Bellevue Deputy Mayor Jared Nieuwenhuis called for the Washington State Legislature to be called back into special session to fix the state’s irresponsible anti-pursuit laws which he argues has led to a sharp increase in crime. The city’s deputy mayor explains in a Law Enforcement Today op-ed that Washington State’s pursuit laws are so radical that we are the “only state in the country that has departed from the ‘reasonable suspicion’ standard” for police to pursue suspected criminals. Nieuwenhuis wrote that since Democrat legislators and Governor Jay Inslee made this extreme change to state laws in 2021 (when they caved into the demands made by Seattle’s liberal rioters), criminals have taken advantage, resulting in skyrocketing crime rates.   This is especially true with car thefts, where there has been a 100% increase in the number of cars stolen in just two years.

Nieuwenhuis said the failure of the Democrats to fix this law (with the proposed SB 5919) during the 2022 legislative session “is deeply concerning.”  He reiterated his call for a special legislative session stating, “We cannot wait another nine months for the legislature to deal with this issue. Failure to act now will continue to make our neighborhoods less safe and add to an already sizable number of victims.”  Sadly though, it appears Governor Inslee and the Democrats who control the legislature will not call for a special session. Evidently these liberal lawmakers are more concerned with making our state a more comfortable place to be a criminal than one where public safety is a priority and where police are not constrained from doing their job due to failed liberal policies.  (Law Enforcement Today op-ed and Washington Legislature Bill Summary)

Colorado residents will be experiencing something Washington State residents won’t this summer – tax relief to help meet the financial challenges brought on by inflation.  Colorado lawmakers moved up the $500 tax rebate, originally scheduled for Spring 2023, so that taxpayers will receive their checks by the end of this summer.  Democrat Governor Jared Polis said, “We are providing immediate relief for hardworking Coloradans by sending rebate checks back quickly because there’s no reason the government should hold onto your hard earned money any longer than it has to.”

Colorado is similar to Washington in that Democrats control both chambers of the legislature as well as the governor’s mansion.  Yet, unlike our state, their lawmakers appear to be concerned about the difficult times facing their lower- and middle- income residents who, like Washington residents, are having a tough time paying bills due to inflation and skyrocketing gas prices. (We should note that Colorado’s Republican legislators pushed for a higher tax rebate, but credit the Democrats there for at least giving taxpayers some of their money back.) (KRDO TV News)

The fact that Governor Jay Inslee and Lt. Governor Denny Heck both have COVID raises yet another concern regarding the governor’s undemocratic abuse of his emergency powers (now on Day 817).  Due to the governor forbidding any other elected official to be involved in the decisions made during the pandemic, no other elected official has the history and knowledge needed if something were to happen to the governor.  This is totally irresponsible.  Wouldn’t the state be better served if more people were involved in the decision-making process and thus were ready to step in if the governor became sick and unable to perform his duties? (KUOW)

“Tactical urbanism” is a new term used to describe acts by those fed up with delays by the city’s bureaucracy to solve neighborhood problems.  This trend is increasing in Seattle as residents are frustrated by city leaders who appear to be more concerned about pushing radical political agendas than in making sure that government performs its basic tasks.  Multiple crosswalks have been painted (which the city then removes), concrete barriers are put in place along the sides of streets to prevent run-down RVs from illegally permanently parking, and neighborhoods have posted signs warning drivers to look out for playing children. A Greenwood neighborhood resident said, “Tactical urbanism to me is essentially what a fed-up citizenry takes into their own hands when it comes to their own safety on their streets and sidewalks.” (Seattle Times)

Low bail amounts and the financial assistance of a liberal pro-criminal organization allowed a repeat offender to go free and permit him to commit more crimes, including the kidnapping of a five-year-old child. The suspect in a recent Ballard neighborhood car theft (in which a young boy was asleep) has 12 felony convictions and is charged with three additional felonies (including burglary and car theft) in the past nine months.  Two separate King County Superior Court judges hearing about the recent alleged crimes disregarded pleas from prosecutors to set high bail amounts, who labeled suspect Ryan Lee Popplewell as a “high priority repeat offender.” Instead Popplewell was granted lower bail, which was then paid for by the liberal non-profit group Northwest Community Bail Fund, which states its goals are to advocate “for bail reform and working to minimize the harm of the cash bail system by paying bail for people who would otherwise spend the pretrial time in jail while awaiting routine court appearances.” Fortunately Poppelwell did not make his situation even worse by ditching the car with the child still inside because the boy’s father and others intervened. (MyNorthwest)

A Capital Press editorial expressed concerns over the “superpowers” Governor Inslee and urban Democrat legislators gave a state agency which will lead to a further reduction of farmlands in Washington State, as the liberals seek to impose large corporate solar and wind farms across the Eastern Washington landscape.  In urban Democrats’ latest attack on our state’s family farmers, they passed HB 1812 (by a strict party-line vote in the state senate) which gave the state’s Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council the power to overrule local ordinances and regulations to approve large power farms which will mostly provide energy to Puget Sound area consumers.

While solar and wind farms are supposed to be built on land unsuitable for farming, the reality is current projects are slated for lands which are currently used to grow food or have been set aside to protect endangered wildlife. The editorial expressed concerns that local citizens will be “steamrolled” by this state agency as it fulfills Governor Inslee’s unrealistic demands on behalf of large international corporations which quickly want to seize lands to build their multi-thousand acre facilities. The editorial ends by stating the importance of farmlands. “We all need food — three times a day, in fact — far more than we need solar panels and wind turbines blotting out massive swaths of farmland. (Capital Press and Washington Legislature Bill Summary)

Democrat Senator Manka Dhingra (Redmond) attempted to justify, in a recent Seattle Times op-ed, the reckless and irresponsible legislation which she led her Democrat legislative colleagues to pass in 2021 – a mistake which has allowed hundreds, if not thousands, of criminals to go free in Washington State.  Law enforcement agencies across the state agree that the Democrats’ anti-pursuit law needed to be fixed during the 2022 legislature, yet Senator Dhingra and her fellow Democrat Senators refused to vote on the bill (SB 5919) which would have fixed the problem. That’s because, as Senator Dhingra’s words demonstrate, they were evidently unconcerned about the state’s skyrocketing crime rates which have negatively impacted thousands of Washington residents. Senator Dhingra’s believes that police pursuit of some criminal suspects are an unnecessary risk to public safety and should be prohibited, while police pursuit of other criminals is completely safe. This has frustrated police officers who have to allow criminals to flee the scene in the cars which they know have been reported as stolen. (Click to read full Shift Article)

Do you like The Daily Briefing?

Please consider making a contribution to ensure Shift continues to provide daily updates on the shenanigans of the liberal establishment and provides you inside coverage of the 2022 elections which includes exclusive interviews with top candidates.

Forward this to a friend.  It helps us grow our community and serve you better.

You can also follow SHIFTWA on social media by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter.

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