Clallam County Superior Court Judge Simon Barnhart is enforcing a restriction I believe is unjustified and obstructs public scrutiny: the court will process my records requests in a queue, only one at a time.  I have made a total of seven requests this year, working full time as a journalist

Nine years ago, Lindy Clevenger stepped down as Superior Court administrator after 43 years with the county, having started as a clerk in 1974 and taken the top administrative job in 1997. The detail worth remembering is what the judges said about her on the way out. Then-Presiding Judge

Picture the steps of the Clallam County Courthouse this past winter. Angry citizens standing in the freezing cold, holding signs condemning a "Good Ol' Boy's Network" that ignores abuse and breaks up families.  Women dressed in the scarlet cloaks of The Handmaid’s Tale, silently

Six months ago, The Olympic Herald was launched with a single, uncompromising mission: to provide fearless, independent investigative journalism that holds power accountable. Two hundred and fifty years ago this month, Thomas Jefferson wrote the job description for every honest newspaper that would follow: “let Facts be submitted to a

On Friday, I sent a formal demand letter to Superintendent Michelle Olsen, Board President Sandy Long, and the district’s public records officer. 📄 Tomashefsky July 3 Letter Re Prr (171KB ∙ PDF file) It gives the Port Angeles School District a clear choice: start producing the censure records now, or defend

Two hundred and fifty years ago today, fifty-six men signed their names to an act of journalism. We don’t usually talk about the Declaration of Independence that way. We’ve buried it under so much marble and ceremony that it’s easy to forget what the document actually

The devastating consequences of judicial leniency are rarely abstract. Within our regional justice system, the outcomes of a judge prioritizing an offender’s comfort over a public safety are tangibly measured in bloodshed, profound violence, and irreversible tragedy. For a brief moment, an examination of the Washington Courts Odyssey Portal

When the Port Angeles School District Board of Directors gaveled out of their chaotic, protest-filled meeting on June 18, the four-member board majority likely believed they had finally solved their “Nancy Hamilton problem.” By ramming through a sweeping eight-page censure resolution and a highly restrictive new superintendent’

Over the last week, our articles exposed attempts to bypass the Public Records Act, detailed severe financial and cultural fallout in our local schools, and tracked significant federal and state legal developments. Here is a look at the journalism we produced last week and the truths we brought to light.

Earlier this year, we published a defensive, multi-page email sent by Clallam County Superior Court Judge Brent Basden to former County Commissioner Bill Peach in November 2020. 📄 Brent Basden to Commissioner (721KB ∙ PDF file) On the surface, the exchange showcased a jurist with remarkably thin skin, launching a lengthy

While Thursday night’s raucous, protest-filled meeting of the Port Angeles School District Board of Directors will likely be remembered for the unprecedented and constitutionally dubious censure of newly elected Director Nancy Hamilton, another legal landmine was quietly planted in its immediate aftermath. Moments after the 4-1 vote

Over the first half of June, our articles have ruthlessly confronted unconstitutional government overreach, exposed catastrophic leniency from the judicial bench, and documented the institutional blind spots that leave our region’s most vulnerable populations at risk. Here is a look at what we have brought to light so far

Tonight, the Port Angeles School District Board of Directors is scheduled to vote on Resolution 2526-18, a sweeping, eight-page formal censure aimed at newly elected Director Nancy Hamilton. On the surface, the board majority and Superintendent Michelle Olsen have framed the reprimand as a necessary administrative measure to

Five months ago, The Olympic Herald was launched with a single, uncompromising mission: to provide fearless, independent investigative journalism that holds power accountable. In an era where corporate media conglomerates control the narrative and routinely ignore local corruption to protect their bottom lines, we set out to follow the paper

During the month of May, the entrenched power structure of Clallam County threw everything they had at this newspaper. They deployed sprawling campaigns of paper terrorism, attempted to weaponize the civil courts, and demanded unconstitutional gag orders specifically designed to financially exhaust and legally eradicate our reporting. They failed. May

Washington State courts are designed to act as the ultimate backstop against unconstitutional overreach. When civil statutes are weaponized to silence individuals, muzzle free expression, or insulate public figures from scrutiny, it is the fundamental duty of the judiciary to recognize the threat and uphold the Constitution. In Kitsap County,

Four months ago, The Olympic Herald was launched with a single, uncompromising mission: to provide fearless, independent investigative journalism that holds power accountable. In an era where corporate media conglomerates control the narrative and routinely ignore local corruption to protect their bottom lines, we set out to follow the paper

Over the last few weeks, our investigations have uncovered systemic institutional failures, exposed deep betrayals of public trust, and successfully defeated desperate legal maneuvers designed to silence this newspaper. Here is a look at what we have brought to light so far this month. The Fight for Free Speech and

In 2019, U.S. Representative Devin Nunes filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against a satirical Twitter account pretending to be his cow. The lawsuit, widely ridiculed in the press, was a textbook example of a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, or a “SLAPP.” SLAPPs are not designed to win

March has proven to be a relentless, defining month for accountability in Washington state. Over the last thirty days, we published articles that uncovered systemic local failures, exposed deep betrayals of public trust, and, predictably, triggered desperate legal maneuvers designed to silence the press. But independent journalism does not back

March has already proven to be a relentless month for accountability in Washington State. The tradition of asking hard questions and demanding transparency is one this publication carries forward every single day. Over the last two weeks, our investigations have uncovered systemic local failures, exposed deep betrayals of public trust,