By CHRIS DANIELS / KING 5 News
OLYMPIA, Wash. - Thurston County Sheriff's deputies have sent blood and fingerprint samples to the state crime lab in their quest to find suspects in an early Friday morning riot at Evergreen State College in Olympia.
Roughly 200 people were involved in the melee on the campus following a rap concert in the school gym. Sheriff's deputies made no arrests in the riot, but they want to hold someone accountable.
Authorities claim this was far more serious than first reported, that concert goers tried to grab guns from deputy holsters, pelted them with rocks and caused a fair amount of destruction at the campus.
Video captured by The Olympian newspaper shows the wild scene just before 2 a.m. SWAT teams stormed the Evergreen State College campus after a mob overturned a deputy's cruiser.
Alvina Wong was at the Dead Prez concert inside the school gym and watched as an Evergreen campus officer broke up a fight and tried to arrest one of the participants, which sparked a mob mentality.
"The crowd just kept getting bigger and bigger," said Wong. "The band did kind of egg it on and questioned why he was being detained."
"From what I understand the band was encouraging people to take care of the situation to stop the person from making the arrest," said Trooper Brandy Kessler, Washington State Patrol.
A group of concertgoers surrounded the officer, causing her to call for backup. When Thurston County Sheriff's deputies arrived, they say they found a group of 200 people, some throwing rocks, garbage cans and bent on destruction.
"The gang just went at the car and tore it up," said Wong.
A sheriff's deputy's car got tagged, its windows smashed, and was flipped over. Vandals tagged two college buildings. Three other cop cars also suffered minor damage.
A SWAT team tear gassed the group and the mob left the area. The college believes the group was not made up entirely of evergreen students.
"The crowed for this event came from all over the entire region," said Jason Wettstein, Evergreen State College. "The original person who started the fight wasn't even an Evergreen student."
One student said the rap act Dead Prez did not encourage the crowd.
The one police cruiser is a complete loss. It was also looted. A police laptop and radar gun were missing, but no one was seriously injured and no weapons were taken.
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Friday, February 15, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Recent Washington Court Decisions
State v. Lilyblad: The Washington Supreme Court held that under RCW 9.61.230, the telephone harassment statute, an intent to harass must be formed prior to the initiation of the telephone call for a guilty finding to ensue. The decision may be viewed at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/791147.opn.pdf
State v. Quinliven: The Division Three Court of Appeals affirmed that a vehicle may not be searched pursuant to the search incident to arrest exception to the warrant requirement when the suspect has, prior to the arrest, exited his vehicle and locked the car. Immediately after the stop in this case, Mr. Quinliven exited his vehicle, locked it, and sat on the curb, refusing to give the deputy the keys to the vehicle. His subsequent conviction for possession of methamphetamine was overturned when the court found that this action barred Mr. Quinliven from having access to the passenger compartment of his vehicle and negated the need for a search of the truck incident to arrest. The decision may be viewed at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/257967.opn.doc.pdf
State v. Dow: The Division Two Court of Appeals upheld, albeit with some reservations, the constitutionality of RCW 10.58.035, allowing a defendant's trustworthy statement to be admitted as substantive evidence when the alleged victim of a crime has died or is incompetent to testify at trial. The decision may be viewed at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/34802-1.08.doc.pdf
State v. Bello/Lopez: The Division One Court of Appeals upheld a search incident to arrest of a CD case within a vehicle that had been in the immediate reach of the passenger prior to his arrest when the driver made no assertion that the case belonged to him, not the passenger, prior to the search. The decision may be viewed at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/58463-4.pub.doc.pdf
State v. Quinliven: The Division Three Court of Appeals affirmed that a vehicle may not be searched pursuant to the search incident to arrest exception to the warrant requirement when the suspect has, prior to the arrest, exited his vehicle and locked the car. Immediately after the stop in this case, Mr. Quinliven exited his vehicle, locked it, and sat on the curb, refusing to give the deputy the keys to the vehicle. His subsequent conviction for possession of methamphetamine was overturned when the court found that this action barred Mr. Quinliven from having access to the passenger compartment of his vehicle and negated the need for a search of the truck incident to arrest. The decision may be viewed at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/257967.opn.doc.pdf
State v. Dow: The Division Two Court of Appeals upheld, albeit with some reservations, the constitutionality of RCW 10.58.035, allowing a defendant's trustworthy statement to be admitted as substantive evidence when the alleged victim of a crime has died or is incompetent to testify at trial. The decision may be viewed at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/34802-1.08.doc.pdf
State v. Bello/Lopez: The Division One Court of Appeals upheld a search incident to arrest of a CD case within a vehicle that had been in the immediate reach of the passenger prior to his arrest when the driver made no assertion that the case belonged to him, not the passenger, prior to the search. The decision may be viewed at: http://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/58463-4.pub.doc.pdf
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Man sent to detox after showing up drunk at DUI hearing
By Peyton Whitely
Seattle Times Eastside bureau
A Woodinville man who went to court in Redmond to face a drunken-driving charge Monday showed up drunk at the hearing and ended up at a detox center instead.
King County District Court Judge Linda Jacke ordered Joseph T. Longfellow, 35, to take an alcohol breath test after his attorney informed her that Longfellow appeared to be intoxicated.
Longfellow recorded a 0.32 in a portable breath test at the courthouse — four times the state level for intoxication of 0.08, court filings note.
Jacke ordered Longfellow taken into custody, but jail guards refused to accept him after paramedics said he needed to be taken to a detox center to prevent possible alcohol poisoning.
The hearing was continued to Feb. 27 at the East Division of King County District Court in Redmond.
Longfellow was arrested Dec. 2 on Highway 202 near Sahalee Way east of Redmond after being involved in an accident in a construction zone, said Trooper Jeff Merrill, Washington State Patrol public-information officer.
He refused to submit to a Breathalyzer test, was charged with driving under the influence on Dec. 5, and pleaded not guilty.
Longfellow had pleaded guilty to another DUI case in Cascade District Court in Arlington, Snohomish County, in April 2003 and was sentenced to probation and a $1,915 fine. A check to pay the fine bounced in November 2003 and five years of court maneuvers followed.
Longfellow was supposed to appear in Cascade District Court in connection with that case on Tuesday, but he failed to show up and a $5,040 bench warrant was issued for his arrest.
Longfellow's attorney, Gregory Fullington, says his client was taken to Harborview Medical Center on Monday and has since been discharged.
"He's getting into treatment," he said. "He knows he has a drinking problem."
Peyton Whitely: 206-464-2259 or pwhitely@seattletimes.com
Seattle Times Eastside bureau
A Woodinville man who went to court in Redmond to face a drunken-driving charge Monday showed up drunk at the hearing and ended up at a detox center instead.
King County District Court Judge Linda Jacke ordered Joseph T. Longfellow, 35, to take an alcohol breath test after his attorney informed her that Longfellow appeared to be intoxicated.
Longfellow recorded a 0.32 in a portable breath test at the courthouse — four times the state level for intoxication of 0.08, court filings note.
Jacke ordered Longfellow taken into custody, but jail guards refused to accept him after paramedics said he needed to be taken to a detox center to prevent possible alcohol poisoning.
The hearing was continued to Feb. 27 at the East Division of King County District Court in Redmond.
Longfellow was arrested Dec. 2 on Highway 202 near Sahalee Way east of Redmond after being involved in an accident in a construction zone, said Trooper Jeff Merrill, Washington State Patrol public-information officer.
He refused to submit to a Breathalyzer test, was charged with driving under the influence on Dec. 5, and pleaded not guilty.
Longfellow had pleaded guilty to another DUI case in Cascade District Court in Arlington, Snohomish County, in April 2003 and was sentenced to probation and a $1,915 fine. A check to pay the fine bounced in November 2003 and five years of court maneuvers followed.
Longfellow was supposed to appear in Cascade District Court in connection with that case on Tuesday, but he failed to show up and a $5,040 bench warrant was issued for his arrest.
Longfellow's attorney, Gregory Fullington, says his client was taken to Harborview Medical Center on Monday and has since been discharged.
"He's getting into treatment," he said. "He knows he has a drinking problem."
Peyton Whitely: 206-464-2259 or pwhitely@seattletimes.com
Monday, February 11, 2008
WA bill requires yellow license plate for DUI drivers
By BERNARD CHOI / KING 5 News
SEATTLE – Drunk drivers in Washington state could soon have their own Scarlet Letter in the form of a fluorescent yellow license plate.
More than year after a drunk driver killed her niece, Jeri Mallory is still haunted by the memories.
"The thing I remember most was I don't remember when I told her I love you last and that just broke my heart," said Mallory.
She says what's worse is that drunk drivers keep getting behind the wheel.
"It's just unconscionable to me that they would do that," said Mallory.
Republican state senator Mike Carrell wants to target the conscience of would-be drunk drivers. He is sponsoring a bill that would require a person convicted of DUI to drive a vehicle with front and rear fluorescent yellow license plates.
Ohio started requiring the same thing four years ago.
"I believe shame will keep people from doing it. Looking at somebody who is driving around with a fluorescent yellow license plate should be a good reason for others to decide 'I don't want to have my neighbors knowing that I'm a drunk,'" said Carrell.
Under the proposal, if you're a convicted DUI offender and you're caught driving without the special license plate, you could be slapped with a misdemeanor.
But Mothers Against Drunk Driving says it's not in favor of the idea because there's no scientific data showing the special plates reduce drunk driving. Plus, innocent family members would have to ride in the car would bare the shame.
"I think sometimes shaming people is not the right thing to do," said Mallory.
Still, at Monday's senate committee hearing, Sen. Carrell said sometimes a little shame goes a long way.
"Giving the public knowledge of who might be out on the roads with them that might be potentially dangerous is a benefit to the public," said Carrell.
If the bill passes, DUI drivers would have to drive with the special plates for one year. There would be an exemption when driving work vehicles.
It would go effect January 1, 2009.
SEATTLE – Drunk drivers in Washington state could soon have their own Scarlet Letter in the form of a fluorescent yellow license plate.
More than year after a drunk driver killed her niece, Jeri Mallory is still haunted by the memories.
"The thing I remember most was I don't remember when I told her I love you last and that just broke my heart," said Mallory.
She says what's worse is that drunk drivers keep getting behind the wheel.
"It's just unconscionable to me that they would do that," said Mallory.
Republican state senator Mike Carrell wants to target the conscience of would-be drunk drivers. He is sponsoring a bill that would require a person convicted of DUI to drive a vehicle with front and rear fluorescent yellow license plates.
Ohio started requiring the same thing four years ago.
"I believe shame will keep people from doing it. Looking at somebody who is driving around with a fluorescent yellow license plate should be a good reason for others to decide 'I don't want to have my neighbors knowing that I'm a drunk,'" said Carrell.
Under the proposal, if you're a convicted DUI offender and you're caught driving without the special license plate, you could be slapped with a misdemeanor.
But Mothers Against Drunk Driving says it's not in favor of the idea because there's no scientific data showing the special plates reduce drunk driving. Plus, innocent family members would have to ride in the car would bare the shame.
"I think sometimes shaming people is not the right thing to do," said Mallory.
Still, at Monday's senate committee hearing, Sen. Carrell said sometimes a little shame goes a long way.
"Giving the public knowledge of who might be out on the roads with them that might be potentially dangerous is a benefit to the public," said Carrell.
If the bill passes, DUI drivers would have to drive with the special plates for one year. There would be an exemption when driving work vehicles.
It would go effect January 1, 2009.
Jury chosen in UW arson case
P-I STAFF
A jury was chosen Monday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma in the case of Briana Waters, a 32-year-old mother and violin teacher accused of acting as a lookout in the May 2001 firebombing of the UW Center for Urban Horticulture.
A cell of the Earth Liberation Front/Animal Liberation Front -- characterized as ecoterrorists by the government -- conducted the bombing, under the mistaken belief that the center contained genetically modified trees.
If found guilty of using a destructive device in the arson and other felony charges, Waters -- who has no criminal history -- faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 35 years in federal prison. Opening arguments are expected Tuesday morning.
A jury was chosen Monday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma in the case of Briana Waters, a 32-year-old mother and violin teacher accused of acting as a lookout in the May 2001 firebombing of the UW Center for Urban Horticulture.
A cell of the Earth Liberation Front/Animal Liberation Front -- characterized as ecoterrorists by the government -- conducted the bombing, under the mistaken belief that the center contained genetically modified trees.
If found guilty of using a destructive device in the arson and other felony charges, Waters -- who has no criminal history -- faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 35 years in federal prison. Opening arguments are expected Tuesday morning.
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