Seattle

Priest accused of child abuse dies

The Rev. James McGreal, considered to be one of the most serious offenders among priests in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle accused of sexually abusing children, died last week in a church facility in Missouri, Greg Magnoni, a spokesman for the archdiocese, said Sunday.

McGreal, who was in his late 80s, died of natural causes on Wednesday or Thursday, Magnoni said.

In 2003, the archdiocese paid nearly $8 million to settle a lawsuit brought by 15 men who claimed they were sexually molested as boys by McGreal.

From 1948 to 1988, McGreal served in 10 parishes in Seattle and other parts of Washington state. He was permanently barred from the ministry in 1988 after the archdiocese made a stunning confession that it had assigned McGreal to a Federal Way parish, even though he had been removed from two parishes and a Catholic hospital after being accused of sexually molesting boys.

Court documents claimed that archdiocese officials began receiving complaints about McGreal in the late 1960s and that McGreal had disclosed to a counselor that he had molested hundreds of victims.

Bellevue

No one was in house that burned

Bellevue firefighters don't think anyone was inside a house that was destroyed by fire and explosions around 1 a.m. Sunday.

The house, west of Enatai Beach Park in the 3200 block of 112th Avenue Southeast, was burned beyond repair, Lt. Troy Donlin said in a news release. The first neighbor to call 911 reported that the entire house was engulfed in flames, and other residents reported hearing a series of explosions, he said.

When firefighters arrived on the scene, portions of the roof and second floor had collapsed, making the house too dangerous to enter, according to Donlin. It took crews from Bellevue and Mercer Island 38 minutes to get the blaze under control.

Initially, investigators didn't know if anyone was in the house at the time of the fire but were concerned there could be casualties because three vehicles were found in the garage. But Donlin later said by phone that investigators were able to contact the homeowners' two adult children, who said their parents are currently in Taiwan.

Fire and police investigators were working to determine the cause and origin of the fire, Donlin said. A damage estimate was not immediately available.

Tacoma

Teen fatally shot at after-hours party

A 17-year-old Tacoma youth who apparently got into an argument with one or more people at a large, after-hours party early Saturday was shot and killed as he was the leaving the building, police said.

The Pierce County Medical Examiner's Office identified the victim as Billy Shirley III of Tacoma. Police said Shirley had been shot twice, with one bullet striking him in the back. Tacoma police on Saturday interviewed dozens of witnesses in an attempt to determine the identity of the gunman.

Investigators said there were more than 100 people at the party that began in a commercial, warehouse-type building at South Center and South Alaska streets and spilled outside.

Witnesses told police that about 4:30 a.m. the victim showed up with friends looking for a particular person at the party. He started arguing with one or more people inside and was shot as he was leaving, witnesses told police.

Longview, Cowlitz County

Hundreds line up for job openings

Hundreds lined up this weekend to seek open positions at Longview Fibre.

The Daily News reports they are competing for just a handful of jobs at the paper and packaging company.

The company says it will hire five hourly employees every month for the next several months to fill openings and replace retirees.

There was a line winding around the back of the building by 7 a.m. Saturday. About 200 people completed applications within the first hour and a half after the doors opened at 9 a.m.

Every applicant receives a number and will be entered into a lottery. The lucky few who are selected will be brought in for tours of the Longview plant, an aptitude test and interviews.

Saturday's session was the first of two. Another will be Monday from 4 to 7 p.m. at the union hall.

Seattle Times staff and wire reports