TNT’s top stories: Knapp's closes, owl culling, Bible study controversy

Monday was a busy news day in Pierce County with a beloved Tacoma diner closing its doors after nearly 90 years, controversy brewing over religious instruction in elementary schools and a fatal crash on a city overpass. Here’s a roundup of the top stories from The News Tribune.

• Knapp’s Restaurant and Lounge, a Tacoma institution since 1938, has closed its doors in the Proctor District after nearly 90 years of serving breakfast, lunch and dinner staples like steak ‘n’ eggs, burgers and meatloaf.
• The Yakama Nation Tribe in south-central Washington has become the first and only group in the state to begin killing barred owls under a federal management plan, starting culling efforts in November 2025 using shotguns on reservation lands. The U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife’s 2024 plan calls for killing tens of thousands of barred owls annually for up to 30 years to protect endangered northern spotted owls, whose populations have declined up to 90% in some federal landscapes across Washington.
• LifeWise Academy, an Ohio-based Christian nonprofit, has expanded its Bible study program to three Peninsula School District elementary schools — Discovery, Artondale and Swift Water — serving 24 students total amid pushback from parents who say it disrupts the school day. LifeWise is in federal litigation with Everett Public Schools, with U.S. District Judge Lauren King issuing a preliminary injunction largely in favor of LifeWise in April 2026.
• A driver was killed Monday morning after going off the Portland Avenue overpass near Cleveland Way in Tacoma and plummeting to the ground, where the vehicle caught fire. The crash was reported by a passerby at 5:21 a.m., and Tacoma Fire Department crews reported hearing an explosion under the overpass before the roadway reopened shortly before 8 a.m.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by senior editor Adam Lynn. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.