Increasing scrutiny of the Seattle Police Department leads the news this morning.
KIRO reports on a gathering of residents of Fremont, Magnolia, Ballard and other Seattle neighborhoods to express their frustration with increasing crime and the lack of police response. UPDATE: The Stranger has also reported on the meeting, and in particular the hostile reception that Council member Mike O’Brien received.
The C Is For Crank discusses Seattle’s “open records gadfly” Tim Clemans and his war on secretive city departments (especially the Seattle Police Department). It also points out that Public Records Act requests have skyrockets in recent years and the amount of work expense for cities trying to comply is starting to eat up significant amounts of their staff and budget — especially for smaller cities with limited resources.
Indian Country Today Media Network has a story highlighting new Council member Debora Juarez, a member of the Blackfeet tribe.
KING 5 reports that the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board has finally issued its ruling on allowing new marijuana retail outlets in the state — authorizing 222, of which around 20 are expected to be in Seattle. This clears a hurdle for the pending Seattle ordinance updating zoning for pot shops in the city that was the subject of serious debate in committee last month.