The Washington State Supreme Court threw out the state’s death penalty, ruling 9-0 that it is arbitrary and racially discriminatory. “The death penalty is unequally applied – sometimes by where the crime took place, or the county of residence, or the available budgetary resources at any given point in time, or the race of the defendant,” Chief Justice Mary Fairhurst wrote. Washington State becomes the 20^th state to do away with capital punishment. (Seattle Times)

Cong. Dave Reichert (R-Auburn) said having the death penalty hanging over a defendant’s case is sometimes the only way to extract information from them that brings closure for victims’ families. “If you know that the death penalty is hanging over you, you might be more inclined to cooperate,” Reichert said, citing the Green River Killer as an example. “He knew that he was likely going to be receiving the death penalty, and so his attorneys decided to save his life – Ridgway is a coward – and the only way out for him to save his own life was to talk about the murders of all the girls he had taken away from their families.” (My Northwest)

The state announced it is accepting a $455 million bid as part of its ongoing Highway 520 project, though that is $30 million higher than expected. The project will construct three lanes, new intersections, a bus station, and bike trails. The full 520 project is forecast to cost $4.6 billion. Will that balloon higher? The odds are strong. (Seattle Times)

A citizen filed suit in Yakima County Superior Court alleging the City of Wapato violated state law by failing to fulfill multiple public records requests. Luz Aguirre said the city has yet to complete two requests — one made on May 30, the other on June 6 — she made as part of a college course she was taking. “It’s the same stuff, different day,” controversial new City Administrator Juan Orozco said. “I really have no comment on that or on her.” (Yakima Herald-Republic)

The Yakima City Council is reviewing proposed changes to city code on how it defines extended-stay hotels or motels. The issue came up after one of Yakima’s largest hotels was converted into temporary housing for migrant workers. Yakima’s Planning Commission is recommending the city define extended-stay hotels and motels as places “where more than 10 percent of the rooms are rented to the public for longer stays, which are more than 30 consecutive days.” (Yakima Herald-Republic)

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