognition. Lee's Chuck Johnson writes about the effort to draft Billings Republican state Sen. Taylor Brown to run for governor. And Mike Dennison talks to state cabin leaseholders who do not think the new rent structure endorsed by the state Land Board is fair to leaseholders.

Good morning; on the Beacon today, the Bigfork High School volleyball team hopes to keep its dreams alive with a state title. The closing of Kalispell's Planned Parenthood has elicited a variety of responses from the local community. The University of Montana is trying to oust a student from campus housing after failed to register as a violent offender. Warren Miller discusses the how important the name of the Huega Center, an MS treatment center in Vail, Colo., is to him. And smokers head to tribal casinos after the Clean Air Act kicked in at the beginning of the month.

Authorities arrest three men in connection with the $60,000 theft of a melon farm safe. Ghost hunters in Cody, Wyo., search for the specters with the Wyoming Area Paranormal Society. Montana Attorney General Steve Bullock won't install an outside investigator to look into an abuse case regarding a Great Falls teacher's aide and her autistic student. The bus carrying the Westminster volleyball team crashed near Helena, thankfully hurting no one.

That's it for now, have a safe and fun weekend!

Good morning; on the Beacon today, Montana Transportation Department Director Jim Lynch talked about the intractable problem of fatality rates on the state's highway system at a dedication ceremony for fallen troopers in Kalispell. Candidates for Kalispell City Council took questions from the Beacon on why they're suited for the job. The Glacier Park International Airport Authority Board, sticking by its decision to privatize its airport security force, met with local federal security workers who are worried about job security. And Wild Bill talks with the makers of a new documentary about an infamous 1967 night in Glacier National Park when two women were killed by grizzlies.

A Missoula jury on Wednesday awarded $3.2 million to a woman suing the maker of a bone-strengthening drug in a decision that could have a bearing on hundreds of cases against the company nationwide. Montana will resume its gray wolf hunt in parts of the Absaroka Range this Sunday with the start of the general deer and elk hunting season. The Missoulian's Rob Chaney previews the conditions for the big game season. David Ortley, a justice of the peace from Kalispell, and Peggy Probasco, a state child-support enforcement attorney from Butte, are two of the attorneys seeking appointment to a future vacancy on the Montana Supreme Court. More fun in Hardin: The former vice president of First Interstate Bank in Hardin will spend six years in federal prison for stealing more than $1.6 million from the bank to cover gambling and other losses racked up by her husband. And casinos on Indian reservations that still allow smokers are doing big business. Republican U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg, seeking his sixth term, reported having about $734,000 cash left in the bank on Sept. 30, the largest war chest in the 2010 Montana congressional race. Gov. Brian Schweitzer and NaturEner USA officials celebrated the completion of the state's largest wind farm south of Ethridge on Wednesday.

Good morning; on the Beacon today, Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. announced Wednesday that the company will curtail all production at the end of October. The economic issues facing Kalispell and how the city government has handled them comes into sharpest focus in the nonpartisan race between incumbent Mayor Pam Kennedy, seeking a third term, and her challenger, attorney Tammi Fisher. A new judge will preside over the case of Kalispell state Sen. Greg Barkus, who is charged with three felonies after an Aug. 27 boat crash on Flathead Lake. The debate on whether to allow truck traffic on a narrow highway along the east shore of Flathead Lake has been renewed after another tractor trailer crashed and caught fire, injuring the driver. The Beacon's Mick Holien interviews the Finley Point man who rescued the truck driver. And business columnist Mark Riffey discusses the difficulty of overcoming professional inertia.

A former University of Montana football player was given a two-year deferred sentence Tuesday for his role in an assault that left a fellow student with a concussion and a fractured jaw. Montana's unemployment rate rose a small amount in September from 6.6 percent to 6.7 percent. Montana has one of the nation's lowest rates of death from child abuse and neglect, a new report released this morning shows. Montana's Attorney General Steve Bullock was on a national cable news show Tuesday explaining why he thinks Montana - not the federal government - should be in charge of finding Montana owners to $55 million in old, unclaimed war bonds.

Good morning; on the Beacon today, from Bigfork to Whitefish, from Class B to AA, the Flathead Valley has no shortage of championship contenders heading into this weekend’s state cross country meet. Kellie Danielson, who became president and chief executive officer of Montana West Economic Development in Kalispell earlier this year, is tasked with finding ways to bring new business to the Flathead Valley in a time of uncertainty. Small towns report they are having a hard time finding and keeping police officers, and often lose them to places that pay better. The Montana Land Board agreed Monday to increase fees for state land leased to cabin sites but also agreed to extend the length of the leases.

U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg says the nation needs to maintain its land-based nuclear missile arsenal at current levels — both as a shield against foreign adversaries and to protect local communities that could be hurt economically if the missiles were removed. The Montana Judicial Nomination Commission has received 11 applications for one soon-to-be vacant spot on the Montana Supreme Court. A rug store owner whose building was significantly damaged by a deadly natural gas explosion in downtown Bozeman has sued NorthWestern Energy. Classes are back in session this week at schools in Anaconda. Memorial services for Elizabeth Clare Prophet of the Church Universal and Triumphant are scheduled for Thursday. And John S. Adams at the Great Falls Tribune reports on how Montana's medical marijuana community is applauding a new Obama administration policy that says federal prosecutors should not target marijuana patients and suppliers in states that allow the use of medical marijuana.