Idaho Press-Tribune

CANYON COUNTY — The man Caldwell police shot to death Wednesday outside a home on the 1700 block of Fairoaks Drive in Caldwell had a handgun and refused officers' demands to drop it, police reported. Members of the Caldwell Police Department's tactical response team shot David Valdez Banda, 40, at 6:05 p.m. after officers tried to serve a search warrant. Full Story »

CALDWELL — The 40-year-old man who was fatally shot by Caldwell police officers Wednesday evening had told family members he was afraid to return to prison. Police officials said David Valdez Banda was armed with a handgun when he was shot to death outside his girlfriend's home on the 1700 block of Fairoaks Drive. He had refused officers' demands to drop the gun as officers were attempting to ... Full Story »

CALDWELL — Organizers expect this year's Treasure Valley Night Light Parade and Celebration Saturday to be bigger and better than ever, despite the tough economy. Lisa Gabiola-Weitz, who serves as the Caldwell Chamber of Commerce board liaison to the parade committee and as a committee sub-chair, said Thursday she expects about 66 entries this year, up from 58 last year. Full Story »

Nampa • Fern Street between East Maine Avenue and East Greenhurst Road remains closed to through traffic while crews install underground utilities. Drivers should use South Elder Street as a detour. Estimated completion: Today. Full Story »

TREASURE VALLEY — The four-month period from November to February presents more challenges to drivers than any other part of the year. To help travelers navigate this winter, Idaho Transportation Department officials have introduced enhancements to the 511 traveler service system, a regional service that provides information on winter driving conditions, weather information, emergency road ... Full Story »

GARDEN CITY — A third suspect accused of intimidating a witness turned himself in to the Garden City police at noon Thursday. A $500,000 warrant was issued on Tuesday for Cristian Alberto Gonzalez, 22, of Nampa, charging him with threats and intimidation of a state's witness. Full Story »

MESA, Arizona (AP) — A former school district employee is accused of using school computers in an experiment to find space aliens, costing the worker his job and the district more than $1 million. School officials say that Brad Niesluchowski, who was Higley Unified School District's information technology director, downloaded free software on district computers in 2000. Full Story »

ALCOA, Tenn. (AP) — Police in Alcoa say their beer sting was a complete failure. They're delighted. Authorities had an underage person try to buy beer from 27 businesses, including convenience markets, restaurants and food stores. Full Story »

PORTERSVILLE, Pa. (AP) — A western Pennsylvania man has been cited under a little used law for flying his American flag upside-down. Fifty-year-old David Rice, of Muddy Creek Township, says he put up the flag at night and didn't realize it was upside-down until a few days ago. He says he's sorry if anybody was offended by it. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans in the House of Representatives pointed to controversial e-mails leaked from climate scientists and said it was evidence of corruption. Top administration scientists looking at the same thing found no such sign, saying it does not change that the world is getting warmer. The e-mails from a British university's climate center were obtained by computer hackers and ... Full Story »

GARDEN CITY - A third suspect wanted for intimidating a witness turned himself in to the Garden City Police at noon today. A $500,000 warrant was issued on Tuesday for Cristian Alberto Gonzalez, 22, of Nampa, charging him with threats and intimidation of a state's witness. Gonzalez is the half-brother of Carlos Navarrete, who is charged with the second degree murder of Irving Romero on Oct. 19 ... Full Story »

BOISE - Boise Police are asking the public for help in finding a man who robbed a pizza delivery driver last weekend The suspect is described as a light-skinned man, 6'3" and 230 pounds. He was wearing a dark green, puffy ski-type jacket with the hood pulled up. The suspect also had a dark neck warmer pulled up and over his mouth and nose. Full Story »

BOISE - Boise police arrested Sen. Edgar J. Malepeai, a Democrat from Pocatello, last night for driving under the influence. An officer stopped Malepeai on outbound Interstate 184 at 2:30 a.m., Boise police reported, for weaving, unsafe lane change and failure to signal. Malepeai was over the legal limit for alcohol consumption, police report. Full Story »

NAMPA - The man Caldwell police shot to death Wednesday night outside a home on the 1700 block of Fairoaks Drive in Caldwell had a handgun and refused officers' demands to drop it, police reported today at a press conference. David Valdez Banda, 40, was shot down by members of the Caldwell Police Department's tactical response team after officers tried to serve a search warrant. Full Story »

CANYON COUNTY - Following a month-long investigation into burglaries of the Melba schools that occurred on Oct. 29, the Canyon County Sheriff's Office has arrested two Nampa men in connection to the crime. Twenty-year old Colby O. Johnson was taken into custody Tuesday at his home. He remains in jail on felony charges of burglary, grand theft and possession of controlled substance. Derrik G ... Full Story »

CALDWELL — An officer-involved shooting in a residential area near Caldwell High School left a 40-year-old male suspect dead Wednesday evening. Officials said Caldwell police officers shot and killed the man at 6:05 p.m. while attempting to serve an arrest warrant in the 1700 block of Fairoaks Drive in Caldwell. Full Story »

CANYON COUNTY — Nampa Classical Academy should "back off" from its lawsuit against the state for the right to use religious texts, a leader of the school choice movement in the state said Wednesday. And an NCA spokesman said the publicly funded charter is considering options to do just that. Full Story »

NAMPA — Nampa Classical Academy school board members Wednesday tried to assure parents of the school's students that the school will not close. NCA brought a lawsuit against the state in September seeking to use religious texts as part of its curriculum. The Idaho Public Charter School Commission's chairman has said the commission may close the new school if the school does not follow the panel ... Full Story »

CALDWELL — Organizers are preparing for what they call the most spectacular Treasure Valley Night Light Parade and Holiday Festival ever. They expect more than 60 floats will participate in the colorful event this Saturday. The parade starts at 6 p.m. on the corner of Georgia Avenue and Blaine Street near O'Connor Field House and continues down Blaine to 5th Avenue. After the parade, food and ... Full Story »

TREASURE VALLEY — Idaho's National Guard 116th Combat Brigade Team, which includes hundreds of local members, could deploy to Afghanistan. But right now there's no way of telling where or even if its soldiers from the team will be deployed overseas, Idaho National Guard spokesman Lt. Col. Tim Marsano said Wednesday. Full Story »

Nampa Fern Street between East Maine Avenue and East Greenhurst Road remains closed to through traffic while crews install underground utilities. Drivers should use South Elder Street as a detour. Estimated completion: Dec. 4. Full Story »

CALDWELL — You still see a child's glimmer in the eyes of Amber Barnes as she prepares another generation of young dancers for a milestone performance of "The Nutcracker" in Caldwell. The beloved Christmas tradition returns to The College of Idaho's Jewett Auditorium Dec. 10 to celebrate a 20-year collaboration between the Eugene Ballet and the Caldwell Fine Arts Series. When the curtain rises ... Full Story »

An officer-involved shooting occured this evening in a residential area near Caldwell High School and the 40-year-old suspect died of his wounds. Officers gathered at a location on Fairoaks Drive and were investigating the scene. The Canyon County Coroner's Office arrived in the evening. Coroner Vicki DeGeus Morris confirmed the fatality but said she could not yet relase the man's name. Full Story »

Police are asking for the public's help in locating a Nampa man wanted in connection with alleged threats and intimidation of a state's witness in a murder case.   Officials issued a warrant Monday for Cristian Alberto Gonzalez, 22, of Nampa on the intimidation charge. Bond was set at $500,000 by the Honorable Full Story »

A distinguished Boise State University professor has died. Department of English Professor Tom Trusky was an "iconic figure" on the Boise State campus since 1970, BSU President Bob Kustra said. Full Story »