Mercer Island School District faces $13.4M sex abuse claim School leaders received numerous reports that former high school English teacher Curtis Johnston was “dating” a student but failed to intervene, complaint says

School leaders received numerous reports that former high school English teacher Curtis Johnston was “dating” a student but failed to intervene, complaint says www.investigatewest.org/former-stude...

Idaho lawmakers move to close gap in prison sex abuse law The proposal would expand the definition of illegal sexual contact between prison staff and an inmate to include kissing, groping

Former prosecutors say Idaho’s narrow definition of illegal sexual contact between prison staff and inmates is partly why accountability for guards accused of sexual abuse — even when a guard seemingly confesses to it — remains rare.
www.investigatewest.org/idaho-lawmak...

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Washington jail oversight bill dies in Legislature Washington is one of 12 states without enforceable state standards or oversight — that won’t change in 2026

The bill died after it was amended to remove any mandatory inspection requirements. It faced opposition from law enforcement groups and city and county officials. www.investigatewest.org/bill-to-esta...

Join us and @investigatewest.bsky.social on March 12 to learn how to find police employment and misconduct data in Idaho, Oregon and Washington — and how to use it in real accountability reporting. Register here: us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

Washington teachers who lost their license for misconduct A searchable teacher misconduct database compiled by InvestigateWest fills gaps in the state’s public-facing records

A Washington state database tracks teachers that have faced discipline for alleged misconduct, but doesn't say why educators lost their license. So we made a database filling in some of those blanks: www.investigatewest.org/these-washin...

Idaho won’t let public see if a cop was fired or resigned State agencies will no longer release information about whether an officer retired, resigned or was fired

Less than four months after @investigatewest.bsky.social used public records to expose alleged sexual misconduct by dozens of Idaho prison guards, state agencies will now conceal information about officers’ employment histories.

Idaho won’t let public see if a cop was fired or resigned State agencies will no longer release information about whether an officer retired, resigned or was fired

NEW: After @investigatewest.bsky.social used records from the IDOC & POST Council to report on sexual abuse in Idaho prisons, and @invisible.institute published police employment history data in the state, authorities are now changing policies to conceal both sources of information from the public.

Idaho won’t let public see if a cop was fired or resigned State agencies will no longer release information about whether an officer retired, resigned or was fired

Idaho’s prison system will no longer release information about whether an officer retired, resigned or was fired. It comes after we used those records to expose alleged sexual misconduct by dozens of prison guards. w/ the @invisible.institute - www.investigatewest.org/idaho-record...

WA teacher sexual misconduct cases shielded from public An InvestigateWest analysis of the state’s educator misconduct database shows gaps allowing teachers to escape scrutiny

157 teachers, or nearly 45% of all teachers who appear in the database since 2015, voluntarily surrendered their licenses, shielding their files — and misconduct — from public view.
https://ow.ly/K8M450YgJlo

WA fed judges say immigrants detained without due process In 2025, Washington federal courts granted petitions challenging detention more than half the time

Federal judges in Washington ruled that the government violated immigrants’ due process rights in more than half of cases so far. But the rulings have not deterred the Department of Homeland Security from spending millions on detention beds and attorneys.
https://ow.ly/nKtE50YgJhf

WA jail sued over deaths of 2 Colville tribal citizens Critics say WA jails are letting opioid users suffer from withdrawals, leading to preventable deaths

Two Colville citizens, both moms, died in jail awaiting trial after complaining of opioid withdrawal symptoms. Their families say the Okanogan County jail repeatedly failed to provide appropriate care for opioid withdrawal and suicide prevention.
https://ow.ly/9n7X50Ye6sb

Birth workers spot ways to close Oregon maternal health gaps Advocates say boosting insurance pay would help expand programs for vulnerable pregnant people

Birth workers said they see missed opportunities in the healthcare system to get pregnant people connected to substance use treatment and other support that can help them have healthier births
www.investigatewest.org/birth-worker...

WA jail sued over deaths of 2 Colville tribal citizens Critics say WA jails are letting opioid users suffer from withdrawals, leading to preventable deaths

“There continues to be barriers for people with opioid use disorder to receive the care that they want and should get.” — Mandy Owens, Addictions, Drug & Alcohol Institute at UW. Part of UW Psychiatry and @uwmedicine.bsky.social @investigatewest.bsky.social reports on opioid treatment in WA jails.

WA teacher sexual misconduct cases shielded from public An InvestigateWest analysis of the state’s educator misconduct database shows gaps allowing teachers to escape scrutiny

We analyzed a decade's worth of cases from a Washington teacher misconduct database and found 46% involved sexual misconduct.But the records available in a public-facing database are limited, and shroud details of some of the most troubling cases. www.investigatewest.org/wa-agency-di...

Oregon town to test river for wood treatment chemical Stella-Jones, a wood treater fined $1 million by state regulators, is appealing the penalty

An Oregon town is stepping up testing of the river that supplies some of its drinking water after concerns about a local wood treater's releases of stormwater tainted with toxic preservatives.
https://ow.ly/SNsC50Ye1HF

For my latest story I reviewed over 100 cases where immigrants challenged their ICE detention in federal court in Washington. In most of those cases, judges determined ICE was holding people illegally.

Washington could limit access to license plate reader data As lawmakers debate how to rein in these cameras, sheriffs, civil rights groups and transparency advocates are clashing over how much access is too much

License plate images are hypothetically in everybody’s hands after a WA judge ruled they are a public record - raising debate among transparency advocates, sheriffs and civil rights groups about how much access is too much
https://ow.ly/nWBP50Ye18u

WA fed judges say immigrants detained without due process In 2025, Washington federal courts granted petitions challenging detention more than half the time

Immigrants are increasingly turning to federal district courts to challenge their detentions. In 2025, Washington federal judges ruled that the government violated immigrants’ due process rights in more than half of cases so far.
www.investigatewest.org/rulings-foun...

WA jail sued over deaths of 2 Colville tribal citizens Critics say WA jails are letting opioid users suffer from withdrawals, leading to preventable deaths

The deaths of the two women expose repeated failures by the Okanogan County jail to provide appropriate care for opioid withdrawal and suicide prevention. www.investigatewest.org/two-colville...

WA jail sued over deaths of 2 Colville tribal citizens Critics say WA jails are letting opioid users suffer from withdrawals, leading to preventable deaths

NEW: Two Colville women were booked into a rural Washington jail. It became a death sentence.

www.investigatewest.org/two-colville...

Lawsuit filed over 2024 BIA killing of unarmed Paiute man The lawsuit claims Bureau of Indian Affairs officers lacked jurisdiction when they pursued, killed Cody Whiterock

The lawsuit accuses two unnamed BIA police officers of chasing Cody Whiterock outside of their jurisdiction and shooting him multiple times in the face, back and chest. The officers “falsified or withheld evidence to escape accountability,” the lawsuit says.
www.investigatewest.org/federal-laws...

Two Idaho guards avoid charges for alleged inmate sex abuse Investigative files reveal allegations from several women that weren’t enough for criminal consequences

Idaho's prison system investigated two prison guards accused of sexually assaulting multiple women behind bars. There were victim and witness accounts. One guard was decertified and another investigated by police. But neither faced criminal prosecution. www.investigatewest.org/two-idaho-pr...

Complaint alleges WA Rep. Simmons misused campaign funds It’s the third ethics complaint filed against her in recent months

A local group of Democrats has filed an ethics complaint against WA state Rep. Tarra Simmons regarding a $30,000 donation from surplus campaign funds she made to a nonprofit linked to a Nevada lawmaker. www.investigatewest.org/complaint-ag...

Oregon town to test river for wood treatment chemical Stella-Jones, a wood treater fined $1 million by state regulators, is appealing the penalty

A northwest Oregon town is stepping up testing of the river that supplies some of its drinking water, prompted by our reporting that a wood treater released contaminated stormwater into the waterway while regulators kept it quiet.
www.investigatewest.org/oregon-town-...

Washington could limit access to license plate reader data As lawmakers debate how to rein in these cameras, sheriffs, civil rights groups and transparency advocates are clashing over how much access is too much

Images from license plate readers are hypothetically in *everybody’s* hands after a Washington judge ruled these images are a public record. That's raised concerns about bad actors - and how regulations should balance privacy and transparency.
www.investigatewest.org/washington-s...

WA crime victim orgs urge state to fix funding crisis Nonprofits say temporary state dollars haven’t been enough to stave off cuts to sexual abuse and domestic violence programs

Washington's federal Victims of Crime Act award fell 76% between 2018 and 2024. Groups serving domestic violence and sexual abuse survivor say they need a long term state funding solution to avoid a collapse in the ecosystem of services. www.investigatewest.org/wa-crime-vic...

Trump overhaul to homeless services grants on pause The federal housing agency said it will implement changes to the Continuum of Care program if the injunction is “no longer in effect”

HUD told providers in Oregon and other states that it will reinstate previous grant applications for the Continuum of Care program, but could move forward with its overhaul if a federal injunction is “no longer in effect.” www.investigatewest.org/hud-says-hom...

More than 1,700 pages of public records and interviews with former workers reveal how SpaceX's Redmond site didn't take action to protect workers potentially exposed to dangerous chemicals for more than a year until the state got involved. www.investigatewest.org/a-starlink-l...

InvestigateWest secures $250,000 gift as the newsroom expands across the Northwest With local journalism under threat and fewer newsrooms left to hold power to account, Seattle philanthropists Lisa Mennet and Paul Joseph Brown have renewed their $250,000 commitment to InvestigateWes...

Seattle philanthropists Lisa Mennet and Paul Joseph Brown have renewed their $250,000 commitment to InvestigateWest, which will support our continued growth across Washington, Oregon and Idaho. www.investigatewest.org/investigatew...