Idaho News

BOISE, Id – A movie that airs tonight in the Treasure Valley chronicles the story of a Florida college professor diagnosed with lymphoma.  John Kaplan was diagnosed with two forms of cancer in 2008.  He began the long journey into cancer treatment carrying a camera, which he used to document his experience.

BOISE, Id –The Idaho Redistricting Commission did not meet the 5 o’clock deadline this afternoon to draw a Legislative and Congressional map.  Today is the three month deadline for the bi-partisan commission.  Throughout the day, Commissioners switched between anger and compromise.  Republican Lou Esposito, was repeatedly frustrated when he looked at several contested districts.

Lou Esposito “The only way to describe this is just an abomination for political advantage.  I don’t know how else to even characterize this.”

BOISE, Id – The Idaho Redistricting Commission couldn’t meet its Tuesday afternoon deadline.  Despite three months of negotiations, Commissioners called it quits and walked out of the Statehouse without an agreement.

Boise Idaho – Over the weekend a mountain lion was reported in Boise. There have been similar reports in Kuna in recent weeks. As Adam Cotterell reports cities can be attractive places for mountain lions

Steve Nadeau attributes most cougar sightings in Boise to the power of suggestion.

Steve Nadeau “Other people will all of a sudden think that what they’re seeing are cougars when in fact they might be housecats or something.”

The Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic is back over the skies of Boise this weekend. It started as part of Boise’s River Festival and when that disappeared the balloon classic remained. Scott and Laurie Spencer run balloon company Lighter than Air America and organize the event. Laurie Spencer says there are a lot of balloonists who live in Boise because the mild weather means you can fly year round.

Laurie Spencer “At one point in time you could go down to Lady Bird Park and we’d have our own mini rally and there’d be ten balloons launching on the weekend.”

BOISE, ID. – Three major wildfires are burning in the Salmon-Challis National Forest. 

Kathleen Brown of Salmon spent Sunday night at the town’s Shakespeare in the Park.  She saw much more than Much Ado About Nothing.

Kathleen Brown:  “Ash was falling from the smoke cloud and they were perfect little pine needles.  And when you touched them, the ash disintegrated.”

BOISE, Id – The Walter Reed Army Medical Center closed its doors at a flag-lowering ceremony over the weekend.  The 102-year-old Washington D-C facility will be folded into other medical centers as part of a consolidation effort. Tens of thousands of wounded military men and women have passed through Walter Reed.  Samantha Wright talks to one Idaho Marine who spent time there.

When you first meet Josh Callihan you wouldn’t know that ten years ago he was severely injured in the line of duty.

BOISE, ID. – Idaho’s Congressional Delegation gathered at the Statehouse today to honor dozens of young Idahoans.  

Idaho’s Congressional delegation awarded medals to sixty-eight Idahoans from ages fourteen to twenty-three.  U.S. Senator Mike Crapo explains the award’s significance. 

Mike Crapo:  “They are able to develop their own proposals in key areas of community development, and personal development, and the like.  And if they meet their own targets, and they work with a counselor, then they’re able to win an award.” 

Tuesday is the first day of school in Meridian, the state’s largest school district. Classes started in Boise last week. Going back to school is a big day for students and for teachers… Adam Cotterell asked teachers at Central Canyon Elementary in Caldwell and Collister Elementary in Boise what they think about on the first day of school.

The Idaho school year begins on the heels of two years of funding cuts. That’s prompted many schools to get creative when it comes to finding cash for say… the operating budget. Adam Cotterell takes us to one school that’s trying to get the money to build a new playground by entering a national contest.

Boise ID – Idaho’s wolf hunting season started Tuesday. So far the state has sold more than eight thousand wolf tags. Adam Cotterell reports on how wolf hunting might impact Idaho’s economy.

Ken Smith has guided hunters in Idaho since the late 1960s.

Ken Smith “You know I’ve kind of seen it all.”

BOISE, ID. – The Salmon School District wants to replace its elementary and junior high buildings.  It’s asking voters Tuesday to approve a bond to finance a new school.    

Salmon’s Middle School is more than seventy years old. It’s showing its age.  District Superintendent Joey Foote says a new building would cost less than fixing the old one.

Joey Foote:  “Walking around the exterior where the foundation is in contact with the soil, you can see that it is literally crumbling.”

BOISE, ID. – Idaho prison officials dismantled a sweat lodge Wednesday.   It was used mainly by Native Americans to worship. 

Prisoners have used the sweat lodge at the South Idaho Correctional Institution in Kuna for decades.  Deputy Chief of Prisons Jeff Zmuda says they are remodeling the outdoor area and removed the lodge for safety and security reasons. 

Jeff Zmuda:  “Concerned about some contraband that may have been out in that area.  And with the sweat lodge it was in a bit of disrepair.  It had some mold in it.”

On Wednesday, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission approved a seven day season for sage grouse. The season opens October 1st.

“Sage grouse hunting has been a tradition in Idaho for a long time,” says Don Kemner.  He’s the sage grouse program coordinator at the Department of Fish and Game. “However it has declined in the last 15 years as we
have become more conservative with seasons.”

Non-resident wolf tags have actually been selling at a discount since late last month. That’s when Commissions agreed to cut the price by 83%. But the cut in price was overshadowed by another decision not to set a quota and to allow hunters to use traps during this year’s season.

Sharon Kieffer is a deputy director with the Department of Fish and Game. She acknowledges tag sales were low earlier this summer, but the decision wasn’t meant to boost sales.

One of Idaho’s new education laws goes before a judge Thursday. That’s even as voters decide next fall whether to repeal the three laws that make up Students Come First.

BOISE, Id – Idaho is last in the nation when it comes to getting screened for breast cancer.  Emily Simnitt is with the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.  Simnitt says more than 120-thousand Idaho women over forty have not had a mammogram in the last two years.  That’s a problem, because early detection can increase the chances of survival.

BOISE, ID. – Laid-off workers from Nampa’s XL Four Star Beef can get federal help to retrain.  The U.S. Labor Department has awarded up to two million dollars Monday to help.   

Bob Fick, a spokesman for Idaho’s Labor Department, says the money can be used for education, including language courses.   

Fick: Large majority of the workers at XL Four Star were not fluent in English.  Getting them fluent in English will be a major help in finding them new employment.

An accounting watchdog group says Idaho does not have a balanced budget after all.