Journalist Seeks Review Over Clallam Court's Blanket Denial of Search Warrant Logs
The fight for transparency in the Clallam County Superior Court escalated this afternoon as I filed a formal Petition for Internal Review challenging the court’s aggressive refusal to release years of judicial search warrant logs.
On February 27, I submitted an administrative records request seeking the search warrant logs of two judicial officers: former Court Commissioner Brian Parker—spanning from his start date in January 2025 to his sudden termination in February 2026—and then-Commissioner Brent Basden, spanning from 2007 to 2011.
Search warrant logs are vital public records. As established by the Washington Supreme Court, they allow the public to evaluate the conduct of police and prosecutors and to ensure that issuing judicial officers are acting as neutral magistrates rather than simply rubber-stamping raids.
Yet, rather than turn over the documents, Superior Court Administrator and Public Records Officer Lacey Halberg summarily denied my request in full on April 10.
Using a familiar tactic, she declared that the records were “categorically exempt under GR 31.1 as chambers records.”
Defying state court rules, Halberg failed to provide a mandatory summary of appeals procedures, instead abruptly shutting down the request by stating: “This is the final communication you will receive in connection with this request.”
If this stonewalling sounds familiar, it should. Halberg used this exact same “blanket denial” strategy earlier this year to try and hide emails between Judge Basden and disgraced former court employee Johnny Watts.
In April, I filed an internal review and won, forcing the court to abandon its categorical exemptions.
Today, The Olympic Herald fought back again.
The formal GR 31.1 internal review that I filed this afternoon outlines how the Court Administrator’s blanket denial blatantly violates state court rules, the Washington Constitution, and the common law right of access.
The Public’s Right to Know
My petition for review raises several central arguments against the court’s latest attempt to cloak its operations in secrecy:
1. Misapplication of Rules to Decades-Old Records The PRO used GR 31.1 to withhold Judge Basden’s 2007–2011 logs. However, GR 31.1 explicitly applies only to records created on or after January 1, 2016. Access to earlier records is governed by the common law balancing test—a test that strongly favors public access to search warrant materials and strictly prohibits categorical secrecy.
2. Logs Are Institutional Court Records, Not “Chambers” Secrets The PRO’s assertion that a multi-year chronological log of all warrant activity is a personal “chambers record” defies both logic and the court’s own actions.
Following Commissioner Parker’s sudden termination by Presiding Judge Simon Barnhart this past February, the court couldn’t locate his search warrant log.
Clallam County Human Resources Director Bonnie Dennler had to formally demand that Parker return the document to the courthouse.
An institution does not demand the return of a departed officer’s personal, private papers; it demands the return of its own official records.
You cannot claim a document is a strictly guarded “chambers record” when HR literally has to claw it back from a fired employee.
3. Procedural Violations GR 31.1 unambiguously requires that every response to a records request include a written summary of the procedures for further review.
The PRO ignored this mandate, instead attempting to shut down the inquiry entirely by falsely presenting her denial as the final word.
Next Steps for Accountability
Under GR 31.1 (d)(3), the reviewing court is legally obligated to complete this internal review within five business days. In an email sent this afternoon to PRO Halberg and Presiding Judge Simon Barnhart, I formally reminded the court of this statutory deadline.
The administration is legally bound to process these requests with transparency, not categorical roadblocks.
The Olympic Herald will continue to monitor the court’s compliance and fight for the public’s right to know. Blank checks of authority and blanket secrecy have no place in a free society.