‘Stretched too thin’: SPD chief addresses homicides, gun violence amid staffing shortage; Washington beats U.S. in 988 answer rate

ABORTION

• Reproductive rights divide states 2 years after Dobbs decision (Pluribus News)

BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR

• Seattle’s construction hiring program sees Black worker retention rate of 56% (The Center Square)
• At Bartell Drugs ‘reunion,’ former workers mull Rite Aid bankruptcy (The Seattle Times)
• Amazon promised 1,000+ Pasco jobs for massive warehouse two weeks ago. Where are they? (Tri-City Herald)

COMMUNITY & FAMILY ISSUES

• Holocaust Center graffiti not a hate crime, Seattle police say (The Seattle Times)

COURTS (FEDERAL)

• The Supreme Court rules for Biden administration in a social media dispute with conservative states (AP)
• WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returns to Australia a free man after US legal battle ends (AP)
• Seattle anti-police protesters awarded $680,000 in First Amendment case (MyNorthwest)
• More people join lawsuit against railway company over Tunnel Five fire (Northwest Public Broadcasting)

COURTS (STATE)

• Washington high court to decide if Seattle officers who attended Jan. 6 rally can remain anonymous (AP)
• WA Supreme Court: state can intervene in local tenant evictions (KONA Radio)

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY

• ‘Stretched too thin’: SPD chief addresses homicides, gun violence amid staffing shortage (KOMO TV)
• Washington tied with Texas for second highest number of active shooter incidents in 2023 (KING TV)
• Vandal shatters windows that displayed support for Palestine at Freedom Socialist Party offices (KING TV)
• Downtown Olympia businesses vandalized during protest, police say (The Olympian)
• COLUMN: Downtown Seattle is on life support, but media, politicians turn a blind eye to root causes (Jason Rantz/MyNorthwest)

CYBERSECURITY

• How Seattle Public Library’s cyberattack impacts patrons, students (Cascade PBS)

DAMS

• Ecology releases final EIS for Eightmile Dam reconstruction project (The Wenatchee World)

EDUCATION

• Free summer meal programs available for WA children, teens (FOX 13)
• Families won’t know which Seattle schools may close until fall (KUOW Radio)
• Marysville School District gets ‘historic’ state oversight amid budget woes, resignations (FOX 13)
• Marysville parents call for upheaval of school district leadership amid turmoil (KING TV)
• Did Tri-Cities schools really manage to dodge COVID’s fiscal bullet? Here’s what we found (Tri-City Herald)
• EDITORIAL: Seattle School Board: Listen to your community, it has lots to say (The Seattle Times)

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS & SERVICES

• Spike in apartment fires alarms officials in Southwest Washington, Oregon (The Columbian)

ENERGY & UTILITIES

• A signature Biden law aimed to boost renewable energy. It also helped a solar company reap billions (AP)
• Largest solar array in Washington to take flight in Arlington (The Everett Herald)

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT & THE WHITE HOUSE

• Biden pardons potentially thousands of ex-service members convicted under now-repealed gay sex ban (AP)

HEALTH CARE & HOSPITALS

• Health care company sues WA over ban on at-home sexual assault evidence kits (Washington State Standard)

HIGHER EDUCATION

• ‘No place I would rather be’: Washington State elevates Anne McCoy to full-time athletic director (The Spokesman-Review)

HOMELESSNESS

• Pasco is banning sitting and lying on downtown sidewalks. What areas will it impact? (Tri-City Herald)

HOUSING

• OPINION: Pandemic-era funds have expired but WA housing needs continue (Shkelqim Kelmendi, United Way board member, and Gordon McHenry Jr., president and CEO of United Way of King County/The Seattle Times)

IMMIGRATION

• Homeland Security says border arrests fall more than 40% since Biden’s halt to asylum processing (AP)
• For migrants on way to Seattle, border shelters serve as temporary stop (The Seattle Times)

INSURANCE

• Rising home insurance costs are challenging would-be buyers (The Business Journals/Puget Sound Business Journal)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• Airsoft guns creating dangerous, deadly scenarios for police in WA (FOX 13)
• Vancouver police video shows assault suspect holding apparent gun and a knife as officers shoot him (The Columbian)
• Richland was expected to announce new police chief finalists in June. What happened? (Tri-City Herald)

LEGISLATURE

• OPINION: Calls for a full-time legislature leave out the costs (Mark Harmsworth, director, Washington Policy Center’s Center for Small Business and a former legislator/The Spokesman-Review)

LGBTQ+

• Justice Mary Yu on marriage and adoptions for all | Seattle Pride at 50 (The Seattle Times)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• Seattle City Council outlines plans to curb illegal street racing (MyNorthwest)
• Spokane County Commission opts to continue offering signing bonuses to help fill vacant deputy positions (The Spokesman-Review)
• Spokane approves $7.6M in grants despite requiring local match amid deficit (The Center Square)
• Spokane City Council calls for new traffic-calming measures after recent deaths (The Center Square)
• Traffic and homelessness dominate conversation at Vancouver City Council forum (The Columbian)

MEDIA

• Everett Herald strike continues, as owners aim to resolve layoffs (The Everett Herald)
• Everett NewsGuild to return after company agrees to negotiate following strike (KOMO TV)
• EDITORIAL: Local news decline imperils elections, democracy (The Columbian)

MENTAL HEALTH

• Washington beats U.S. in 988 answer rate (Axios – Seattle)

OTHER STATES

• Gusty winds help spread fast growing Central Oregon wildfire and prompt evacuations (AP)
• Portland will begin enforcing new homeless camping ban Monday (The Oregonian)
• Libraries brace for new law restricting ‘harmful’ materials (The Lewiston Tribune)

SCHOOL SAFETY

• Seattle schools ponder clear backpacks, required IDs to improve safety (The Seattle Times)
• Seattle schools to increase student safety measures before next school year (The Center Square)
• Two Mead High football players allege assaults, racial bullying following last year’s camp incidents (The Spokesman-Review)
• Monroe teacher arrested for alleged sexual misconduct with student (MyNorthwest)

SOCIAL MEDIA

• Seattle leaders propose using social media to crack down on street racers (FOX 13)

STATE GOVERNMENT

• WA AG says goes after grocery store over “food desert” (KONA Radio)

TRANSPORTATION

• WA transportation projects score nearly $90M in federal grants (Washington State Standard)
• Study: Seattle has 10th-worst commute in the US, 27th-worst in world (FOX 13)
• Seattle ranks as 2nd-worst city for pedestrians killed by cars: Study (FOX 13)
• Your phone can now be an ORCA card, if you’re an Android user (The Seattle Times)
• OPINION: Transition to green commercial trucks costly, burdensome (Sheri Call, President and CEO, Washington Trucking Associations/The Center Square)

WATER

• Whatcom County water rights legal process set to start this week; live-stream available (The Bellingham Herald)

WILDFIRE PREVENTION & RESPONSE

• Wildfire near Darrington grows to 48 acres (The Everett Herald)