Sexually transmitted disease rates up

Olympia

Rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in Washington are rising again, state health officials reported Thursday.

Gonorrhea cases in 2006 increased 13 percent from the year before to the highest rates seen in 13 years, said Mark Stenger, an epidemiologist for the state Department of Health. He said health officials are also seeing increased resistance to antibiotics and an increase in risky behavior.

Cowlitz County had the highest rate of gonorrhea infection last year, with more than triple the state average of 66.4 cases per 100,000 residents. Chlamydia remains the most commonly reported STD in Washington, with most cases reported among women 15-24 years old.

Overall, more than 22,000 cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis infection were reported to local health agencies in Washington in 2006.

For more information: www.doh.wa.gov/cfh/std.

Auburn

Driver charged in fatal crash

A 20-year-old Spanaway woman who led police on an extensive chase that ended in a fatal crash was charged by King County prosecutors with vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and attempting to elude police.

Police and prosecutors said that Amber A.R. Sorenson fled from police who tried to stop her after she picked up a friend, who had just gotten out of a stolen vehicle, in the parking lot of the Auburn Wal-Mart about 1 a.m. Tuesday.

Police and prosecutors said Sorenson led them on a mileslong chase, reaching speeds of more than 100 mph before Sorenson crashed on Auburn Way North.

Passenger Timothy Tull, 21, was pronounced dead at the scene. Sorenson and passenger Bartholomew L. Joyce, 36, of Federal Way, were taken to Harborview Medical Center with serious injuries.

Auburn

Patrol nabs driver with mannequin

A 44-year-old Black Diamond man was pulled over in the northbound car-pool lane on Highway 167 near Auburn on Wednesday morning when a state trooper spotted the head of a mannequin tied to the passenger seat.

The trooper, thinking the man's passenger looked "as white as a ghost," stopped the pair to investigate, according to a news release from the State Patrol. When the trooper realized there was only one real person in the vehicle, he proceeded to "re-educate the man" about what it means to have two or more occupants.

The driver apparently was not too pleased, spewing profanities as the trooper wrote him a ticket for the HOV (high-occupancy-vehicle) lane violation and not having auto insurance, according to the release.

Seattle

Deal for light-rail station approved

In hopes of putting a costly airport light-rail station back on track, Sound Transit's governing board Thursday approved a $35.8 million deal for Mowat Construction to begin work this fall.

Back in March, Mowat was the sole bidder — at $95.3 million, or $43.5 million above the agency's estimate of $51.8 million. In response, Sound Transit has broken the project into multiple parts. Mowat will sign a reduced contract to build the station's concrete structure and tracks. Several details, such as glass walls and pedestrian bridges, will be redesigned to save money.

Light-rail director Ahmad Fazel said that if work starts in the fall, trains will reach the station as scheduled in December 2009. The site is northeast of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport parking garage, 1,000 feet from the terminal.

Tacoma

Former soldier gets 19 years in slaying

A former Army soldier based at Fort Lewis has been sentenced to 19 years in prison for his role in the kidnapping and murder of Christopher Jerry in August 2005.

Michael Jordan, 21, of University Place, had served in the same unit with Jerry, and the two lived together briefly after Jerry was discharged from the Army on Aug. 19, 2005. Prosecutors said Jordan planned to kidnap and assault Jerry on Aug. 30 because he was angry that Jerry had failed to repay more than $1,000 that Jordan had loaned him.

At Jordan's sentencing Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Leighton said Jordan "set everything in motion. ... You assembled the cast of characters, you initiated everything that happened that night."

Jordan discussed his plan with his girlfriend, Apryl Beach, and enlisted the help of three other men to carry out his plan — Jacob Gardner, 21; Thomas Dunigan, 23; and Markus Moore, 26, according to court records.

Jordan lured Jerry to Fox Island on the Kitsap Peninsula under false pretenses of attending a party, according to prosecutors. The co-conspirators kidnapped, beat and robbed Jerry, then hog-tied him and drove him to a dark area adjacent to an ammo-supply gate at Fort Lewis, where he was shot.

Jordan pleaded guilty in February to one count of kidnapping resulting in death and one count of first-degree murder. Also Tuesday, Gardner was sentenced to 10 years in prison and Beach was sentenced to 20 months in prison.

Previously, Moore was sentenced to more than 29 years in prison, and Dunigan received a 20-year prison term in connection with Jerry's death.

White Pass

Rockslide closes Highway 12

U.S. Highway 12 has been closed through White Pass because of a rockslide, and the earliest it will open is Saturday, according to a state Department of Transportation (DOT) spokeswoman.

The department is asking drivers to delay recreational trips to the area for a few days while crews work to clear the road, spokeswoman Alissa Bateman said.

The highway was closed Wednesday afternoon after boulders came down about two miles east of the pass. The closure begins at the junction with Highway 123 south of Mount Rainier National Park for eastbound traffic and at the summit for westbound travelers. Recreation areas at White Pass remain open.

DOT dispatcher Steve Branch said no vehicles were hit and no one was hurt.

Branch said the slide hit while a contractor was working to stabilize the slope.

Seattle Times staff and news services