Local government can regulate marijuana businesses

Attorney General’s Office presented arguments to defend I-502, upheld will of the voters

TACOMA — The Attorney General’s Office today presented arguments in MMH, LLC v. Fife in Pierce County Superior Court before Judge Culpepper. Solicitor General Noah Purcell gave oral arguments on behalf of the Attorney General’s Office. 

SPOKANE — A Spokane County jury has decided repeat sex offender Scott Halvorson must be confined in the state’s Special Commitment Center on McNeil Island (charging documents).  In the interest of public safety, prosecutors from Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) Unit have been fighting since 2012 to prevent Halvorson’s release into the community.

Inslee, Ferguson work with Department of Social and Health Services, healthcare organizations, hospitals and disability rights advocates on joint response

OLYMPIA— Today Attorney General Bob Ferguson, in conjunction with a broad coalition of organizations, filed a motion in the Washington State Supreme Court to address the impacts of the court’s recent decision on psychiatric boarding. The motion asks the court to delay the effect of its decision so that the state can implement Governor Jay Inslee’s plan to make sure alternative care is available.

Believes city’s federal preemption argument threatens to destroy marijuana Initiative 502

SPOKANE — At a trial beginning today, a prosecutor from the Attorney General’s Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) Unit will allege that a Spokane inmate is a sexually violent predator who poses a danger to the community and should remain confined.   

 Ferguson seeks to file amicus brief in federal case;

 Believes unaccompanied immigrant children shouldn’t be forced to represent themselves

Supreme Court decision upholds the right of the Legislature to enact and repeal pension enhancements

SEATTLE—Today the Washington Supreme Court ruled unanimously for the state in two important pension cases.

Vessel sank in Columbia River, cleanup exceeds $100K, defendant apprehended in Oregon

KENNEWICK—Attorney General Bob Ferguson yesterday secured the first derelict vessel conviction in Benton County. The defendant, Brandon Traner, will serve 20 days in jail and pay restitution for abandoning a derelict fishing trawler in the Columbia River.

Traner, owner of the M/V Forus, pleaded guilty to the two charged offenses:

• Abandoning a Derelict Vessel; and
• Discharge of Polluting Matters into State Waters.

AGO believes city’s federal preemption argument threatens to destroy marijuana Initiative 502

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Attorney General’s Office will vigorously defend I-502, the initiative legalizing marijuana, against an argument raised by the city of Fife. The city claims that the state law is invalid because it conflicts with federal law. If a court accepts that argument and it is upheld on appeal, it would mean the end of the state system for legal marijuana sales in Washington.  

Joint Release: Washington Department of Natural Resources, Washington Department of Ecology, U.S. Coast Guard, Office of the Attorney General

Out of state waters for good, AG seeks repayment by owner

OLYMPIA – The sunken 167-foot Helena Star has been raised, patched, and towed to Seattle, where it is being scrapped and recycled, announced the Washington State Departments of Natural Resources (DNR) and Ecology.