Sorted by date Results 1 - 11 of 11
OLYMPIA — Just three years after the Legislature implemented restrictions on police pursuits, lawmakers backtracked after an initiative received overwhelming voter support. The new rules on engaging in high-speed pursuits become law June 5. “As you know, the people of the state are suffering, increasing rates of crime, property, crime, violent crime,” said Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen. “When I talked to cops and sheriff’s deputies, they told me the one thing more than anything else that we need is the ability to chase bad peopl...
OLYMPIA — The yellow school buses you grew up riding may become a thing of the past. Both the House and Senate approved a new "zero-emission" school measure — House Bill 1368 — during the Legislative session, making electric buses likely the only option for school districts in Washington. Rep. Tana Senn, D-Mercer Island, said he introduced the bill also on behalf of student health. “We as a student body are exposed to 5-15 times more air pollution than adults, as a result of school bus emissions alone,” said Moa Valentin,...
OLYMPIA — After voters submitted an initiative rolling back some police pursuit regulations, the Legislature approved the measure. As a result, new rules giving police more leeway to engage in high-speed pursuits become law June 5. “The people of the state are suffering increasing rates of crime, property, crime, violent crime,” said Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen. “When I talked to cops and sheriff's deputies, they told me the one thing more than anything else that we need is the ability to chase bad people.” In 2021, the Legis...
OLYMPIA — Relenting to pressure from residents statewide, three initiatives will be get hearings before the Legislature. The Legislature will debate I-2113 on reasonable police pursuit, I-2081 on codifying parental rights in their child’s education and I-2111 on prohibiting a state income tax, Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig, D-Spokane, and Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins, D-Tacoma, announced late last week. The two leaders have decided they won’t take up three other initiatives that qualified for the ballot. Those ini...
OLYMPIA — A sea of red, white and blue covered the Capitol steps as hundreds of Washingtonians proudly waved American flags and demanded hearings on six initiatives that would roll back taxes, guarantee parental rights in schools and give police more authority. The initiatives funded by the political action group Let’s Go Washington all received the requisite number of signatures to be approved for consideration, but have yet to receive a hearing from the Legislature. In all, 2.6 million voters signed the petitions. Republica...
OLYMPIA — A sea of red, white and blue covered the Capitol steps as hundreds of Washingtonians proudly waved American flags and demanded hearings on six initiatives that would roll back taxes, guarantee parental rights in schools and give police more authority. The initiatives funded by the political action group Let’s Go Washington all received the requisite number of signatures to be approved for consideration, but have yet to receive a hearing from the Legislature. In all, 2.6 million voters signed the petitions. Republica...
Nearly four years after Manuel Ellis, a 33-year-old Black man from Tacoma, died during arrest while being hogtied, the practice that killed him is one step closer to being illegal in Washington. Hogtying refers to the tactic where handcuffed wrists are tied to a suspect's ankles. This practice can contort bodies into a position where they are at risk for suffocation. A medical examiner on Ellis' case ruled his cause of death as lack of oxygen. In 2021, defense attorneys argued...
OLYMPIA — When she treated an out-of-state patient from Idaho with pulmonary hypertension. Dr. Jennifer Chin of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists knew her pregnant patient was at risk if she carried the pregnancy to term. She believes her patient could have died without the care she received in Washington. But increasingly, Chin said, she sees doctors becoming hesitant to give abortion care because of the threat it poses to their safety. To protect doctors, Senate Bill 5960 was introduced in the state L...
OLYMPIA – Kroger and Albertsons claim a proposed merger worth $24.6 billion will result in better prices for grocery shoppers. But many fear food prices will go up and jobs could be lost as the stores eliminate competition. Kroger operates Fred Meyer stores; Albertsons operates both Safeway and Albertson stores, among others. Both firms have locations here and around the area. State Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit to stop the merger, which was announced in Seattle on Jan. 15. “Our job is to make sure there is...
OLYMPIA – Amanda Knox, the Seattle resident who spent nearly four years in an Italian prison for a murder she did not commit, offered heartfelt testimony Jan. 8 in favor of a bill that would prevent law enforcement officers from using deception during interrogations. “I was interrogated overnight by police officers who claimed to have evidence against me, who claimed that there were witnesses who could place me at the crime scene,” Knox said. “They lied to me. I did not know they could lie to me… These are people who I was...
OLYMPIA – An initiative aimed at giving police wider discretion on when they engage in high-speed pursuits was forwarded to the Legislature on Jan. 11. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs notified the Legislature petitions for Initiative 2113 meet all legal requirements. Initiative 2113 backers want to amend a law on police pursuit that passed in 2021, which requires officers to have “probable cause” instead of “reasonable suspicion” to engage in pursuits. Critics say that measure hinders law enforcement officers who want to p...
