Seattle and King County are receiving national attention for their revolving door policies with criminals
Shift Wire
Criminal justice “reformers” Pete Holmes and King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg have used their unchecked discretionary power to replace rule of law with rule of ideology. In every city it has been tried, decriminalization has led to a dramatic rise in addiction which then spirals into unmanageable homelessness, mental illness, filth, crime and disease. At what point do we stop funding a program being abused by progressive prosecutors to deconstruct rather than uphold the laws governing our society? (ShiftWA)
Happening in Olympia
Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) fined the Pullman Fire Department $2,700 for saving 22 people during a flood last April. L&I fined the department because rescue crews used a front-end loader and did not have state approved equipment while assisting stranded citizens. (KREM2)
Because of stalling efforts by Governor Jay Inslee and the Department of Ecology, Washington state is not meeting court ordered deadlines to clean waterways. The major problem in following a 1998 court decision, is the cost of reducing contaminants from Puget Sound sewage treatment facilities. (Seattle Times)
According to Washington’s Secretary of State, the state’s election computer system has thousands of hacking attempts every day. Kim Wyman said that in 2016 Washington was one of 21 states that reported hacking attempts by “foreign actors.” The new VoteWA system is one of many measures put in place to keep the state’s election system secure (KIRO Radio)
Western Washington
The Puget Sound area is one of the most beautiful places in the world, yet most of the national media attention it currently receives focuses on crime, drug abuse and homelessness. On a recent Tucker Carlson show, Discovery Institute’s Christopher Rufo discussed Seattle’s “experiment in decriminalization” that has the region’s prosecutors refusing to prosecute criminal activity. (Tucker Carlson)
State officials predict about 20% of cars will travel surface streets instead of using the new Highway 99 tunnel when tolling begins in November. Department of Transportation expects about 1,700 cars an hour will clog surface streets instead of paying the toll. With the number of downtown lanes reduced for bus and bike traffic, drive times are expected to increase. (MyNorthwest).
Eastern Washington
By passing Proposition 2 Spokane voters can prohibit the city from imposing an income tax. While current legal maneuvers by Seattle attorneys and liberal judges are threatening the state constitutional ban on an income tax, passage of Proposition 2 would ensure that Spokane maintains a competitive advantage. (Spokesman Review)
More legal problems for Wapato city officials as former city clerk is charged with eight felony counts for stealing city funds. Gloria Acosta is accused of taking over $300,000 from city accounts over the past seven years. (Yakima Herald)
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