August 2020

King County Sheriff's Internal Investigation's Unit shares data from last five years
New dashboard published in the interest of transparency; Trend shows uptick in allegations of misconduct

The King County Sheriff's office has published data from their own Internal Investigations Unit (IIU) online with data from the past five years.

The trends have shown an uptick in complaints and allegations since 2017 when there were 415 to 2019 when they reached 729 per year. 2014 Of the 3,838 misconduct complaints and 4.567 allegations (complaints can contain multiple allegations) investigated by the IIU there were 586 made regarding courtesy (or presumably lack thereof) as the leading category. More concerning were the 555 Serious Misconduct allegations and the 442 Excessive/Unnecessary Use of Force allegations made. Other violations reached 518 with Misconduct at 480, Conduct Unbecoming at 252, Use of Authority at 248, Obedience to Laws/Orders at 228 and Investigation of Misconduct at 163, 21 were given training, and

Category

Joyce Jeanette Wiseman

Joyce Jeanette Wiseman was born in Madison, South Dakota on July 28, 1930, to parents Orville and Mary Johnson.  Joyce passed away peacefully on August 5, 2020 at Aegis Living in West Seattle.

 

Joyce graduated from Madison High School, where she met her sweetheart and future husband Austin (Cal) Wiseman. Cal and Joyce married May 23, 1950 in Madison, South Dakota. 

 

Marilynn Joyce Masion

 

Marilynn Joyce Masion, 86, of Seattle passed away on August 2, 2020. She lived for over 40 years in her family's homestead on Mirror Lake in Federal Way. Marilynn was a proud graduate of West Seattle High School Class of 1951, Rah! Rah!

Marilynn was married to Paul Masion for 22 years. She was a Senior Development Coordinator for Soos Creek Water and Sewer and retired after 28 years in December 1999.   

Ruth E. DeWitt

Ruth E. DeWitt, 88, a former West Virginian, passed away on August 7, 2020.  She moved to Burien in 1976.  She is survived by 4 children, Pamela L. Hagedorn of Kansas City, Mo, Stanley M. Davis of Morgantown, WV, Kevin T. Davis and David R. Davis of Seattle, WA.  Other survivors include 5 grandchildren, 1 great grandson, several nieces and nephews and her husband Earl T. DeWitt and his two children.

 

Summer lightning flashes Seattle

At the end of the hottest day of the year in Seattle, when temperatures reached the mid 90's, the clouds rolled in and grew dark.

It was the perfect setup for a summer lightning event and photographers from across the city lined up with their tripods to try and catch one of the elusive bolts. 

Kimberly Robinson was stationed near Duwamish Head on the Harbor Ave. SW side and was keeping a careful eye on the encroaching storm The wait proved worth it as she managed to capture a cloud to ground strike (one of the seven types of lightning) that found ground near the iconic Space Needle.

Category

A Hundred Years of Women Voting

By Jean Godden

Just 100 years ago this week, women across the nation were registering to vote. It had taken an incredible 72-year-long crusade culminating in passage of the 19th Amendment on Aug. 18, 1920, but women were finally able to participate in public life. Or -- sad to say -- white women had that opportunity. Native women and many African American women still had to fight to exercise the franchise and, alas, would do so for many years.

The hope of those who fought so hard for the vote -- the many who did not live to see victory a -- was that women's votes would make a major difference in this nation. The suffragists thought women would work to improve the lives of this nation's people. They believed that we could expect better health care, more educational opportunities and a higher standard of living. They thought corrupt politics and politicians would no longer dominate public life.

Category

LETTER: Dragon Days book out again now in ebook format with new chapters; The story of Miss Bardahl

To the editor:

I’m a local author and self-publisher who was featured in a 11/28/2012 News Tribune story about Ballard’s own Miss Bardahl, 1960s champion hydroplane.

Your article highlighted my book “Dragon Days.” Last week Amazon released the new 2020 edition of it. Your readers would be interested to know the book:

-           Has new chapters, bringing the Bardahl saga current to today

-          Includes 293 additional photos

-          Is now in ebook format

-          The original edition won the Outstanding Contribution Award in 2013 from H1 Unlimited, hydroplane racing’s governing body.

 

Jon Osterberg

Category

LETTER: Try online learning

To the editor:

I’m the type of student that goes after a challenge.

School is something I take seriously, and I believe education should be an area where we push students to excel. Unfortunately, I didn’t receive that push and drive at my previous brick-and-mortar school. I had a goal of attending college but felt that none of my classes were helping me reach that goal. Then I found online school.

After enrolling at Insight School of Washington (ISWA) I could choose more rigorous classes and not have about the distractions and social pressures of high school. I learned to have discipline and structure in my day so I could finish my classes and achieve my goals. I never felt alone as there was plenty of support available through counseling and academic tutoring.

Category