SEATTLE – Vianna Engel was determined to hold on to her home. “If I lose my property, my elderly mother loses her home, too,” Engel this week explained to a staff member at the Attorney General’s Office. Her mom’s single-wide mobile home sits on Engel’s property in Rochester. “She took care of me and I’m not going to let this happen to her.”

SEATTLE – On May 7, Backpage.com attorney Liz MacDougall wrote in the Seattle Times that the online marketplace, which charges a dollar and up for prostitution ads, is “an ally in the fight against human trafficking.” On Monday, Backpage attorneys filed a lawsuit against the state of Washington over a first-of-its-kind law that encourages ID checks before prostitution ads are placed online.

Consumers should think twice before giving these companies a “second chance”

SEATTLE – Guess who is back in town?  It’s the door-to-door magazine sellers from out of state who appear on doorsteps claiming outrageously priced subscriptions will help fund “second chance” opportunities for inner city youth.  The Washington Attorney General’s Office has issued warnings about such visitors before, and is again alerting consumers to beware of these solicitors and think twice before buying their magazines.

OLYMPIA – The Washington State Supreme Court today rejected a lawsuit claiming that Initiative 1183, which privatized state liquor sales, violated the state Constitution’s requirement that proposed laws only address a single subject. The Court also rejected a claim that the description of the new law on voters’ ballots was misleading.

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Attorney General’s Office will continue to defend against a lawsuit challenging the state’s voter-approved law requiring a supermajority vote by legislators to raise taxes, and voter approval of tax increases that exceed the state spending limit.  King County Superior Court Judge Bruce Heller today ruled that Initiative1053, approved by the voters in 2010, is unconstitutional. The court held that the supermajority and voter approval provisions restrict the Legislature’s constitutional authority to raise taxes. 

OLYMPIA…King County Superior Court Judge Sharon Armstrong today issued a ruling in favor of the Attorney General’s Office in Mackey v. McKenna, a case brought by a group who urged the court to force Attorney General Rob McKenna to file amended briefings in the US Supreme Court six weeks after oral arguments and other briefs were filed in the case.

OLYMPIA – The Washington State Attorney General’s Office today charged Dennis Merle Huston of Pasco, Wash., with the theft of $1.7 million from Franklin County. The former Franklin County Public Works director for administration and accounting is accused of Theft in the First Degree, Money Laundering and Violation of the Uniformed Controlled Substances Act - Possession of Cocaine.

State Attorney General warns borrowers to avoid mortgage-related scams

BREMERTON –  Al Davis has never piled up credit card bills, avoids lines of credit  or even car loans. “I’ve always liked to save for what I want,” Davis this week told a staff member at the Attorney General’s Office.

Seattle-based company accused of unfair and deceptive practices will pay restitution

SEATTLE – Over the last seven years, more than 500 complaints flowed into the Washington State Attorney General’s Office and the Better Business Bureau regarding Seattle-based digital media provider RealNetworks, Inc. Consumers spoke of “odd charges” appearing on their credit cards, complaining of bills for monthly subscriptions for premium television, sports or game content that they never ordered.

SEATTLE – The state Attorneys General investigating Backpage.com’s adult services advertisements have rejected a demand by Backpage.com that the attorneys general stop asking for the site’s adult services sections to be taken down.

In a recent letter, Backpage.com’s general counsel, Liz McDougall indicated that the company would not agree to further conversations with attorneys general unless officials agreed in advance that they would not call for the elimination of adult ads on the site.