Tag: Washington

WA: UW Seattle to host homeless Tent City 3 again [except for sex offenders]

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[kiro7.com – 12/20/20] SEATTLE — The University of Washington welcomed back Tent City 3, hosting up to 70 residents for the next three months. UW said the lower occupancy will allow for social distancing and other COVID precautions. “Welcoming back Tent City 3 aligns with UW’s public mission and its commitment to helping solve the challenges of our city, state and world,” said Sally J. Clark, director of regional and community relations in a direct message to the UW News. “While organized tent cities are not a solution to homelessness,…

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WA: A claw and a bat. People arm themselves as tensions rise over homeless RVs at the Capitol

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[spokanepublicradio.org – 11/21/19] In the shadow of Washington’s Capitol dome is a broad boulevard — called Deschutes Parkway — with a popular walking and running path that curves along Capitol Lake and links the city of Olympia to the neighboring city of Tumwater. The parkway, the adjacent lake and nearby Marathon Park are technically part of Washington’s expansive Capitol campus complex. It’s along this picturesque stretch of road, where parking is not restricted, that in recent months motorhomes, trailers and campers in various states of disrepair have begun to take…

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WA: Tarra Simmons Looks To Become 1st Former Inmate Elected To Washington Legislature

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[opb.org – 10/21/19] A Washington attorney and criminal justice reform advocate who previously served time in prison is seeking to become the first formerly incarcerated person elected to the Washington Legislature, at least in modern times. Tarra Simmons, of Bremerton, who in 2017 won a Supreme Court fight to sit for the state bar exam, despite her prior criminal conviction, plans to formally announce her candidacy for the state House on Monday. “I’d like to break this concrete ceiling,” Simmons said in an exclusive interview with the public radio Northwest News Network. “I think…

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WA: Why a sex offender would run for office: Willie Russell’s story

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[washingtonstatewire.com – 8/20/19] Willie Russell is running for the Snohomish County Council this year. He squeaked through the August primary, and will face Stephanie Wright in November for Council position 3. He is also a Level III sex offender. You can read the narrative from the sheriff’s office database here. I recently spoke with Russell in an extended conversation. I wanted to ask him about his interest in running, and about his campaign. But, I was particularly interested in understanding why, with his background, he would be willing to put…

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WA: Washington Sexting Bill Aims to Shield Teens From Adult Law

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[usnews.com – 4/11/19] Legislation aimed at keeping youth who send sexually explicit texts from being charged under adult sex crime laws has cleared the Legislature in Washington state. The bill , which passed late Wednesday night, would create a new group of crimes reserved specifically for minors who are caught with explicit images of other minors, attempting to solve what lawmakers described as a paradox in current law, where even youth who report a sexual picture or video can themselves be potentially charged with a felony — and even forced…

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Seattle Police “Rescue” 26 Sex Workers. But Did They Want to Be Rescued?

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[floridaactioncommittee.org – 3/13/19] The Seattle Police Department, along with the FBI and Department of Homeland Security, say they arrested five people and “rescued 26 victims of sex trafficking” earlier this month during raids of nearly a dozen businesses in the Chinatown-International and Beacon Hill districts. The Seattle Times broke the story last Friday, reporting that the owners of these so-called “massage parlors” were illegally selling sex acts and are suspected of recruiting women, mostly Chinese nationals, to come to the U.S. to work in them. Nearly 200 law enforcement officers…

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WA: House Passes Responsible Teen Communications Act

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[seattlemedium.com – 3/6/19] OLYMPIA – On Monday, the Washington State House of Representatives passed House Bill 1742 on a bipartisan vote of 57-39. The Responsible Teen Communications Act, sponsored by Rep. Noel Frame (D-Seattle), updates Washington’s laws to reflect current technology, and ensure minors sharing sexually explicit images or videos of themselves with their peers (commonly known was “sexting”) are not automatically charged with a felony sex offense and forced to register as a sex offender. According to a recent study, more than one in four teenagers report having received…

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WA: Sheriff’s Seeking Input on Proposed Domestic Offender Registry [House Bill 1080 and Senate Bill 5244]

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[newstalk870.am Washington State] The Franklin County Sheriff’s office posted some comments on their Facebook page, seeking public input on two companion bills (one in House, one in Senate) being debated in Olympia. :House Bill 1080 and Senate Bill 5244 would create a database for domestic violence offenders, similar to that which has been out for years for sex offenders. The Sheriff’s Department clarifies what the bills would do. Here’s part of that commentary: “House Bill 1080 and companion Bill SB 5244 would mandate the registry of persons convicted of a…

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WA: Sex offender records request raises safety, First Amendment questions

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Attorneys fighting a request to release the names of all level 1 sex offenders in Cowlitz County are making a novel — and perhaps long-shot — legal argument to the state Court of Appeals. Judges should take into account the motives of Kelso resident Curtis Hart, a sex offender vigilante who filed a state public records request for the list of offenders’ names months ago, a motion to the Washington Court of Appeals argues. Full Article

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WA: Several more injunctions hit sex offender request

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Curtis Hart is scheduled to receive the names of most of Cowlitz County’s 570 level 1 sex offenders Wednesday, but a few names likely will be withheld. One offender was granted a temporary injunction Sept. 11, and requests for injunctions to block the release of at least four other names were filed Monday on behalf of individual offenders. They are each represented by Vancouver attorney Elijah Marchbanks, and all are referred to as “John Does” in court documents. Full Article Also see: WA: Man plans to publish names of level…

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WA: Man plans to publish names of level 1 sex offenders

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Sex offender vigilante Curtis Hart has caused a furor among level 1 sex offenders by planning to publish many of their 570 names on the internet. Hart has requested that the sheriff’s office give him the names of all level 1 sex offenders in Cowlitz County, and under terms of a state Supreme Court ruling the agency must comply. The names, along with photos, addresses, and brief descriptions of the offenses could be released in less than two weeks. Full Article

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WA: Judges Denies Lakewood’s Request To Stop Sex Offender Relocation

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[patch.com – 8/6/18] LAKEWOOD, WA – A Pierce County judge has denied Lakewood’s request to stop the transfer of three sex offenders from McNeil Island to a private residential adult treatment house in the city. On Friday, Lakewood officials asked Pierce County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Martin to stop the transfer. Although Martin denied that request, the city’s is still engaged in a lawsuit against the state to stop the transfer of sex offenders from facilities like Western State into residential treatment facilities. Read more about this important precedent  

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WA: County to pay $115K to man mistakenly listed as sex offender

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[kimatv.com – 6/14/18] YAKIMA COUNTY, Wash. – The county has agreed to settle a lawsuit involving a man who was wrongfully listed as a sex offender. Yakima County will pay local man Damian Garza Cantu $115,000 after someone else’s criminal convictions of third degree rape were mistakenly placed on his record. Read more Related links: WA: County to pay $115K to man mistakenly listed as sex offender [floridaactioncommittee.org – 6/14/18]    

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WA: Probationer Wins Washington Supreme Court Case on Pornography

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[floridaactioncommittee.org 5/17/18] A convicted sex offender in Washington challenged a provision of his probation that prevented him from “possessing or accessing pornographic materials” and won! The definition of “pornographic materials”, he argued, is unconstitutionally vague. It could mean watching the film Titanic, or having a Victoria’s Secret catalogue. The Court agreed, finding, “the statute must “give the person of ordinary intelligence a reasonable opportunity to know what [behavior] is prohibited.” Grayned, 408 U.S. at 108. Second, the law must provide explicit standards to those charged with enforcing the law in…

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