10 years ago 1997
The six-year search for a Department of Corrections work-release facility in north Snohomish County is on hold for at least six months, after the murder last month of 12-year-old Ashley Jones of Stanwood by a juvenile offender in a work-release program. Jones confessed killer, 17-year-old David Dodge, was serving a sentence in a home for juveniles which allowed him to work away from the holding facility. The tragedy had a direct impact on siting an adult work-release facility, said Marysville DOC office supervisor Greg Freeman. Although juvenile and adult programs are divided by the state Department of Corrections, in the public eye there is no distinction its a work-release program, Freeman said. The juvenile and adult programs operate very differently, and the adult program learned from its mistakes 15 years ago with the release of Charles Campbell, who murdered three people in Clearview while out on work release, Freeman said. He likened the similarities to the Campbell and Dodges cases, not in the people, but the events surrounding their crimes. Last year the DOC narrowed down five sites for a work-release facility, including two near or in Marysville. If a search starts again in six months, it will be from the beginning, Freeman said, but he hopes it will be a county initiative program, with county officials leading the way. As long as it is a state program, we are always going to fail, Freeman said, because a people think, its state inmates, let the state worry about it. Of the 4,500 prison inmates, about 300 inmates are sentenced to prison from Snohomish County.

25 years ago 1982
Advertising contracts have been made, several stories are ready for the typesetter, and printing arrangements are complete for Marysville-Pilchuck High Schools first-ever newspaper. Actually, all we really need now is a name, said editor Ray Brown, explaining the solution to that problem should be close at hand. Brown, the Associated Student Body secretary, whose campaign platform last spring pointed to a need for a school newspaper, says a name-the-paper contest should provide the answer. The first issue may not have a name wed just leave the space blank, said Brown who hopes the first issue will appear on campus this week during Homecoming festivities. Brown said the winning entry would quality for a strap-on stereo, complete with headphones. Then wed offer a smaller prize in a drawing from all the other entries. Brown, a senior at Marysville, should have plenty of sources and contracts for news in the paper which Brown and co-editor Jeff Miner would like to see come out once every two weeks. I really thought our school needed a newspaper and I made it a part of my campaign last year, Brown said. It would fill a need. Its part of my job as ASB secretary to communicate. I thought this would be a pretty good way. Brown said a basic staff of seven or eight students has been gathered together to lay the groundwork for a regular publication. Publishing a paper costs money and Brown and his colleagues have been busy setting up advertising for the first issue, and those thereafter. Its our whole financial basis, explained Brown who said a committee may make a formal application to the Marysville School Board at a later date to have a journalism class instituted at the high school for next year. We went to my adviser and he thought the idea of a newspaper was a good one. The closest we have to a journalism class here is the yearbook staff.

50 years ago 1957
The new mounted carrier route planned for some months to relieve the carriers on Routes One and Two, went into effect Saturday as planned, though much needed equipment has yet to arrive for the local office from the postal department. Since new street and house numbers must be used under the new system, some delay in time of delivery may be experienced until the new carrier becomes acquainted with his route. It is imperative that all patrons have their new numbers Postmaster Leon Stock states. These can be obtained from the office by providing a legal description of the property.