Announcement

Port Angeles School District Fired Secretary Without Just Cause, Delayed Union Records, Rulings Find

The Port Angeles School District released seven arbitration decisions to The Olympic Herald, in response to a public-records request. One ruling ordered reinstatement and back pay for a Stevens Middle School secretary fired after more than nine years without prior discipline. The district had failed to prove misconduct. Two other decisions found that it violated labor contracts by delaying records unions needed to represent…

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Latest Articles

Courts & Law   -   Oct 13, 2026 Judge Basden Stayed on Custody Case While His LDS Council Discussed the Family, Colleague Says
Judge Basden Stayed on Custody Case While His LDS Council Discussed the Family, Colleague Says

Clallam County Superior Court Judge Brent Basden served on an LDS church council that discussed a family while he presided over its custody case, according to a fellow council member who said participants excluded him from those conversations “knowing it would be a conflict of interest.” Brittney Hales described the

Education   -   Oct 13, 2026 QVSD Board Meets Tonight With No Retraction Vote on Agenda
QVSD Board Meets Tonight With No Retraction Vote on Agenda

The Quillayute Valley School Board meets tonight at 5:30 pm, with no item on its published agenda calling for a vote on residents’ requests to retract the district’s statement about the Kari Larson lawsuit. As The Olympic Herald previously reported, the district’s August 25 statement emphasized findings

Education   -   Oct 13, 2026 Audit Finds Closed Why Not You Academy Lacks Funds to Repay $3.8 Million in Debt
Audit Finds Closed Why Not You Academy Lacks Funds to Repay $3.8 Million in Debt

Why Not You Academy, a Des Moines public charter school that closed in June, lacks sufficient cash reserves and future funding to repay about $3.8 million in debt due by June 2027, according to a new state audit. The Washington State Auditor’s Office found that the school did

Criminal Justice   -   Oct 13, 2026 Appeals Court Upholds Gun Conviction in SeaTac Case, Rejects Second Amendment Challenge
Appeals Court Upholds Gun Conviction in SeaTac Case, Rejects Second Amendment Challenge

The Washington Court of Appeals on October 12 upheld Jose Mario Nash Jr.’s firearm conviction and sentence in a SeaTac case, rejecting his argument that a prior conviction for a nonviolent drug offense could not constitutionally bar him from possessing a gun. The unanimous Division I decision also rejected

Courts & Law   -   Oct 13, 2026 Appeals Court Rejects Wage Liens That Failed to Name Workers
Appeals Court Rejects Wage Liens That Failed to Name Workers

Washington’s Court of Appeals ruled October 12 that wage liens against two apartment properties were invalid because the filings did not identify the security guards whose work supported the claims. The published ruling also held that class-action representatives may record wage liens for class members with valid lien

Education   -   Oct 12, 2026 Port Angeles School Board Approves Lead Plan After Elevated Levels Found at Three Schools
Port Angeles School Board Approves Lead Plan After Elevated Levels Found at Three Schools

The Port Angeles School Board approved a water remediation plan Thursday after testing found elevated lead levels at nine outlets across three schools. Follow-up testing left two fixtures at Port Angeles High School above the state’s action level, with one permanently shut off and the other restricted from

Public Health   -   Oct 12, 2026 Issaquah Psychologist Suspended Over Patient Boundary Violations and Drug Misconduct
Issaquah Psychologist Suspended Over Patient Boundary Violations and Drug Misconduct

Washington’s Examining Board of Psychology has suspended Issaquah psychologist Leafar Espinoza’s license after finding unprofessional conduct involving physical contact with patients, personal gifts and instructions for taking an unprescribed controlled medication. An agreed order signed by the board in September bars Espinoza from seeking reinstatement for at least

Education   -   Oct 12, 2026 Taholah School District Could Not Locate 16 of 21 Assets Checked by State Auditors
Taholah School District Could Not Locate 16 of 21 Assets Checked by State Auditors

Taholah School District could not locate 16 of 21 assets selected for testing by state auditors and could not show that purchases totaling $238,755 were included in its inventory, according to a Washington State Auditor’s Office report. The accountability audit found inadequate controls for tracking and safeguarding district

Courts & Law   -   Oct 12, 2026 Governor Ferguson Appoints Haley Wolcott Sebens to New Skagit County Superior Court Seat
Governor Ferguson Appoints Haley Wolcott Sebens to New Skagit County Superior Court Seat

Governor Bob Ferguson has appointed Haley Wolcott Sebens to a newly created Skagit County Superior Court judgeship, the court’s first additional seat since 2006. The appointment takes effect January 1, 2027. Legislation enacted this year expanded the court from four judges to five. Sebens has served as a Skagit

From the Newsroom   -   Oct 10, 2026 Silver Alert Issued for Fred Anderson, 82, Last Seen in Sequim Area
Silver Alert Issued for Fred Anderson, 82, Last Seen in Sequim Area

Update (Oct 10 10:43 PM): Fred Anderson has been found safe in Yelm, Washington. The Washington State Patrol issued a Silver Alert for Fred Anderson, 82, who was last seen at about 8 a.m. Saturday, October 10, in the Sequim area. The alert was activated on behalf of

Education   -   Oct 09, 2026 Former White Pass Superintendent and Archbishop Murphy Teacher Lose Certificates After Sex Crime Convictions
Former White Pass Superintendent and Archbishop Murphy Teacher Lose Certificates After Sex Crime Convictions

Washington education officials have permanently revoked the certificates of former White Pass School District Superintendent Greggery Teel and former Archbishop Murphy High School teacher John Doty following their convictions in separate cases involving child sexual abuse material. The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, or OSPI, revoked Teel’s certificate

Criminal Justice   -   Oct 09, 2026 Appeals Court Rules for Grant County in Fatal Jail Overdose Lawsuit
Appeals Court Rules for Grant County in Fatal Jail Overdose Lawsuit

The Washington Court of Appeals on Thursday directed a trial court to enter judgment in favor of Grant County in a lawsuit over a man’s fatal jail overdose, ruling that his felony possession of heroin barred the claims under the state law that applied when he died. The published

Courts & Law   -   Oct 08, 2026 State Supreme Court Rejects Parents’ Privacy Claim Over Seattle Children’s Website Tracking
State Supreme Court Rejects Parents’ Privacy Claim Over Seattle Children’s Website Tracking

The Washington Supreme Court on Thursday upheld dismissal of a privacy-act claim brought by parents who alleged Seattle Children’s Hospital shared their website searches with Meta without their consent. The parents said they used the hospital’s website to research their children’s health and find care, and

Criminal Justice   -   Oct 07, 2026 WDFW Seeks Tips After Elk Poaching, Antler Removal in Cowlitz County
WDFW Seeks Tips After Elk Poaching, Antler Removal in Cowlitz County

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Police are asking for the public’s help investigating an elk poaching near Highway 504 in Cowlitz County after officers found that someone had also cut off the animal’s antlers. The poaching occurred Saturday, October 3, or Sunday, October 4, near milepost 39,

Criminal Justice   -   Oct 07, 2026 Former Wenatchee LDS Stake President Sentenced to Four Years for Embezzling Clinic Funds
Former Wenatchee LDS Stake President Sentenced to Four Years for Embezzling Clinic Funds

A former Wenatchee health care executive and LDS stake president has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for embezzling funds from Community Clinic Network, or CCN. The scheme cost the company, which managed money for Washington health clinics, more than $24 million. U.S. District Judge Thomas O.

Criminal Justice   -   Oct 07, 2026 Port Angeles Man Pleads Not Guilty to Gun and Drug Charges After Elwha Casino Arrest
Port Angeles Man Pleads Not Guilty to Gun and Drug Charges After Elwha Casino Arrest

A Port Angeles man has pleaded not guilty to firearm and drug charges after authorities alleged he left a jacket containing a loaded handgun and suspected methamphetamine at a slot machine inside the Elwha Casino. Timothy Allen Williams, 44, entered the pleas October 2 before Clallam County Superior Court Judge

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