Councilmember Herbold has introduced a bill that would make several updates to the Community Police Commission in the hopes of reducing the perennial strife that the CPC seems to be suffering under the past few years. Most notably, the bill: There is, however, a problem with the bill: the change …
Continue readingCategory: Legal
Injunction on enforcement of anti-graffiti ordinance
Earlier this month U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman issued an injunction preventing the City of Seattle from enforcing its ordinance barring graffiti, arguing that it was vague and over-broad in ways that likely infringed on First Amendment protections (for example, prohibiting writing on a sidewalk with chalk).
Continue readingCity Attorney withdraws support for Community Court
On May 26, Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison sent a letter to the Seattle Municipal Court announcing that her office would no longer participate in the Community Court program and explaining her reasoning.
Continue readingOIG plan for assuming monitoring responsibilities
Under the new proposed consent decree, OIG would take over from the court-appointed police monitor responsibilities for ongoing monitoring of SPD’s progress in meeting and maintaining compliance with the consent decree requirements. This week the OIG Director presented to the City Council the plan for how the department will take …
Continue readingConsent decree for lower Duwamish superfund site cleanup
Last week the federal government, state government, and Muckleshoot and Suquamish tribes reached agreement with several local industrial corporations on a proposed consent decree for cleanup of decades of environmental pollution by industries operating on the Lower Duwamish River. The agreement calls for the companies to pay $550,000 for natural …
Continue readingJudge vacates King County Executive order prohibiting ICE flights at Boeing Field
Yesterday a U.S. District Court judge issued a summary judgment finding for the United States in a three-year-old dispute with King County. In 2019 King County Executive Dow Constantine issued an executive order prohibiting FBOs at Boeing Field from contracting with the United States to support ICE deportation flights flying …
Continue readingSPD and DOJ propose new consent decree
This morning the City of Seattle and the U.S. Department of Justice submitted to the court a proposed new Agreement on Sustained Compliance to replace the 2012 Consent Decree on biased policing by SPD. The agreement would essentially acknowledge that SPD is in compliance with most of the original consent …
Continue readingNinth Circuit ruling on Seattle “Fair Chance Housing” ordinance
Yesterday the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals published its ruling on an appeal of a lower court ruling that upheld Seattle’s “Fair Chance Housing” ordinance. The ordinance prohibits landlords from looking at a prospective tenant’s criminal record and from taking adverse action against a prospective tenant (such as denying tenancy) …
Continue readingJudge dismisses defamation suit against Sawant
Today U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman ruled in favor of Councilmember Sawant in dismissing a defamation lawsuit filed against her by two SPD officers who claimed that she called them murderers. From the ruling: Sawant asks that the claims not advance to trial because Miller and Spaulding have failed …
Continue readingSplit decision by state appeals court on Seattle City Light “greenwashing” case
Today the Washington State Court of Appeals handed down a mixed decision in a case filed by the Sauk-Suiattle Tribe accusing Seattle City Light of “greenwashing” its hydroelectric power plants. A lower court had dismissed the Tribe’s case in its entirety. The appeals court affirmed most of that decision, agreeing …
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