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CHENEY — Gov. Jay Inslee “strongly recommends” public and private students in 34 of the state’s 39 counties stay home this fall. His recommendation came during a press conference this afternoon, Aug. 5, in which he was joined by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal and state Health Officer Dr. Kathy Lofy. The governor said he was not issuing legally binding orders, but would expect school districts to heed his advice and that of state health offices as it relates to returning to campus while the Wuhan coro...
Are government agencies and big tech tracking your every move via your smartphone? The answer is maybe. Gov. Jay Inslee has repeatedly said the state is using smartphone data to track interactions and travel as it may relate to coronavirus exposure and spread. That data may include time, date, location and even a “marker” for each mobile device. Indeed, anytime your cellphone is turned on, it connects to towers for telephone calls or texting. Using three tower con...
OLYMPIA — Gov. Jay Inslee announced today that residents statewide will be required to wear a face mask effective Friday in an effort to slow the coronavirus spread. “This is something we can get use to,” Inslee said, noting that a willful decision not to wear a face mask is “tantamount to a misdemeanor.” The governor balked, however, when questioned on how the state would enforce the requirement. “We just think people will respond,” he said. Inslee said the requirement stems from an order by non-elected state Secretary of He...
BASIN CITY -- Local cowboys are buckin' the state's rejection of reopening Franklin County as the Fourth of July approaches. Despite the state's rejection of Phase 2 reopening in the wake of the coronavirus, residents are planning to kick up their heels for Independence Day. Two rodeo performances, a street dance, parade and fireworks are on tap as part of the Basin City Fourth of July Parade and Freedom Rodeo. The fun gets underway at 8 a.m. Friday, July 3, with rodeo slack. The first of two rodeo performances is set for 6 p...
I’m glad to see Paul Delaney is back at the Cheney Free Press after a year and a couple months hiatus. I hope his “failed retirement” wasn’t because of those “half-dozen citations” from me to which he’s laid claim (CFP, 5/21/20). Paul has decided that among the many and varied issues it’s important he address — the coronavirus pandemic, the exploding national debt, cancer causing chemicals in Airway Heights water, Eastern Washington rural hospitals nearing financial collapse — defending his publisher, Roger Harnack from...
Gov. Jay Inslee had to know a showdown was coming with Eastern Washington. State law allocated him 30 days in which to operate under emergency authority, unless the Legislature convenes and passes a concurrent resolution. That didn’t happen. And with his initial stay-home quarantine issued Feb. 29 due to the coronavirus outbreak, many east of the Cascades have been anxiously awaiting the governor’s nod to return to work, to recreate and to shop. Without even a cautious nod...
AIRWAY HEIGHTS — The owners of a local tavern plan to be open from 2 p.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday despite the coronavirus quarantine. Village Tavern co-owner Jean Moore hopes other bars and restaurants will join her in opening in defiance of Gov. Jay Inslee's order shutting so-called "non-essential" businesses. The seating is spaced out, she said, noting she's planning to open those same 12 hours daily. The tavern is at 13119 W. Sunset Highway. Gov. Inslee's staff has not approved of any in-restaurant dining in the city or surrou...
WENATCHEE — Supporters and opponents of Gov. Jay Inslee’s quarantine measures will have to wait a little longer to see if the shutdowns will remain intact. Of the at least seven lawsuits seeking to end Inslee’s orders, two could have preliminary decisions coming in the next few days. On Thursday morning, Chelan County Superior Court Judge Kristin Ferrera ended a hearing by saying she’ll take hours of arguments under consideration before determining the fate of the case, filed by multiple plaintiffs, including former state R...
Reading the May 7 Cheney Free Press, I see that publisher Roger Harnack has arrived. By that I mean he’s earned “certification” and his first scolding from serial letter writer Richard Badalamente. I call it the “Badalamente Badge.” And in 12 years as a staff member at the CFP, I proudly lay claim to earning at least a half-dozen such citations from Richard for improper thoughts laid to paper. It is of course interesting — and ironic — that Badalamente points out Harnack’s failing in his story to have cited “statistics on...
OLYMPIA — If you test positive for conoravirus, be prepared to be quarantined at home. That’s the message Gov. Jay Inslee shared during a Tuesday afternoon press conference on his plan for “contact tracing” of the virus. Under his plan, anyone who tests positive will be quarantined at home. Moreover, anyone in their immediate family and anyone with whom they’ve had contact, will also be quarantined in their homes. While the governor called the plan “voluntary,” he also acknowledged that the state will be keeping tabs...
Roger Harnack’s front-page article in the 4/30/2020 CFP, “Local business owners attend Spokane protest against quarantine,” starts by stating that Governor Inslee’s coronavirus-related rules, “shuttered businesses, hospitals and other aspects of life in Eastern Washington.” That’s at best misleading. Inslee’s rule banned elective surgeries and other non-essential procedures. Many businesses were permitted to operate under revised procedures. Harnack goes on to say that, “Inslee has not yet given a date for when he’d allow ...
KAHLOTUS - Washington State Parks has released a list of the parks that will be opening May 5 for outdoor recreation, provided visitors keep their distance. In Eastern Washington, the initial list of openings include: Alta Lake Bridgeport Columbia Plateau Trail Conconully Ginkgo Petrified Forest Goldendale Observatory Lake Chelan Lake Wenatchee Lincoln Rock Lyons Ferry Mount Spokane Nine Mile Falls Recreation Area Palouse Falls Perrygin Lake Potholes Reservoir Riverside...
PASCO – Franklin County cherry orchardist and pilot Dave MacHugh was landing his private airplane at Tri-Cities Airport after a four-hour trip to Tacoma and back Friday afternoon, May 1. Unbeknownst to him, as his plane touched down and taxied to the hangar, Gov. Jay Inslee was in the process of ordering Washington state to remain under quarantine until at least May 31. Although the weather was ideal for a general aviation flight, MacHugh wasn't on a pleasure trip. He had f...
DUSTY — A duststorm caused near-zero visibility and led to at least three crashes in the area Monday, April 27. According to the Washington State Patrol, three people were cited in a four-vehicle crash for allegedly driving too fast for conditions on state Highway 25 three miles west of town. The crash occurred when one driver slowed due to thick dust blowing off adjacent farm fields, the patrol reported. That vehicle was struck by another motorists, who was then struck by a...
FOUR LAKES – Fishing will resume here and on other lakes and rivers statewide beginning May 5. Following two weeks of growing protests over the state’s ban on fishing, Gov. Jay Inslee on Monday, April 27, announced that outdoor recreation is allowed to resume May 5. “Based on the data we have now received, we are close to the point where we can enjoy the outdoors again,” Inslee said during a press conference announcing the reopening. “This includes fishing, hunting and the a...
SPOKANE – An April 22 protest against Gov. Jay Inslee’s quarantine orders was led by several Cheney-Medical Lake area residents and business owners. More than 300 people turned out for the protest on West Spokane Falls Boulevard, where motorists drove by honking support for the call to lift the coronavirus-related rules that shuttered businesses, hospitals and other aspects of life in Eastern Washington. Clear Lake resident Patti Usselman, who owns Patti Usselman Hair Co. in...
RITZVILLE - The state Senate majority leader said Wednesday, April 23, that he will refuse to extend quarantine rules on "low-hanging fruit." Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, said some of that so-called fruit includes fishing, elective surgeries and home construction. Those and other prohibitions are among the coronavirus emergency quarantine rules ordered by Gov. Jay Inslee. The emergency was declared Feb. 29. The order has since been amended at least once, and several new...
SPOKANE -- More than 300 people turned out shortly after lunch Wednesday, April 22, to tell Gov. Inslee to reopen the state now. As the crowd grew at the corner of North Lincoln Street and West Spokane Falls Boulevard, traffic increased as well. Dozens of cars and pickups started circling the area, the drivers honking continuously. The rally was organized by Patti Usselman, who lives in the Clear Lake area between Cheney and Medical Lake. "It's important," she said of the...
PASCO — Gov. Jay Inslee's time has expired, at least in Franklin County. Five minutes into the county commissioners’ 9 a.m. meeting today, April 21, commissioners voted unanimously to reject provisions under Gov. Jay Inslee’s stay-home quarantine order. Commissioner Clint Didier moved to reopen the county; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Brad Peck. “I move that Franklin County end recognition of the governor’s stay-at-home emergency proclamation that is now deemed un...
RICHLAND — Under the watchful eye of a city park ranger, hundreds of protesters from across Eastern Washington launched boats and filled Columbia Point Park today calling on Gov. Jay Inslee to end the ban on boating and fishing. Statewide, fishing, boating, camping and some hunting were shut down by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife until at least May 4, in accordance with the governor's quarantine due to the coronavirus outbreak. More than 100 boats were visible on t...
RICHLAND — Cracks are growing in Gov. Jay Inslee’s “stay home, stay safe” quarantine east of the Cascades. And the Tri-City area — the second most populous area east in Eastern Washington— is at the center of the uprising to lift “unconstitutional” mandates that restrict the ability to assemble, practice religion, access publicly owned lands and water, and more. The governor has ordered Washington state residents to "stay home" until at least May 4 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Richland resident Lisa Thomas has star...
RITZVILLE - The Columbia Basin Investigative Team has identified the man shot and killed by police Saturday night as Shawn Lee. Lee, 49, hometown not released, was shot in the parking lot of Love's Travel Stop and Country Stores, 1370 N. state Highway 261, by officer Jeff Lane, said a report on the shooting released this morning. Lane is on paid administrative leave, standard operating procedure for an officer involved in a shooting. According to the report, Lee was passing...
RITZVILLE -- Adams County health officials Saturday evening reported that a total of 23 coronavirus cases have been confirmed. Of those cases, 19 are in Othello, with 10 connected to a single family, officials said. There are two cases each in Lind and Ritzville. Of the Lind-Ritzville cases, three are connected to a single family, officials said. Overall, 159 county residents have been tested, officials said, noting results from 31 tests are still pending and 101 have returned negative.... Full story
RITZVILLE - Senate Minority Leader Mark Schoesler doesn't agree with extending the statewide quarantine until May 4 due to the coronavirus outbreak. Responding to Bainbridge Island Democrat Gov. Jay Inslee's order last night to extend his "stay home" order until May 4, Schoesler, R-Ritzville, said there has to be some flexibility for the state's rural and other areas. "We're not out of the woods, yet," Gov. Inslee said. "This order is not only necessary, it's morally...
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and shutdown of businesses and activities, Free Press Publishing is having to cut back page count and staff hours, hopefully just temporarily. It’s not a decision we made lightly; it’s a decision out of necessity. Newspaper companies are already shutting down around the nation, including multiple papers in the Puget Sound region, in the Columbia River Gorge and elsewhere. But we’re here to stay. Please bear with us a few weeks as we ride out this economic tidal wave. We’ll be back be...
