FRIDAY NOVEMBER 13 2015 $1 VOLUME 151, No. 111 WWW.IDAHOSTATESMAN.COM/ FACEBOOK.COM/IDAHOSTATESMAN TWITTER.COM/IDAHOSTATESMAN NEWS ALL DAY. YOUR WAY 336-6000 2016 GMC ACADIA AWD On select models. All prices, discounts and lease payments after rebates including Loyalty, trade, competitive lease, USAA or GM Card rebates when applicable. See dealer for details. 0002076114-06 25 TO CHOOSE FROM $ 32,999 * STARTINGAS LOWAS $ 339 /MO** SAVE UPTO $9,000 OFF MSRP OR ZERO DOWN ON ORCHARD COMMENTARY Watch Idaho play game of “Otter can’t follow law, so change it” OPINIONS, 2C BASKETBALL Idaho Stampede start new season looking for winning rebirth SPORTS, 1B HEALTH & SCIENCE Cleveland Clinic planning uterus transplants for infertile women NEWS, 9A Catching Up 2A Local news 4-6A Nation 8-10A Weather 11A Sports 1B Depth 1C Opinions 2C Explore 5C Comics 6-7C Obituaries 8-9C BOISE STATE SPORTS - Even if they win out, Broncos likely have limited bowl hopes 1B - Basketball team has talent, athleticism, a lot to prove 1B NEWS Canyon deputy is cleared by ISP in fatal shooting of Middleton man 5A Partly cloudy 53° / 34° See 11A The Knights clobber Century 56-20 in the state semifinals as they seek a third straight championship. Also, a look at tonight’s games and Mountain View’s dynamic TreyTon Bell, below. SPORTS, 1B, 3B VARSITY EXTRA BISHOP KELLY ROLLS INTO 4A TITLE GAME Movies: Even though it doesn’t invade theaters until next month, there’s a certain, um, “Force” that movie- goers are feeling. But there are films other than “Star Wars” you need to know about. We have a guide. Go Do It: Only six weeks until Christmas. Are you kids ready to sit on Santa’s lap yet? We’ve got the details on where to find St. Nick for photos at local shopping meccas. Or go hit a seasonal ice skating rink. Michael Deeds: Radio listeners in Boise reportedly were upset by “Girl Crush,” a provocative hit ballad for country group Little Big Town. But the song won big at last week’s Country Music Association Awards — and Little Big Town will headline Taco Bell Arena in Boise tonight. Food & Drink: It’s a craft beer merry-go-round! Two Idaho breweries are moving, including Garden City sta- ple Crooked Fence Brewing Co. And another brewery is up for sale. Plus, read our review of Gino’s Italian restaurant in Meridian. SCENE MAGAZINE Bring on the holiday movies and shopping! Lucasfilm Warner Bros. Pictures Pixar Lionsgate County coro- ners in Boise, Twin Falls and other parts of Idaho face a challenge when they can’t find next of kin. And when families don’t come forward, tax- payers foot the cremation bill. In Ada County, Jaimie Barker, left, and Val Brisbin spend hundreds of hours trying to find people who want the cremains. Anna Webb reports. DEPTH, 1C DEPTH: END OF LIFE UNCLAIMED CREMAINS PILE UP FOR COUNTIES Social media commenters want to turn the tiny Idaho community of Council into rural America’s Fergu- son. But despite tension and trage- dy, the citizens and the sheriff, right, showed how to express anger without giving up dignity. Still, it will take a thorough, transparent investigation to get past the death of rancher Jack Yantis. DEPTH, 1C INSIDE: FBI will investigate, 4A Driver in crash says he had no chance to avoid bull, 4A ROCKY BARKER ADAMS COUNTY WAITS FOR HEALING NEWS The president awards the Medal of Honor to a soldier who “summoned his very best” by thwarting a suicide bomber in Afghanistan, saving many lives. NEWS, 9A MEDAL OF HONOR ARMY RECIPIENT ‘SHOWED HIS GUTS’ The A-10, a plane familiar to Boiseans because 21 of them are stationed at Gowen Field, was on the brink of being phased out. Now it is being used effectively in Syria to aid the fight against the Islamic State. NEWS, 8A U.S. MILITARY A-10’S COMEBACK IN MIDEAST COMBAT
Transcript
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 13 2015 $1 VOLUME 151, No. 111WWW.IDAHOSTATESMAN.COM/
On select models. All prices, discounts and lease payments after rebates including Loyalty, trade, competitive lease, USAA or GM Card rebates when applicable. See dealer for details.
0002076114-0
6
25TO CHOOSE
FROM
$32,999*
STARTINGAS LOWAS
$339/MO**
SAVE UPTO
$9,000OFF MSRP
OR ZERO DOWN
ON ORCHARD
COMMENTARY
Watch Idaho play game of “Ottercan’t follow law, so change it”
OPINIONS, 2C
BASKETBALL
Idaho Stampede start new seasonlooking for winning rebirth
SPORTS, 1B
HEALTH & SCIENCE
Cleveland Clinic planning uterustransplants for infertile women
NEWS, 9A
Catching Up 2ALocal news 4-6ANation 8-10AWeather 11ASports 1B
- Even if they win out, Broncoslikely have limited bowl hopes 1B
- Basketball team has talent,athleticism, a lot to prove 1B
NEWS
Canyon deputy iscleared by ISP infatal shooting ofMiddleton man 5A
Partly cloudy
53°/34° See 11A
The Knights clobber Century
56-20 in the state semifinals
as they seek a third straight
championship. Also, a look at
tonight’s games and Mountain
View’s dynamic TreyTon Bell,
below. SPORTS, 1B, 3B
VARSITY EXTRA
BISHOP KELLY ROLLSINTO 4A TITLE GAME
Movies: Even though it doesn’t invade theaters until next month, there’s a certain, um, “Force” that movie-
goers are feeling. But there are films other than “Star Wars” you need to know about. We have a guide.
Go Do It: Only six weeks until Christmas. Are you kids ready to sit on Santa’s lap yet? We’ve got the details on
where to find St. Nick for photos at local shopping meccas. Or go hit a seasonal ice skating rink.
Michael Deeds: Radio listeners in Boise reportedly were upset by “Girl Crush,” a provocative hit ballad for
country group Little Big Town. But the song won big at last week’s Country Music Association Awards — and
Little Big Town will headline Taco Bell Arena in Boise tonight.
Food & Drink: It’s a craft beer merry-go-round! Two Idaho breweries are moving, including Garden City sta-
ple Crooked Fence Brewing Co. And another brewery is up for sale. Plus, read our review of Gino’s Italian
restaurant in Meridian.
SCENE MAGAZINE
Bring on the holidaymovies and shopping!
Lucasfilm
Warner Bros. Pictures
Pixar
Lionsgate
County coro-
ners in Boise,
Twin Falls and
other parts of
Idaho face a
challenge when
they can’t find
next of kin. And
when families
don’t come
forward, tax-
payers foot the cremation bill. In Ada County, Jaimie Barker, left,
and Val Brisbin spend hundreds of hours trying to find people
who want the cremains. Anna Webb reports. DEPTH, 1C
DEPTH: END OF LIFE
UNCLAIMED CREMAINS PILE UP FOR COUNTIES
Social media commenters want to
turn the tiny Idaho community of
Council into rural America’s Fergu-
son. But despite tension and trage-
dy, the citizens and the sheriff,
right, showed how to express anger
without giving up dignity. Still, it
will take a thorough, transparent
investigation to get past the death of
rancher Jack Yantis. DEPTH, 1C
INSIDE: FBI will investigate, 4A
Driver in crash says he had no
chance to avoid bull, 4A
ROCKY BARKER
ADAMS COUNTY WAITSFOR HEALING NEWS
The president awards the
Medal of Honor to a soldier
who “summoned his very
best” by thwarting a suicide
bomber in Afghanistan, saving
many lives. NEWS, 9A
MEDAL OF HONOR
ARMY RECIPIENT‘SHOWED HIS GUTS’
The A-10, a plane familiar to
Boiseans because 21 of them
are stationed at Gowen Field,
was on the brink of being
phased out. Now it is being
used effectively in Syria to aid
the fight against the Islamic
State. NEWS, 8A
U.S. MILITARY
A-10’S COMEBACKIN MIDEAST COMBAT
tors, and many at the Tuesdaynight town meeting told Zoll-man that they didn’t think itwas right that the two deputiesinvolved in the incident werefree on paid leave.Residents in cowboy hats and
lumberjack shirts shouted ques-tions and expressed frustrationwith Zollman’s answers. Manyof those answers were unsatis-factory to the crowd, Zollmansaid, because there’s a lot hedoesn’t know after turning theinvestigation over to the IdahoState Police immediately uponhearing the initial story of depu-ties. When the badgering beganto get out of hand, Zollman saidhe would leave rather thanargue with people.The crowd settled down but
didn’t back off. The town meet-ing showed how a community,even in the depths of a tragedy,could express anger and dis-content without giving up its
dignity.Over the past 20 years, the
community has gone from athriving mill town to a strug-gling county seat trying to finda new direction. Boise Cascadeclosed its mill in 1996, a callcenter failed a decade ago, anda new Whole Foods bottledwater plant is the only hope tosupplement the surviving ranchand logging industry tied to theTamarack mill a few milesnorth.Many of the families go back
generations and are interrelat-ed. But new residents havebeen attracted by the low landprices, and the awesome beautyof the wide-open landscape andCuddy Mountain, which towersto the southwest.Teens stroll the sidewalks,
texting on their smartphones orgetting a pizza at Shy Simon’s.
COUNCIL
Adams County Sheriff RyanZollman looked the daughter ofslain rancher Jack Yantis in theeye when he said Tuesday thathe was sure his officers wouldbe dealt with if they had done
anything wrong.Sarah Yantis, before 300 of
her neighbors and friends in thehollowed-out expanse of theformer office of the U.S. ForestService, which is now the As-sembly of God Church, told thesheriff he was lying.“How can it be more obvious
this is a crime?” Yantis asked.Their stare reflected the di-
vide in the room and in a townthat is still waiting for answersafter Yantis, 62, was shot todeath by deputies Nov. 1 onU.S. 95 in front of his ranch 6miles north of Council. Two ofYantis’ family members whowere with him that night saidthat a deputy grabbed therancher while he was trying toput down an injured bull. At thesame time, another deputyopened fire withoutprovocation, his family told theStatesman. The details have yetto be confirmed by investiga-
LETTERS FROM THE WESTBY ROCKY BARKER
How Adams Countycan begin to heal
SEE BARKER, 4C
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 13 2015 1CFACEBOOK.COM/IDAHOSTATESMAN
TWITTER.COM/IDAHOSTATESMANIDAHOSTATESMAN.COM
Depth
have died in Ada County.Some of the boxes havetypewritten names. Oth-
The office of theAda County coro-ner includes agood-sized clos-
et. Inside are bookshelvesstacked with 52 boxes —all filled with ashes ofmen and women who
ers bear names, dates ofbirth and dates of deathwritten by hand.
The ashes, or cremains,have become a problemthat Coroner Dotti Owens
wants to solve.“They should be re-
spectfully interred some-where. They’re the ashesof human beings. Theyshouldn’t be sitting in acounty office,” saidOwens.The cremains fall into
two categories.Some are considered
“unclaimed” when a per-son has died alone, with-out known family. Theunclaimed cremains in-clude one particularlyornate box that came tothe coroner’s office afterending up at a thrift store.The remainder of the
cremains are considered“abandoned.” They may
be the most problematic.In these cases, Owens
and her staff have identi-fied the deceased person’snext-of-kin, but for what-ever reason, families havenot stepped up to takecare of the body and payfor the cremation. Thecoroner’s office — and byextension, the taxpayersof Ada County, get stuckwith the bill from thefuneral home — $800 percremation.Owens has worked on
cases where family mem-bers cleaned out a de-ceased person’s bankaccount, sold assets suchas cars, then claimed theyhad no money to paycremation costs.What’s more, family
members are later able toask for the cremains. Ifthey’re out of state, thecounty pays to ship them.Owens contacted the
county’s legal advisersabout a situation where adeceased person’s motherlived on the East Coast. Abrother who lived in theTreasure Valley wantedthe deceased person’sassets, but he wasn’t in-terested in paying for orkeeping the cremains. Thedeceased person’s motherdid want the ashes. “Legalsaid, ‘Well, it’s family.
For those boxes of cremains for whom a family member has been identified, it is the job of Val Brisbin, chief deputy coroner, top, and JaimieBarker, a training officer and investigator, to find family or friends who will take them.
As Republicans acrossthe country mount anaggressive effort to tight-en voting laws, a group offormer aides to PresidentBarack Obama and Presi-dent Bill Clinton is pledg-
ing to counter by spend-ing up to $10 million on apush to make voter regis-tration automatic whenev-er someone gets a driver’slicense.The change would su-
percharge the 1993 Na-tional Voter RegistrationAct, known as the “motorvoter” law, which requires
states to offer people theoption of registering tovote when they apply fordriver’s licenses or otheridentification cards. Thenew laws would makeregistration automaticduring those transactionsunless a driver objected.The group, called iVote
— which is led by Jeremy
Bird, who ran Obama’svoter turnout effort in2012 — is betting thatsuch laws could bring outmillions of new voterswho have, for whateverreason, failed to registereven when they had theopportunity at motorvehicle departments.Many of those new
voters would be young,poor or minorities —groups that tend to sup-port Democratic candi-dates, Bird said.“I do think it can be a
complete game-changer,”he said. “It’s definitelycountering what we see asa very organized andwell-funded effort by theRepublican Party acrossthe country to chip awayat voting rights.”In the two years since
4C FRIDAY NOVEMBER 13 2015Depth IDAHOSTATESMAN.COM
SAN FRANCISCO
The aspiring appdevelopers andentrepreneursattending the
new Make School in SanFrancisco don’t take outloans to cover tuition.There is no tuition — at
least up front.The two-year Make
School, a highly selectivestartup preparing studentsto enter the lucrative techsector, is hardly a typicalAmerican college. But itsmodel reflects the collec-tive national angst overstudent loans and collegeaffordability.It’s been decades since
California abandoned itsfamed tuition-free prom-ise, but as tuition nation-wide spirals upward,
stressing middle-incomeand poor families alike,“debt-free college” hassuddenly gone from nos-talgic fantasy to politicalsound bite.“It’s moving as quickly
as any recent issue that Ican think of,” said ReidSetzer, policy and legisla-tive affairs analyst forYoung Invincibles, a re-search and advocacygroup for millennialsbased in Washington.The issue has crystal-
lized as a central one inthe Democratic presi-dential race, with HillaryClinton, Bernie Sandersand Martin O’Malley allcalling for the federalgovernment to spendhundreds of billions ofdollars over the next de-cade to make collegeaffordable. Democratsembraced “debt-free
college” after gettingtrounced in 2014 midtermelections and seeing howwell the issue resonatedwith voters, political ana-lysts say.A poll by the Progres-
sive Change Institute inWashington, D.C., foundthat nearly half of Demo-cratic voters who skippedthat election “definitely”would have gone to thepolls if college affordabil-ity was at stake.The unique deal at the
Make School appeals tostudents like Leslie Kim,27, of San Francisco, whosaid she would not havegone back to school if shehad to borrow to do it.Taking out loans felt liketoo much of a risk.“I didn’t want to incur
any debt,” she said.The debt burden for the
average bachelor’s degreerecipient rose at morethan twice the pace ofinflation from 2004 to2014 — to nearly$29,000, according to anew report from the Oak-land-based Institute forCollege Access & Success.
Under Clinton’s propos-al, families would paywhat they could afford fortuition, but wouldn’t haveto take out a loan to covertuition and fees. Sanders’plan would “eliminateundergraduate tuition” atpublic universities, withthe federal governmentpicking up two-thirds ofthe tab. O’Malley’s pro-posal would expand PellGrants and call on statesto freeze tuition.All the Democratic
candidates have alsoproposed allowing bor-rowers to refinance theirloans at lower interestrates.The GOP candidates
have been noticeablysilent on the subject.“I think Republicans
will get to this issue, butthey’re not there yet,”said Terry Hartle, seniorvice president of theAmerican Council onEducation, which repre-sents college presidents atsome 1,700 institutionsnationwide.Ashu Desai, the 23-year-
old co-founder of MakeSchool, said widespreadconcerns about studentdebt and abuses in thefor-profit college sectorinfluenced his decision notto charge tuition up front.Instead, the school chargesa percentage of graduates’wages — or, alternatively,an investment in theirstartup — instead of a flatfee.“If you have $100,000,
$200,000 in loans,” he
said, “you’re not going tobe an entrepreneur.”But one expert took
issue with Make School’sclaim that it offers a“debt-free education,”given that the averagegraduate is expected toeventually pay $80,000.“That’s exactly what a
loan is,” said SandyBaum, who has co-author-ed the College Board’sannual report on college-pricing trends and whohas advised Hillary Clin-ton’s campaign. “I thinkthat anything that dis-guises debt as somethingelse is worrisome.”Several Make School
students interviewed forthis story said they thinkthe delayed paymentensures the school willgive them the kind oftraining and mentoringthey need to succeed. Thefirst class of 32 students,most in their late teensand early 20s, will spendtheir two years attendinglectures, interning at localcompanies and workingon their own projects.“I think it’s a really
good model,” said RyanKyungheui Kim, 23, wholived in Korea, India,Idaho and Los Angelesbefore moving to SanFrancisco. “The schoolneeds to make sure thestudents are doing fine sothey get a good job.”
D. ROSS CAMERON BayArea News Group
Jeremy Rossmann, 24, is co-founder of Make School, anew two-year “college replacement” program foraspiring app developers and entrepreneurs.
Retired friends share theAdams County Recordnewspaper over coffee atthe Seven Devils Café.Zollman, 37, who came
to Council from nearbyEnterprise, Ore., hadstrong support at theTuesday night town meet-ing with his call for pa-tience.When someone asked
whether he would stepdown if the two deputieswere found guilty of acrime, Zollman repliedemphatically, “No.” Hesaid he’s too committed
to the safety of the com-munity to back out.When the meeting
ended, Zollman receivedanother round of ap-plause, a sign that hisefforts to keep the com-munity together succeed-ed for now, despite thefeelings expressed bysome that they fear hispolice force more than thepeople in the room carry-ing concealed firearms.To most in the commu-
nity, predictably, thegreatest threat appears tocome from outside. Socialmedia has turned Councilinto an overgeneralizedsymbol of many Amer-icans’ concerns of anout-of-control police au-thority and rural Amer-
ica’s Ferguson — the com-munity in Missouri tornapart when a white officershot a black man.For Zollman, this car-
icature has invaded hishome and family. He’sreceived death threatsfrom places such as Cor-vallis, Ore.; Salem, Ore.;
and Coeur d’Alene. Pic-tures of his home are onthe Internet. He is under-standably angry that hehas to warn his children tobe vigilant of strange carswhen they go outside.This is the kind of fear
that people come to pla-ces like Council to getaway from.Ultimately, the acts of
the deputies and JackYantis — presented asthoroughly and transpar-ently as possible — mustbe judged before Coun-cil’s wounds can heal.That places the burdennow on the Idaho StatePolice, an organizationwith questions about howit handled the privateprison investigation and
other cases. Investigatorswill be overseen by IdahoAttorney General Law-rence Wasden’s office,which has been appointedthe special prosecutor inthe case.On Thursday we
learned that the FBI alsois investigating. How welllaw enforcement conductsthis investigation and howauthorities handle poten-tial future prosecutionswill determine whetherSarah Yantis and RyanZollman get the justicethey demand and deserve.
Adams County Sheriff Ryan Zollman is interviewed byBoise reporters after the town hall Tuesday.
There’s no law on thebooks. Release the cre-mains to them,’ ” Owenssaid.The coroner’s office
sent the cremains.“This is a loophole in
the system,” said Owens.“There’s nothing in ourstate statutes, nothing inour city ordinance thatsays a family has to reim-burse us for part or all ofthe cremation expense.”
NOT JUST ADA’S
PROBLEM
Owens has spoken withcoroner colleagues inother counties, includingTwin Falls.“They’re in the same
boat we are. Their legaldepartment told themthey couldn’t hold cre-mains ‘for ransom’ whilethey wait for reimburse-ment,” said Owens.Twin Falls County is
storing 13 boxes of cre-mains, said Coroner GeneTurley. Like Owens, heagrees a county officeisn’t the proper storageplace for human remains.“It’s something not very
many people know about.Excuse the pun, but thecremains have been puton the back shelf,” saidTurley. “Out of sight, outof mind.”Twin Falls County, too,
has had to pick up the billwhen families don’t pay.“They don’t want to
have that financialresponsibility,” said Tur-ley, adding that in somecases, families withoutdeep pockets justifiablystruggle to pay their bill.In other cases, he said,
“they’re just lazy.”Owens has researched
and found that somestates, including Washing-ton, have laws to protectcounties. Coroners re-quire families to reim-burse at least half of thecost of cremation to claimcremains. If shipping isrequired, families pay forit themselves. Asking fornew legislation to addressthe local problem is “onthe radar,” said Owens.She’s presented her caseto the Ada County Boardof Commissioners andthey’re in support.Still, she does not want
to eliminate county assist-ance for cremation. Somecases — when there’s anunexpected death, a sui-cide or a drug overdose —catch families unpreparedand without financialresources. She is alwayswilling to work with fam-ilies to find solutions, shesaid. That could includeconnecting families toresources and agenciesthat could help, or work-ing out a payment plan.“It’s good to have a
safety net for families. Butthere also has to be asafety net for the county,”Owens said.
FINDING A FINAL
RESTING PLACE
Unclaimed cremainspresent a different chal-lenge. When a person dieswithout known family,
Owens and her staff be-come detectives.“We spend hundreds of
man hours looking fornext-of-kin,” said Owens.Each of the boxes hold-
ing ashes presents a chal-lenge, its own little mys-tery. Investigators haveturned to a deceasedperson’s medical recordsto find emergency contactnumbers, or interviewedpast employers to helpfind family. Sometimes,they don’t have a lot to goon. They scour a deceasedperson’s apartment look-ing for names in birthday
cards, or in photo albums.In one recent case, Owensfound family membersthrough Facebook — twodaughters who believedtheir father had died yearsbefore.The office is an avid
user of the NamUs, orNational Missing andUnidentified PersonsSystem database. Stafferscompile as many detailsabout a deceased personas possible, includingtattoos or other identify-ing marks, hoping theirfamily will go on the web-site and recognize a clue.
“We believe that wecan find somebody foreveryone,” said Val Bris-bin, chief deputy coroner.Law requires the coro-
ner’s office to find a finallocation for cremains thatremain abandoned orunclaimed. The coroner’soffice is looking into buy-ing a crypt from a localmortuary that could holdas many as 350 boxes ofcremains.The Ada County com-
missioners, who handlethe county’s budget, arecurrently deciding wheth-er the purchase of a
roughly $9,000 cryptwould fall to the treasureror the county’s indigentfund. Coroner staff wouldbe able to open the crypteasily to retrieve cremainsif a family member latercame forward.Sometimes it can take
years for that to happen,said Owens. One box ofcremains, the oldest inthe collection, has sat inthe coroner’s closet, wait-ing to be claimed, since1996.
Anna Webb: 208-377-6431,@IDS_AnnaWebb
FROM PAGE 1C
CREMAINS
STEPHEN REISS Times-News
Cremated remains in boxes at the Twin Falls County Coroner’s Office on Tuesday in Twin Falls.
52boxes of cremains sit in theAda County coroner’s office
