10 Years Ago 1997

A drunk driver killed at least one person here July 4. That was the news that traveled through law enforcement ranks while many of us were enjoying barbecues and fireworks shows. Thats exactly the type of accident that Washington State Patrol Troopers hoped to prevent during a drinking and driving emphasis patrol in the north Snohomish County area Friday night. We want to kick the weekend off on a strong note, said WSP Sgt. Jim Lever Thursday afternoon. Lever organized the patrol, which included Troopers, city police and the Snohomish County Sheriffs Deputies, to pay special attention to drunk drivers. The holiday traditionally is busy for law enforcement officers, especially when it starts a three-day weekend. Lever wanted to be prepared. Unfortunately, drunks out number patrol officers and its impossible to be everywhere at once. But they try. Trouper Chuck LeBlanc, an eight-year veteran of the WSP, was one of five Troopers and a supervisor on patrol that night, covering the beat from the Snohomish River north to Starbird Road and Camano Island east to Darrington. His shift started at 9 p.m. was supposed to end at 4 a.m. His goal, he said, was to catch three drunk drivers. Finding, testing and doing the paperwork on those three stops would have nearly filled his shift. It takes an average of three hours to process a drunk driver, he said. On the fifth traffic stop of the night, LeBlanc found what he had been looking for. The driver came to LeBlancs attention after trying to maneuver his car onto a southbound freeway exit ramp into Everett after nearly missing it. After the driver failed sobriety tests, was handcuffed and placed in the back of the patrol car, Leblanc found a half case of Miller Genuine Draft under a jacket on the front passenger seat and two open beer cans under the drivers seat. Its going to be an expensive evening for him, LeBlanc said. That includes $66 for the open container citation, $120 for the impound fee, $20 for a cab ride to his friends house, and $3,000 to $5,000 for the DUI process. Id like to see (the costs) higher, LeBlanc added. Ill do anything and everything to keep drunks off the road, he said. That means being on the lookout while on the road and getting the message across after he has them in custody. Spotting a drunk driver is mostly watching for little things as well as the obvious signs, LeBlanc said. It could be someone going too fast or too slow, crossing the white line or making erratic lane changes. Conditioned drunks, who have a lot of experience drinking and driving, are tougher to spot, he said. Some traffic stops for a broken taillight or some other mechanical problem, often nab a drunk unexpectedly. LeBlanc said he averages ten to 14 traffic stops and four tickets a shift. I think the public think were a lot more hard-nosed than we are, he said. Thats not to say there arent some who are hard-nosed, he added. I dont think its my job to be a jerk. I give people a lot of breaks, he said, as long as they tell me the truth. Except, he added, when it comes to drunk drivers. I want to scare them out of doing it again, he said. The most effective means, he believes, is to make it personal. Sometimes he knows they get the message. Other times, they dont. He recently responded to an accident where a man wrecked his vehicle just before he picked up his children from daycare. He was drunk. I tried to get it across to him he should be thankful the wreck happened before he picked up his kids, but he didnt see it that way, LeBlanc said. I asked him what he would do if some drunk crashed into the yard where his kids were playing. He just kept saying, Id kill them, but he didnt see how that applied to himself. As the father of two boys, LeBlanc is especially tough on drunk drivers with kids in the car. My kids are the most important thing in the world to me, he said, adding he just cant understand why people would endanger their childrens lives by drinking and driving. While LeBlanc did not make his goal of getting three drunk drivers off the road during his Independence Day shift, he was satisfied. We only got one. But thats better than none! Theres always tomorrow.

25 Years Ago 1982

Most people who talk about the weather never take it too seriously until it strikes them. Then, it may be too late. Ken Johnson and Bonnie Collins found out the hard way at the National Wheelchair Games in the heat of Marshall, Minn. Collins had wanted an ambulance at the finish line for her 1,500-meter race when temperatures on the track rose to above 100 degrees. Johnson is still wishing he had worn a hat for his archery competition. The heat was just unbearable, said Collins, who won herself a silver medal in the 200 meters at the June 23-27, 1982 games. Steven, my husband, kept soaking me with water, but Id be dry in five minutes. Have you ever run in the heat, to where you can hardly see and your ears are ringing. I was screaming to get me the hell out of there. Collins finally got her wish following the 1,500 meters. She and her husband, Steve, were ushered to a car which had air-conditioning. The relief was indescribable, but the sudden change in temperatures gave Collins a bad cold. I got a cold, but at least I didnt have to go to the hospital, she said, adding that some competitors werent so fortunate. Johnson, who picked up a bronze medal in archery, spent nearly five and a half hours on the range in the intense heat. Following the competition, he was rushed to hospital where her remained until his flight back home. He was home only two days when he had to be taken to the hospital again. Im recuperating, but I still have trouble keeping food down, Johnson said Monday at his Marysville home. I had just barely gotten through the competition. There was just too much sun. I was out too long without a hat. All of a sudden, my blood pressure goes up. My bodys not working right. It got real scary, but I had good doctors and nurses. Traveling companion Karla Tpolt also was a great help to me. Once he gets back his health, Johnson says he wants to begin training for next year with his new racing chair a vehicle he left at home because of time and space problems. He, along with Collins, had qualified for the nationals in track and field at trials at the University of Washington in May. Im glad Ken didnt do any of the track events; it was just too hot, Collins said, recuperating from her races around the frying pan. I dont like the heat. I got really sick. I cant cope with it. I like the weather in Washington and Marysville. I like to see my breath sometimes. Collins said when she went back, she had been hoping for a third place in something. Second is good. The competition is tough. She won a bronze medal in the 100 meters at last years nationals at the University of Washington. Johnson, competing in the 1-A division for athletes with high neck injuries, was the titlist in archery and struck silver and bronze in the swimming pool at last years competition. Collins silver-medal time of 46.5 seconds for the 200 is her best. She won one of six gold medals at this years trials with a previous best of 51.99. She competes in the Class 3 category for athletes with good upper body mobility. Johnson won four gold medals at this years trials, including the archery competition. In the archery trials, he shot 458 out of a possible 720. He doesnt have the tally sheet from the championships but he thinks it below his usual performance. Johnsons trip to the nationals was made possible with the communitys help. His return may have been with a little help from above. Collins also had someone watching over her both at the nationals and at the trials, the pit crew finally chasing down a pair of borrowed wheels when it was discovered the morning of the trials the wheel bearings would have to be replaced. Then, seconds after her final event, a hissing tire seemed to sense the air was no longer needed. Not wanting their fellow worker to take any unnecessary chances this time, employees of Snohomish County took up a collection and bought her an extra set of wheels for the competition. I thought that was kind of nice of them, Collins laughed. Id like to thank all those people who helped me get to nationals, Johnson said. There were a lot of local organizations, clubs businesses and private citizens who donated. I wish I had done better for them. Cost of the trip was about $1,000. Perhaps Evelyn Johnson, Kens mother, is a clairvoyant of sorts. You have to attend the games and see their competitive spirit and the way they cope, she had said on the eve of the games.

50 Years Ago 1957

Marysville is to be used as a pilot study of the effect, economically, of highway bypasses and limited access highways. The survey is being made by research experts from the University of Washington, Marion Marts, assistant professor of geography and John Nystuen, research associate in the department of geography. The work is now going forward under the auspices of the Joint Interim Committee of the state legislature and its fact-finding sub-committee on highways, of which Mrs. Julia butler Hansen is chairman. The study of Marysville is expected to reveal what economic effect the change of highway has brought since cross-state traffic was taken from the towns main artery and routed past on the new by-pass highway.