The state is paying millions of dollars each year in sanctions because of delays evaluating the competency of jailed defendants. The state Supreme Court heard arguments this week on whether a prolonged wait for evaluation and treatment of mental health is a constitutional violation. (Everett Herald)

Cong. Pramila Jayapal was arrested with hundreds of others at a Capitol Hill protest of President Trump’s immigration policies. The Seattle Democrat told the Times, “We chanted and sang and talked about the need to reunite these families and to end the president’s zero-tolerance policy.” (Seattle Times)

The Seattle Police Department is experiencing a “mass exodus” of officers, with some saying the city doesn’t support them and that city politics are toxic. As reported by the Jason Rantz Show, one officer was told over the course of a week that 21 colleagues announced they left or planned to leave the department. (My Northwest)

The Port of Seattle will pay half-a-million dollars to its chief lawyer to get him to leave. The commission unanimously voted to let go of counsel Craig Watson after an “internal workplace complaint.” The port will give him a hefty payoff as part of an agreement to avoid a lawsuit. But hey, it’s not really their money, right? It’s yours. (Seattle Times)

A Seattle City Council committee voted to move forward with gun storage legislation. The legislation requires “gun owners store their weapons in a locked container” and the guns be “rendered unusable to anyone other than the owner.” If a gun is stolen or taken and subsequently used in a crime or to kill or injure someone, it’s taken as “prima facie evidence of negligence” by the gun owner. As usual with controversial Seattle legislation, lawsuits are coming. (My Northwest)

The Yakama Nation Tribe is seeking a restraining order against Klickitat County as the county tries to close fireworks stands. Klickitat County Attorney David Quesnel said the harm to Klickitat County residents from potential fireworks-caused fires outweighs the financial losses fireworks stand owners face if the businesses are shut down. (Yakima Herald-Republic)

Do you like The Morning Briefing? Forward this to a friend! It helps us grow our community and serve you better.

If you feel we missed something that should be covered, email us at [email protected].

If you don’t want to receive this email each morning, click here to opt-out of The Morning Briefing.