A shooting incident occured near a high school in Issaquah, Washington on Saturday, alarming locals. Witnesses say the shooter fired at least 20 rounds before the police entered the scene and shot and killed the man. 

The shooter was later identified by the medical coroner's office as Ronald W. Ficker. His motive for causing the shooting is unknown.

According to the Seattle Time News, Ficker was seen abandoning his car and then taking a half-mile hike to Clark Elementary School where he started firing shots at pedestrians. 

The shooting disrupted a high school football game sending spectators and students searching for a more secure position under the bleachers. Fleeing in terror, people ran for cover as they tried to get out of the line of fire. Amid the people running in panic was a woman named Dawn Hill who experienced the whole episode. "It was so close. It was like you didn't really think it could be gunfire behind you," she exclaimed.  

Police did not have the opportunity to negotiate with Ficker before they shot him multiple times after he pointed the weapons at them. After the shooting, the community was amazed to hear that no one was injured or hurt during the whole event. "There were lots of people up there, lots of kids - this could have been a lot worse," said Sgt. John Urquhart of King County's Sheriif's Office.        

By Winston Khuu

Two American hikers were surprised when they received their freedom from Iran last Wednesday. Josh Fattal, 29, and Shane Bauer, 29, were granted their freedom after two years of harsh incarceration in Iran after each received a $1 million bail.
    
The two hikers said, “From the very start, the only reason they detained us  because we were American.” In 2009, the two Americans and a companion, Sarah Shourd, were hiking through the Kurdish region of Iraq, bordering  Iran. There, they were all arrested and sent to a detention center in Tehran.
    
Shroud was released earlier last year with her bail paid. While in the prison,  they were mostly kept in solitary confinement. The hikers explained  that they could hear other prisoners being beaten and tortured, but were  unable to help.
    
However, for an hour each day, Bauer was allowed to visit Shourd and they developed a romantic relationship during their incarceration. While held  in the prison, Bauer became engaged to Shourd using a makeshift  engagement ring he made from the threads of his shirt. So far, they haven’t announced any wedding plans.
    
After being reunited with her companions, Shroud said: "Shane and Josh and I are beginning our lives again, and there are so many new joys that await us. I've never felt as free as I feel today."

Written by Preston Trieu

Picture taken from http://www.maggiesnotebook.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Shane_Bauer_Sarah_Shourd_Josh_Fattal_43.jpg

CMHS kicked-off the school year with their first rally this past Friday, Sept 23. The Harry Potter themed event, designated the freshmen as Hufflepuff, the sophomores as Ravenclaw, the juniors as Slytherin, and the seniors as Gryffindor. The hosts of the rally dressed as the three main protagonists of the Harry Potter franchise.Kory Bennion was Harry Potter, Summer Rudas was Hermione Granger, and Joe Williams was Ron Weasley. 

The rally began with the girls’ madrigal choir, singing “Double Trouble,” then the teachers adorned with scarves and witches garb played wizard ball (dodge ball) for the amusement of the students. After wizard ball everyone watched the big screen to learn potions or “cheers.” Next, the cheerleaders broke out in dance, which intensified the atmosphere with all the crowds yelling. Then, the boy’s madrigal choir sang a song called the Mysterious Ticking Noise, a song made famous by Youtube. 

Soon after the on-season school sports were introduced, the team captains came down to introduce each sport with a banner and run through the center of the gym floor. As that came to an end,ASB played the staple, blindfolded musical chairs. After some fierce rounds of musical chairs, then wizard chess was underway. Wizard chess was a dance ASB put together on a large chess board, and involved many ASB’ers. 

The whole thing came to an end with the singing of our alma mater. 
 
According to Secretary, Rachel Russell, “It took at least 30 hours to put this rally together, including all the meetings and making the signs” 

Rally coordinator, Ciara Rudas, when asked about the decision regarding the theme responded with “well, it’s really cool, and an easy subject to build a rally around.”  

There was a crash on Fairview Rd and Mustang Way during fifth period today. The sound of the impact could be heard in the quieter classrooms and the silence that followed was broken by the sound of sirens. 

According to witnesses, an AT&T truck crashed into a small black Toyota. The driver was seen taken away on a stretcher. No other information could be gathered by our journalists. 

Do you know any information? Let us know by commenting below.

On Saturday, Sept. 17, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. communities surrounding the Newport Back Bay organized to clean it up. This event has been organized by the Orange County Parks and Newport Bay Conservancy annually for 21 years.

Usually, about 1000 locals volunteers participate, with about 400 high school students among them. This year had a low turnout, with no more than five Costa Mesa High School students in attendance. In the words of the program coordinator, Patrick McCaffrey, “It’s…a much smaller turnout this year unfortunately, but there may be several reasons for that. Like the bad weather or it could be we are not the only event going on today.”

According to park rangers, 80% of garbage comes from inland, gets washed down, and ends up on our shorelines in a process known as watershed.

This is the only day of the year that the general public is allowed in the marshes because endangered species of birds nest in the marshes for most of the year.

The clean up day was a very informative day for all ages. When asked why she attended, Trinity Le, a local mother, said, “I came because I wanted to teach my children values, to preserve the environment, rather then destroy it.” Volunteer Jessica Scott said “This is a great place for the kids because they learn to respect the environment.”

Written by McKenna Patton
http://mckennapatton.weebly.com/
Photos by Rocye Friedmann
http://roycefriedmann.weebly.com/

Gamers discovered the structure of an enzyme that could help the fight against AIDS. Found in rhesus monkeys, this protein-cutting enzyme could hold the key to preventing the virus from spreading in the human body.

Using a collaborative online game called Foldit, scientists harnessed the skill set of gamers around the world. The game allows users to rearrange segments of a protein, with the goal of finding the structure most favored by nature.

This  unorthodox approach was the brain-child of Firas Khatib, a biochemist at the University of Washington. Because so many scientists have failed over the past decade, Khatib and his colleagues, out of desperation turned it over to the gaming world. “This was really kind of a last-ditch effort,” said Khatib. 

When they gathered the results three weeks later, the scientists were shocked to discover that one group of gamers had found the answer. The gamers didn’t even need the full three weeks to do it. “They actually did it in less than 10 days,” Khatib remarked. And chances are they’re right. “Standard… methods showed within hours that the solution was almost certainly correct,” researchers reported. The researchers were able to use the Foldit solution to complete a refined structure within days.

Though not a cure for AIDS, it is a large step towards a treatment. Many parts are still left to be deciphered. 

You can help solve puzzles for science here:
Fold.it

Written By: Joseph Rouintree 
http://josephrouintree.weebly.com/
Video taken from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGYJyur4FUA

On Sept. 15, 2011, in Texas, Duane Buck, a prisoner convicted for the murder of his former girlfriend and another victim in 1995, was to be executed by lethal injection. According to The Guardian Post, as the hearing continued, the jury decided to seal Duane's fate and give him the death penalty. The person that represented the jury was a psychologist named Dr. Walter Quijano. In the middle of his statement, he claimed that "black people" posed more of a threat when released from prison. 

His statement sparked such controversy in the courtroom that the matter was eventually sent to the Supreme Court by Buck's lawyers, saying that the trial was unfair and that they demanded a retrial. Admitting that the racial testimony was a problem, the Court decided to give Buck a 30-day reprieve and an opportunity to a lifetime sentence in jail if he continued to plead guilty.

Buck and his lawyer, Kate Black, were relieved upon hearing the news of the postponement. Hearing that he would live another day, Buck exclaimed, “Praise the Lord, God is worthy to be praised. God's mercy triumphs over judgment. I feel good.”

Written By: Winston Khuu
http://winstonkhuu.weebly.com/

Jonathan Wilson, a senior at Costa Mesa High School, was biking to his first class of his senior year and was struck by a vehicle on Baker and Coolidge.