The past week has been a crazy whirlwind in legal filings as Mayor Durkan appeals to the state Supreme Court a lower court’s certification of the recall petition against her.
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Judge denies motion for reconsideration of Durkan recall petition
This afternoon, King County Superior Court Judge Mary Roberts denied a request by Mayor Durkan to reconsider the certification of a recall petition against her.
Continue readingCatching up on court cases: July edition
One old favorite, and two relatively new cases, have slowly but surely moved forward.
Continue readingDurkan asks judge to reconsider order certifying recall petition
Today attorneys for Mayor Durkan filed a motion for reconsideration of a judge’s certification of a recall petition charge earlier this week, asking the court to take another look at its ruling that one of the seven charges alleged was factually and legally sufficient as a basis for a recall petition.
Continue readingPetition to recall Mayor Durkan certified for signature collection
Last Friday a King County Superior Court judge certified, in part, a petition from a group attempting to recall Mayor Jenny Durkan because of her actions (and inaction) during the recent protests. The recall election process is similar in many ways to voter initiative and referendum processes, but it also has its own unique aspects. Let’s review the whole process, where the current effort stands, and what happens from here. (update: a couple of technical corrections made below based upon feedback from the city)
Continue readingCHOP: a tragedy of errors, now entering its final act
After a weekend of late-night violence in the CHOP, today Mayor Jenny Durkan and SPD Chief Carmen Best signaled that their hands-off approach to the protest area on Capitol Hill is changing, and “it’s time for people to go home.” It’s been nearly a month since George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer, surrounded by other officers who stood by and did nothing. The ensuing weeks here in Seattle — the protests, the violent police response, the looting and destruction, the abandoning of the East Precinct, and the occupation of a small section in the heart of Capitol …
Continue readingDurkan issues executive order requiring SPD body-cams to be turned on during protests
As promised, today Mayor Durkan issued an executive order reversing SPD’s existing body-cam policy and requiring that officers turn on their body-cam during free-speech demonstrations.
Continue readingWhat happens if the Mayor resigns or is impeached?
In the past week there have been multiple calls for Mayor Jenny Durkan to resign, which in some ways is nothing new since she has had her share of detractors ever since she took office. But this morning three Council members (Sawant, Morales and Mosqueda) joined the chorus, suggesting she resign over her handling of the protests in the city over the past week. Sawant went one step further, saying that if Durkan did not resign she would introduce articles of impeachment. Durkan has responded by saying that she has no intention of resigning and that she refuses to be …
Continue readingQuick notes from today
It was a messy day in Seattle politics, with a heated meeting of the Community Police Commission (CPC), a nearly five-hour City Council meeting, a march to City Hall, and various protest leaders jockeying to speak with the Mayor and police chief. Here are my take-aways.
Continue readingCouncil briefed on COVID-19, modifies Mayoral emergency declaration
This afternoon, the City Council received a long briefing from King County Public Health and several city department heads on the status of the COVID-19 response in Seattle. It then went into an extended executive session with its attorneys, followed by a public session in which it modified the Mayor’s declaration of emergency and issued a resolution with requests and expectations for the Mayor in how she exercised her emergency powers.
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