Thurston County Sheriff on Tyre Nichols Killing: ‘You Deserved Better’

From The Chronicle

After Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, was beaten by several police officers in Memphis on Jan. 7 and died in a hospital three days later, body cam footage released in the days following revealed a gut-wrenching, aggressive attack. 

As Nichols’ death and the subsequent footage re-ignited conversations and protests over race relations and policing across America, Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders released a statement on Saturday sympathizing with Nichols’ family and calling for the attention of law enforcement nationwide.

Nichols was reportedly pulled over for reckless driving, which Sanders called “completely irrelevant. There is no crime that exists in which police would ever be authorized by legal, moral or ethical standards to act in such a ruthless manner.”

The basic duty of a law enforcement officer, Sanders wrote, is to develop probable cause for a crime and bring the accused before a magistrate to have their day in court. 

“At no point in this video did I observe any meaningful attempt to actually place Tyre under arrest,” Sanders wrote. “What makes me particularly uneasy about this footage is watching how comfortable these police officers were when they carried out their attack; Tyre probably wasn’t their first victim. It is the duty of sheriffs and police chiefs everywhere to seek out and eradicate these individuals from our ranks.”

Sanders continued to say he was proud to serve among officers in Washington who have taken additional steps to decertify police who commit misconduct and where some of the “best police training in the country” takes place.

Each time this sort of incident occurs, he said, police everywhere step back and say these bad individuals do not represent police as a whole. Sanders stated while he agrees with the statement, “we as police officers need to listen to the fact that communities across the country have been begging for us to reciprocate that trust for decades.”

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• Editor’s note: The New York Times investigative report published January 26, 2023, by venerable reporters Charlie Savage, Adam Goldman and Katie Benner, demonstrated how two respected lawyers [Bill Barr, John Durham] with decades of legal experience succumbed to the aphrodisiac of power in surrendering their morals, ethics and legal training merely for approval to suit the whims of an autocratic ruler, Donald J. Trump.
• Both should join Rudy Giuliani and be disbarred!
• Their epitaph will be how weak people corrupted themselves, along with disdaining their solemn oaths to serve the public.
• Steve Klein, Yelm Community Blog Host

+ The New York Times: How Barr’s Quest to Find Flaws in the Russia Inquiry Unraveled – The review by John Durham at one point veered into a criminal investigation related to Donald Trump himself, even as it failed to find wrongdoing in the origins of the Russia inquiry.

“But after almost four years — far longer than the Russia investigation itself — Mr. Durham’s work is coming to an end without uncovering anything like the deep state plot alleged by Mr. Trump and suspected by Mr. Barr.

“Moreover, a monthslong review by The New York Times found that the main thrust of the Durham inquiry was marked by some of the very same flaws — including a strained justification for opening it and its role in fueling partisan conspiracy theories that would never be charged in court — that Trump allies claim characterized the Russia investigation.”

+ Business Insider: The inquiry Trump launched to clear his name on Russia collusion ended up investigating him for potential financial crimes: NYT

+ The New Civil Rights Movement via Alternet and MSN: ‘Deliberately deceived the nation’: Legal experts stunned by ‘jaw-dropping’ report on Barr, Durham protecting Trump

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BREAKING NEWS

+ The New York Times: Manhattan Prosecutors Will Begin Presenting Trump Case [Stormy Daniels hush money case] to Grand Jury – The Manhattan district attorney’s decision represents a dramatic escalation of the inquiry, and potentially sets the case on a path toward criminal charges against the former president.

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+ 1945 via MSN: The Downfall of Donald Trump Has Arrived

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+ The National Review: Trump’s Downfall: He brought it on himself

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+ Rolling Stone: Trump’s Killing Spree: The Inside Story of His Race to Execute Every Prisoner He Could – Before 2020, there had been three federal executions in 60 years. Then Trump put 13 people to death in six months

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+ The Guardian via MSN: Revealed: Trump secretly donated $1m to discredited Arizona election ‘audit’ – An analysis by the watchdog group Documented has traced funding for the Arizona audit back to Trump’s Save America Pac.

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+ MSNBC’s Charlie Sykes: Trump’s 2024 MAGA litmus test – This time, cruelty is no longer enough.

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+ Raw Story: Trump slapped down by judge in bid to avoid Jan. 6 Capitol cop trial

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+ The New York Times via MSN: An R.N.C. Remade by Trump Backs Away From His 2024 Campaign

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+ Raw Story via MSN: ‘Ranting like a deranged hobo’: National Review columnist stunned by Trump’s most recent ‘deterioration’

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+ 1945 via MSN: Donald Trump’s Past Could Come Back to Haunt Him (And Put Him in Jail)

Washington Republican activists look for ways to make gains in two years

From The Center Square:

The Republican reaction to the recent midterm elections in Washington state might be called philosophical, if the annual gathering of activists in Ocean Shores is a good indicator.

“There are no permanent victories or defeats when it comes to politics,” state Senate Republican Leader John Braun, Centralia, told Roanoke attendees in the banquet hall of the 29,000 square foot convention center.

His Republican counterpart in the state House, Minority Leader J.T. Wilcox, Yelm, addressed the crowd Friday night as well.

“Almost half of the House Republicans are registered [at the conference],” Wilcox told the crowd. He called many of them out by name and they stood up to applause.

Wilcox’s call out for “Big Jim Walsh,” a representative from nearby Aberdeen, got the most applause.

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+ The JOLT News: Sunday town hall draws 300 opposed to planned sex-offender housing near Tenino – Threats of violence against state officials caused them to cancel their appearance at the meeting

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WA officials back out of Tenino town hall on sex offender housing after threats

Officials reportedly plan to host a webinar instead.

• Editor’s note: The public meeting was originally scheduled for today at 4pm.
• This is a sad state of affairs when our county communities can not have an in-person public discussion on issues of importance without threats of violence!

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office organized the town hall last week in response to public uproar over the planned facility at 2813 140th Ave. Southwest. Sheriff Derek Sanders notified the public of the state officials’ decision on Saturday.

“To say I’m infuriated and embarrassed is an understatement,” Sanders said in a Facebook post. “The public deserves to hear answers directly, and in a meaningful, engaging way, from their state government.”

Sanders said officials from the state Department of Social and Health Services and the Department of Corrections previously agreed to attend the meeting at Tenino High School. However, he received a new letter from the officials Friday night, and he shared it publicly on Facebook the next day.

“Regrettably, due to threats by individuals and other information circulating on social media, we will instead host a virtual, public webinar 6-7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 1,” the letter reads.

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All 3 sites for a proposed new WA airport are near JBLM. Is that a deal breaker?

“All three proposed sites … would disrupt fixed-wing and helicopter training and operational requirements,” a JBLM spokesperson said.

From The Olympian:

A new commercial airport built near Joint Base Lewis–McChord would be incompatible with the military’s aviation operations and mission-readiness requirements, a JBLM official told The News Tribune.

“All three proposed sites … would disrupt fixed-wing and helicopter training and operational requirements,” JBLM spokesperson Joseph Piek recently wrote in a statement. “JBLM will continue to work closely with federal, state, county and city officials to ensure any proposed airport site doesn’t pose an adverse impact to missions at JBLM.”

The state’s Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission is examining sites for a potential new airport to serve increased passenger and cargo demand in Washington state.

The commission was assembled in 2019 and is tasked by the state Legislature with providing a list of possible sites for a new airport. That list is down to three — Thurston County Central, Pierce County East and Pierce County Central. The Thurston County Central site is west of Yelm and overlaps JBLM territory, according to Warren Hendrickson, acting chair of the CACC. The Pierce County East site is south of Graham, and the Pierce County Central site is east of Roy. Both are near but don’t overlap JBLM.

There are two airfields on JBLM – one that houses Air Force aircraft and another with Army aircraft. Should a new airport be sited nearby, Hendrickson said, airspace analysis must occur to ensure there’s a safe separation between civil and military aircraft.

“The first and most important consideration would be the conflict in airspace requirements,” Hendrickson told The News Tribune recently.

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+ The Chronicle (Centralia): Sen. John Braun Commentary: To Restore Public Trust, Start Reestablishing Public Safety [Sen. John Braun, of Centralia, serves the 20th Legislative District, which spans parts of four counties from Yelm to Vancouver. He became Senate Republican leader in 2020.]

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Inslee Comments on Tenino Sex Offender Housing Amid Community Outrage

From The Chronicle (Centralia):

One day after Tenino area residents visited the Capitol to express their outrage over a proposed facility near Maytown to house Department of Health and Social Services (DSHS) clients, including sex offenders from McNeil Island, Gov. Jay Inslee said the issue is on his radar. 

“I know there are concerns about that facility. And I’m a Tenino boy. That was my first home. My very first home was in Tenino,” Inslee said in an interview with The Chronicle Friday. “I know people are concerned about this. But, I think there’s hopefully going to be some information to assuage some of those concerns.”

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“That is a facility that is court-ordered, in effect. … Judges make the decision on what conditions they need to be in when they’re in this transitional situation after coming out of our prisons and the like,” Inslee said. “Then the Department of Health and Social Services has to follow those court orders.”

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Inslee claimed, though, the facility will be highly secure and noted an upcoming town hall on the matter on Sunday where he said he hopes DSHS will be able to increase the community’s understanding.

“It still has a lot of security. People will not be allowed to leave unless they’re chaperoned, specifically. Period. They wear ankle bracelets. So, it has a lot of security features. It’s on a 14-acre location so it’s quite remote, if you will,” Inslee said.

He was the first to say ankle bracelets will definitely be required on the grounds. According to Tenino Mayor Wayne Fournier, they were mentioned as a possibility by the facility’s CEO, but whether they’d be required was unconfirmed.

“We’re hoping that after some of this information is shared with the community, some of those concerns will be assuaged,” Inslee said.

Sunday’s town hall will be open to the public at Tenino High School at 4 p.m. The meeting will also be streamed live on The Chronicle’s Facebook page.

Renowned Washington artist named to create likeness of this Indigenous leader for Capitol

Whatcom legislator sponsored measure to honor treaty activist, environmental advocate.

From The Olympian:

A renowned Seattle artist has been chosen to design a statue of Billy Frank Jr. for display in the nation’s capital, according to the Washington State Arts Commission.

Haiying Wu, who designed the Seattle Fallen Firefighters Memorial in Pioneer Square, will create a likeness of Frank for Statuary Hall at the Capitol Building, where each U.S. state can display two statues, ArtsWA said in a statement Thursday, Jan. 26.

Wu, a native of China, has created public art throughout the Northwest and sometimes uses the “socialist realist” style that glorifies working people.

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In Statuary Hall, Washington state currently has likenesses of Northwest missionary Mother Joseph and doctor and missionary Marcus Whitman.

Frank’s statue is slated to replace Whitman’s, possibly as early as 2024, ArtsWA told The Bellingham Herald in an email.

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+ KING-5 TV News, Seattle: Horizon Air says farewell to Q400 turboprop – A local airline is saying farewell to an entire fleet of planes and a pilot of one of those planes says goodbye to the skies.

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Horizon Air phasing out its Bombardier Q400 turboprop airplane fleet

Regional airline transitioning to E175 jets

For two decades Horizon Air’s Bombardier Q400 turboprop fleet was the way passengers reached small airports around the Pacific Northwest. Now, the ubiquitous plane will take one last spin for customers Thursday as the airline phases out the plane and completes a transition to an all-E175 jet fleet.

And Friday, some of Horizon Air’s employees will mark the plane’s 22-year history, celebrating with a flight from Seattle to Portland, where there will be retirement festivities.

“We’re commemorating an airplane,” said Horizon’s president, Joe Sprague. “But we’re celebrating the people that made that airplane so positively impactful for Alaska Air Group, Alaska and Horizon.”

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Horizon began transitioning from the Q400s about a year ago when it had 32 of the propeller planes, seven of which were leased. The planes the airline owns will be sold and will likely end up flying outside of the United States, [Horizon’s president, Joe Sprague] Sprague said. Two have been donated, one to Portland Community College and the other to a company developing alternative power plants and fuel technologies, the president added.

“They won’t be flying for Horizon anymore, but they will continue to do good in the world,” he said.

At Washington’s state Capitol, crowd rallies with one goal: ‘Stop the airport!’

From The Tacoma News-Tribune via MSN:

Roughly 100 anti-airport activists rallied Wednesday on the north steps of the Legislative Building in Olympia, urging state lawmakers to stop seeking a site to build a new commercial airport in Washington.

The prospect that either of three rural areas in Pierce and Thurston County could be home to a two-runway airport has spurred fierce opposition from residents, as they confront fears of losing their homes and sound the alarm about threats to public safety, wildlife and the environment.

In an hour-long morning demonstration, they used what they said was their strongest weapon: Their voices.

Scott Lay, an organizer with the Coalition Against Graham and Eatonville-Roy Airports, provided additional encouragement.

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Most brought signs to the state Capitol. They called for repelling urban sprawl; protecting water, wildlife and homes; investing in high-speed rail as an alternative to aviation; and abolishing the Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission, the state-created planning group tasked with identifying a feasible site for a new two-runway airport.