Do you know the score?
How to throw a fabulous
Clearing up some misconceptions about golf handicaps • SPORTS, D1
SAVVY SHOPPER, E1
bridal shower
WEATHER TODAY
WEDNESDAY
Mostly cloudy, slight chance of showers High 45, Low 18 Page C6
• March 31, 2010 50¢
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Bend contests China’s bid for Epic Air
SAGEWALK CASE
Wilderness school may face criminal charges in teen’s death By Erin Golden The Bulletin
The lead investigator in the case of a 16-year-old Portland boy who collapsed and died on a hike with a Redmond-based wilderness school last year said Tuesday that he’s calling the case a homicide and will ask the Lake County district attorney to file criminal charges. Sergey Blashchishen died Aug. 28 in a remote area of northern Lake County, less than 48 hours after he was picked up at his home by representatives from the SageWalk Wilderness School. He was about two hours into a hike with counselors and other participants in a program for teens dealing with emotional and behavioral issues or other problems, including substance abuse. After nearly seven months of investigation, Lake County Sheriff’s Deputy Chuck Poré said he believes Blashchishen died because school staff members didn’t properly respond to a series of signs that the boy was not doing well. Before he collapsed and stopped breathing, Blashchishen reportedly struggled with his 40to 50-pound backpack, stumbled several times and vomited. “The issue became interpretation, and in this case, the corporate interpretation of the child’s conduct,” Poré said. “When the child says, ‘I’m sick, I’m tired, I can’t go on,’ and makes other complaints, what is the response to the child? And therein became the issue.” See SageWalk / A4
TOP NEWS INSIDE
Alexander Zemlianichenko The Associated Press
MOSCOW BOMBINGS: Amid mourning for the victims, Russia’s leaders take a hard line on the attackers, Page A3
INDEX Abby
E2
Business
B1-4
Local
C1-6
Movies
E3
Calendar
E3
Classified
F1-6
Obituaries Shopping
E1-6
C5
Comics
E4-5
Sports
D1-4
Crossword E5, F2
Stocks
B2-3
Tired of
snow? If so, you’re out of luck – especially if you’re traveling over the passes
By Nick Budnick The Bulletin
Photos by Rob Kerr / The Bulletin
Kenneth Kirkelie puts chains on his tires Tuesday on Santiam Pass along U.S. Highway 20. Kirkelie and his wife were returning to their home in Lebanon after a winter in Yuma, Ariz. Kirkelie said a Les Schwab Tire Centers employee had showed him how to put on the chains, but the cold weather was challenging his patience.
Studded tire removal deadline extended to April 11 By Kate Ramsayer • The Bulletin he spring storms that have dropped more than 2 feet of snow in the Central Cascades may have made for some happy skiers — but nervous drivers — in the mountains.
T
Due to the storms, the Oregon Department of Transportation has extended the deadline for people to take the studded tires off their vehicles to 12:01 a.m. April 11. The extension was given because of the snowy conditions on the passes, said Peter Murphy, ODOT spokesman. On Tuesday, Santiam Pass webcams showed near-whiteout conditions at times. “Right now, it looks like we can’t even keep snow off the road,” Murphy said Tuesday. “Our plows are making regular passes up and over, and they’re barely able to maintain conditions.” And the wet weather is predicted to continue — with some breaks — through Easter weekend. Today is predicted to bring isolated showers in the morning, and a slight chance of thunderstorms, said Diann Coonfield, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, and the snow level will be at about 4,000 feet. “There’ll be snow at lower levels; it just won’t stick,” she said. While the mountains could see showers on Thursday, the Bend area is predicted to get a break from the precipitation, she said, but then another front moves in to the Bend and Redmond area Friday morning. Snow could make a reappearance on Friday night, Coonfield said, and forecasters are predicting a mix of snow and rain showers for both Saturday and Easter Sunday. See Snow / A4
C4
TV listings
E2
Horoscope
E5
Weather
C6
We use recycled newsprint The Bulletin An Independent Newspaper
MON-SAT
Vol. 107, No. 90, 32 pages, 6 sections
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A trio of Oregon Department of Transportation snowplows clears the eastbound lane around Hogg Rock on U.S. Highway 20 on Tuesday. Snowfall is expected in the mountain passes, with some breaks, through the Easter weekend.
“Right now, it looks like we can’t even keep snow off the road. Our plows are making regular passes up and over, and they’re barely able to maintain conditions.” — Peter Murphy, ODOT spokesman, on the mountain passes
More on the weather • Find out more about what Mother Nature has in store for Central Oregon and beyond, Page C6
Obama, economy fuel rise of militants, experts say
AT ISSUE: A bankruptcy trustee named Beijing’s Aviation Industry Corp. of China as the leading bidder for Bendbased Epic Air, a decision that has been challenged in federal bankruptcy court. Randall Dunn said he is prepared to rule on the fate of Epic Air at a follow-up hearing on Friday.
Soon, you may not be able to judge a book by its cover
By Niraj Warikoo DETROIT — The actions of the Christian militia group raided in Michigan are part of a growing trend of militant activity across the U.S. because of the weak economy and an African-American president, experts and a civil rights group say. Hutaree, a militia based in Lenawee County, Mich., allegedly planned an uprising against the U.S. government by plotting to murder police. “I don’t think this is the last
PORTLAND — The city of Bend on Tuesday waded into a fight in federal bankruptcy court over the carcass of a Bend kitbuilt airplane-maker, protesting an earlier decision that could open the door to shipping the defunct company and its assets to China. The situation will remain uncertain until at least Friday, when federal Judge Randall Dunn said he would be prepared to rule at a follow-up hearing on the fate of Epic Air. But in a bit of good news for city officials, Dunn promised to consider the potential impacts to Bend of whatever decision he makes — something a bankruptcy trustee did not do last week when naming a Chinese government-owned firm as the leading bidder. Epic, formally known as Aircraft Investor Resources, manufactures high-performance $2 million build-your-own aircraft kits that use cutting-edge, superlight composite technology and enable cruising speeds of more than 400 miles per hour. Despite its cutting-edge technology, the firm filed for bankruptcy last fall after a breach of contract lawsuit was filed against it. Three groups filed to take over its intellectual property as well as its physical assets. One company, a Beijing-based subsidiary of Aviation Industry Corp. of China, wanted to essentially take the firm home with it. See Epic / A5
WHAT’S NEXT: Judge
Christian militia part of a growing trend Detroit Free Press
Editorial
City joins legal brawl over fate of bankrupt maker of kit airplanes
By Motoko Rich New York Times News Service
Inside • Facebook gives glimpse inside Hutaree group, Page A5 we’re going to see of these groups,” said Michael Barkun, a professor of political science at Syracuse University who studies religious violence and extremism. “The number of such groups has increased fairly dramatically in the last couple of years.” See Militants / A5
Michael Nagle / New York Times News Service
Subway passengers in Brooklyn read while en route. The rise of e-books may turn the book cover into an endangered species.
Bindu Wiles was on a subway in Brooklyn this month when she spotted a woman reading a book whose cover had an arresting black silhouette of a girl’s head set against a bright orange background. She leaned in to catch the title: “Little Bee,” by Chris Cleave. Wiles, a graduate student in nonfiction writing at Sarah Lawrence College, bought the book later that week. Such encounters are becoming increasingly difficult. With a growing number of people turning to Kindles and other electronic readers, it is not always possible to see what others are reading or to project your own literary tastes. See Books / A4