Tag Archives: law enforcement

NEWSLETTER: Democrats undermining your right to know

Watch my weekly legislative update:

Friends and Neighbors,

Nearly 500,000 Washington voters signed on to Initiative 2081, knowns as the Parents’ Bill of Rights. Last session, legislators on both sides of the aisle, including me, spoke in favor of the initiative and why it was a positive step. It passed with bipartisan support.

Fast forward to this session. In a move that ignores the will of the people and undermines the purpose of the law to protect parents’ “right to know,” Democrats are moving bills forward that would weaken that right.

The most concerning of these is Senate Bill 5181. This bill has many problems, such as lengthening the time the school has to notify you if your child is attacked. It also creates some exceptions to when schools even have to notify parents.

When current law limits minor access to tanning beds and tattoo parlors, why are we limiting parents’ knowledge of their children’s medical issues.

Listen to my legislative update on this issue.

All parents should worry about this effort.

My weekly column in The Chronicle elaborates on SB 5181 and what it really means for our state. Read my full column.

If you want to share your opposition to this bill, contact the following legislators who have control over what happens to this bill — and your right to know.

 

LISTEN: Official Podcast

Our caucus produces an official podcast that is a great way to hear about what’s happening in the Legislature. It’s called The Elephant in the Dome.

In this episode, our staff hosts and I delve into Democrat efforts to limit parental rights, and the challenges and opportunities in education founding. I also talk about my vision for a reimagining of The Evergreen State College.

Read my news release about my proposal to close Evergreen and turn it into a South Sound UW campus dedicated to training medical workers to care for the 3.2 million Washingtonians who will be part of a “Silver Tsunami” in five years that will overwhelm our health-care system.

Listen to additional episodes on our website.

Another firsthand look at conditions at Green Hill

I talk a lot about what happens at the Green Hill School, the juvenile justice facility in Chehalis, because it has been riddled with serious overcrowding and poor management protocols — two things that have made it a dangerous and unproductive rehabilitation environment.

At the invitation of Sen. Leonard Christian, 4th Legislative District, I accompanied him on another tour of Green Hill. He is the current lead Republican on the Senate Human Services Committee, which is assigned to consider bills related to Green Hill and my bill that would repeal JR-25— the policy that allows residents convicted of a crime as a minor to remain at the facility until age 25 rather than transfer to a jail run by the Department of Corrections. Green Hill is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Children, Youth and Families.

We have a duty to the residents in the program to keep them safe and prepare them to face a brighter future when they are released. We also have a responsibility to keep staff safe in the workplace, and set them up for success with a solid policy framework. I’ll continue to update you on this as my bills progress, as well as others that seek to improve conditions.

A safer Washington: Hiring more law enforcement officers

A dubious distinction for Washington is that we remain dead last of all 50 states in the number of law-enforcement officers per capita protecting the people.

Fixing that remains a top priority for my caucus and me. My colleague, Sen. Jeff Holy, 6th Legislative District, sponsored two bills this session to provide state funding and incentivize county and local government to hire more officers.

Senate Bill 5285 incentivizes cities and counties to contribute additional funding toward hiring officers by allowing them to impose a 0.10 percent sales tax to pay for it. The bill would protect that money by mandating that the funds be spent ONLY on hiring law enforcement officers.

Senate Bill 5060 provides $100 million in grants to help fund salaries for new officers. This bill received a hearing and passed out of committee. We expect to see it come to the floor soon for a vote.

Gov. Ferguson gave Sen. Holy a shoutout during his inaugural speech during the opening week of legislative session, saying he wanted to work with him on this issue and would not sign a budget that did not contain that funding.

Both bills have bipartisan support and are working their way through the legislative process. I hope to announce that both of these bills have been signed by the governor sooner rather than later. Washington will be safer for it. Stay tuned and watch their progress.

New statewide crime numbers confirm importance of reestablishing public safety, says Republican leader

CENTRALIA… The state Senate’s Republican leader says new numbers showing crime has continued to increase across Washington should give legislators even more reason to focus on public-safety measures next year – beyond what the governor is belatedly supporting.

The 2021 Crime in Washington report has murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault up from the year before, with homicides reaching an all-time high. The corresponding 2020 report from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs had violent crime at a 25-year high, and the new statistics prove 2021 was even worse. Vehicle theft, burglary, larceny and destruction of property, all categorized as property crimes, are also up.

“The 2020 report led Senate Republicans to make the reestablishment of public safety one of our top three priorities ahead of this year’s legislative session. It’s frustrating to see how crime has continued to increase in one category after another, knowing how we were alone in advocating for public-safety legislation,” said Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia.

“Until these new statistics came out yesterday Governor Inslee had been very quiet about the crime wave hurting families and employers across our state. Today we’re told he will finally engage on the need to recruit and train more officers. Yet the governor was nowhere to be seen months ago when we already knew Washington had the fewest law-enforcement officers per capita in the nation, and his allies in the Legislature were blocking our bill to help communities rebuild their depleted law-enforcement agencies.

“If the governor is truly beginning to come around to where Republicans already are on addressing the decline in safety in our communities, his actions will speak louder than his words. Otherwise, it will be fair to question whether his sudden interest in law enforcement is sincere or just for appearance’s sake.”

People also shouldn’t be misled by how yesterday’s crime report shows a 60% drop in drug/narcotics violation offenses since 2020, Braun explained. That’s because the 2021 law responding to the state Supreme Court’s Blake decision essentially legalizes hard drugs.

“The consequences of abusing hard drugs are still easy to see in many communities. It’s just that the radical change in the law, which the governor supported, has made it impossible for law-enforcement officers to do what they used to do – to engage and intervene with drug abusers in a way that could force them into treatment.”

Braun said the next Legislature needs to reform the anti-police laws adopted in 2021, which he said have been welcome news to criminals.

“It’s no wonder more and more people are feeling like they’re on their own when it comes to protecting their families and their property. If this year’s news reports are any indication, especially the shootings that seem to happen almost daily in the Puget Sound region, things are still moving in the wrong direction. There’s also been a lack of urgency to deal with property crimes like car theft. Those are not victimless crimes. Legislators need to be serious about putting the protection of our communities and the needs of victims first.”

Republican leaders call for special session to fix confusing, controversial police reform bills

Democrat sponsor of legislation admits fixes are necessary

OLYMPIASenate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, and House Republican Leader J.T. Wilcox, R-Yelm, issued the following statement in response to continued Democrat insistence in the press that law enforcement and legislators are overreacting to controversial new laws on policing that lack clarity and endanger the public, police and first responders.

“Our offices have received emails from people who are not just concerned about the effects of House Bills 1310 and 1054, but are seriously afraid for their safety and the well-being of their family members. We have also heard from local government officials who have questions about the ambiguous and conflicting language of the legislation. It’s telling that Democrats are dismissing the concerns and feedback from those with a lifetime of law enforcement experience who are being honest and forthcoming in their assessment of the current situation.

“Although legislators make decisions on behalf of the public all the time, it’s elitist and condescending for those who support these bills to ignore the suffering we are seeing across the state and assert that they know best. Nothing is more important than public safety. It’s foundational.

“Some have pointed out that members of law enforcement were consulted in the process of developing the legislation – as if that makes law enforcement complicit in the harm the laws are doing. In reality, law enforcement’s hands were tied. They tried to engage in the process knowing it was not likely to result in substantially improved policy – they were instead hoping for the least-harmful bills possible, knowing the majority could pass whatever they wanted. And that’s what they did. Democrats passed exactly the bills they wanted over the objections of citizens, Republican legislators and many in law enforcement.

“The sponsor of the bills now apparently says that fixes are needed. We could not agree more. Republicans have called for a special session to address this matter and are ready to contribute to bipartisan, reasonable revisions right away. The legislation never should have passed in its current form. Democrats didn’t want substantial ‘fixes’ during the process because they felt they already knew the right answers. Now they’ve had to ask the attorney general to rescue them from a fiasco that might have been avoided if they hadn’t been in such a rush. That’s no way to make good policy.

“Public safety is a priority for Republicans. We will continue to be supportive of legislation that is balanced. But when considering policies, those with decades of policing experience must be more involved. Their expertise should be drawn upon, not dismissed. We all want members of law enforcement to be accountable and respectful to the neighborhoods they serve. But hamstringing their ability to protect the public and themselves is wrong and dangerous.”

Click here for audio version

Learn more:
Crisis in criminal justice: How dangerous Democrat policies endanger our communities | Senate Republican Caucus
Why Democrats’ police reform bills have made communities less safe | House Republican Caucus