June 19 – Police have arrested a 42-year-old man in connection with an alleged hit-and-run in downtown Spokane that left a 78-year-old author and former foster parenting program director dead last week.
Members of the Spokane Police Department’s Major Crimes Unit and the Violent Crimes Task Force arrested Gary F. Burns at a Spokane Valley home on Wednesday on suspicion of hit-and-run homicide, according to a Spokane Police Department news release.
Janet Mann was struck on the afternoon of June 11 near Browne Street and Main Avenue, police said. She was taken to hospital and died.
“We thank the police and investigators for their hard work,” Genevieve Mann Morris, one of Mann’s daughters, said in a text message. “We will wait for the process to unfold. We are overwhelmed by the love and support from friends, family and the community.”
Mann Morris, one of Mann’s daughters, said her mother was on her way to meet her grandson for lunch when she was killed.
Mann and her husband, Paul Mann, were two of the principal owners who revived the Ridpath Club Apartments downtown. The 55-year-old couple lived on the top floor of the former hotel in the city center.
The Mann couple created the nonprofit Children’s Ark in 1995 and ran it until 2009, Mann Morris said. The Spokane-based nonprofit was a center for assessment and intervention services for at-risk parents and children.
Mann co-authored a book, “Creating Compassionate Foster Care: Lessons of Hope for Children and Families in Crisis,” in 2017.
Burns remained in the Spokane County Jail Wednesday evening.
