Jacob Jones

When people die in WA prisons, many don’t get an autopsy Autopsies offer the best chance at flagging whether mistreatment contributed to an incarcerated person’s death. But state officials often skip them.

Last year a state Corrections employee told me she was troubled by prison officials’ failure to request autopsies after people died in custody. I looked into it for @seattletimes-rss.bsky.social www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

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.

Firefighters Wore Gear Containing “Forever Chemicals.” The Forest Service Knew and Stayed Silent for Years. As early as 2021, government officials were alerted to the presence of potentially dangerous chemicals known as PFAS in pants used by wildland firefighters, according to emails obtained by ProPublica.

SCOOP from @abestreep.bsky.social: Firefighters Wore Gear Containing “Forever Chemicals.” The Forest Service Knew and Stayed Silent for Years.

Today, in partnership with murrowcollege.bsky.social, we are proud to announce a groundbreaking initiative to ensure that every county in Washington state has access to reliable, local journalism.

Learn more: https://www.reportforamerica.org/2026/02/04/wsu-report-for-america-partnership/

‘I Can’t Breathe.’ Police Use Restraint With Fatal Results A Bloomberg Law exclusive investigation has revealed that 41 people across the country have died after police or jails used a full-body restraint called The Wrap to subdue people.

"You’re suffocating me"..."I’m fucking dying"..."I can’t breathe." We found 41 people who died after officers put them in this mummy-like restraint called The Wrap. Watching body cam videos was heart wrenching. w/ @farooqumar.bsky.social news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...

Our Reporting Showed Washington Ranks Last in Green Energy Growth. Now the State Is Working to Speed It Up. The state’s departing commerce director said there’s added urgency to get the projects done after an Oregon Public Broadcasting and ProPublica investigation showed states like Iowa and Texas have made...

NEW: Washington’s departing commerce director said there’s added urgency to get the projects done after an @opb.org and ProPublica investigation showed states like Iowa and Texas have made more progress in renewable energy growth.

The latest on ICE in Minnesota Live updates on ICE enforcement in Minnesota, with the latest developments and links to deeper reporting as events unfold.

Follow live updates from @mprnews.org www.mprnews.org/live-updates

Leah Sottile and Ryan Haas on deconstructing ‘true crime’ in podcasting and journalism - Nieman Storyboard The team behind ‘Hush’ discuss the ethics of narrative journalism and creating a serialized podcast that's sensitive to victims and families

Loved sitting down with @leahsottile.bsky.social and @ryanjhaas.bsky.social for the @niemanstoryboard.org podcast to talk about the second season of their series "Hush" — and I'm so excited they're launching their own independent publication.

niemanstoryboard.org/2026/01/22/l...

#longreads

Are Tri-Cities Flock traffic cameras being misused by ICE, others? A report revealed a Texas sheriff tracked a woman from Tri-Cities suspected of travelling to WA after an abortion.

A report revealed a Texas sheriff tracked a woman from Tri-Cities suspected of travelling to WA after an abortion.

SpaceX shrugged off toxic exposure complaints at Starlink lab Workers say exposure caused serious health issues including a hospitalization and a miscarriage

Customer support employees reported health issues and SpaceX safety managers flagged ventilation problems. But records show the company did not improve ventilation at a Washington office for nearly a year, until the state began investigating.

www.investigatewest.org/a-starlink-l...

"Teresa Wippel, the president and CEO of the My Neighborhood News Group nonprofit that runs My Edmonds News, said Steves contacted Angelica Relente, the housing reporter who wrote the story. He also contacted the Jean Kim Foundation, which runs the center."

Feds order WA power plant to keep burning coal, setting up clash with state • Washington State Standard The Trump administration has ordered Washington’s last coal-fired power station to continue burning coal, just weeks before it was scheduled to shut down and convert to natural gas fuel.

NEW: Feds order WA power plant to keep burning coal, setting up clash with state-

The TransAlta facility in Centralia was on track to switch to natural gas.

For @washingtonstatestandard.com: washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/12/18/f... #waleg #environment

Washington US Rep. Dan Newhouse not running for reelection • Washington State Standard U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, one of two Republicans representing Washington state in Congress, will not run for reelection next year.

U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, one of two Republicans representing Washington state in Congress, will not run for reelection next year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/12/17/w...

The 12 Best Novels About the Pacific Northwest The books that best capture the spirit of the region.

After teaching a one-day class on Tom Robbins, here is my syllabus for the 12 novels about the Pacific Northwest you should read (and Snow Falling on Cedars is not one) ryanbeckwith.medium.com/the-12-best-...

Washington approves over 99% of archaeological permits, records show As tribes struggle to protect their heritage, the nation’s leading state archaeologist says she lacks the authority to to stop development projects.

Washington approves over 99% of archaeological permits, records show

As tribes struggle to protect their heritage, the nation’s leading state archaeologist says she lacks the authority to to stop development projects.

Look up recent salaries of WA state government workers Find salary information for employees of the state in our searchable database, now updated with the 23-24 fiscal year

Find salary information for employees of the state in our searchable database, now updated with the 23-24 fiscal year

The Very Official 2025 FOIA Advent Calendar

STOP WHAT YOU'RE DOING EVERYONE (or everyone who is a FOIA nerd): There's a public records request advent calendar.

h/t Cam Rodriguez docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

On the day that @opb.org CEO Rachel Smolkin posted this video, saying OPB’s funding gap of $5 million was closed, I was also told by the Chief Content Officer that Hush was canceled. Eighty percent of my income, and my health insurance - gone. I was given no reason for the cancellation. 1/x

A bucket from an excavator lays next to an excavator arm. A trench with a trench box is nearby and another excavator is in the background.

An upright cement sewer manhole is inside a deep trench. A trench box is next to it with an excavator arm inside. Rescue workers are in the background.

A green safety latch can be seen on excavator equipment.

Inside view from an excavator cab. The bucket can be seen through the excavator glass. There’s an orange warning label on the window of the excavator.

Vancouver-based construction company, Rotschy Inc., faces hefty fines after a 3,000-pound bucket fell off the arm of an excavator, crushing a worker not once, but twice at a Woodland jobsite.
https://Lni.wa.gov/news-events/article/25-33

Happy first day of bill prefiling in Washington State to all who celebrate.
app.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/pre...

Screen shot of WA Employment Security news release reading "WARN letters now available for download on Employment Security website You now have access to worker adjustment and retraining notification (WARN) letters that employers submit to Employment Security to announce a layoff. "The notices are now published on our WARN database webpage. "Previously, anyone wanting to read a WARN letter needed to submit a public records request. We are pleased to announce these copies are now available online for quick access."

Glad to see this new, easier access to WARN layoff letters from @washingtonesd.bsky.social: esd.wa.gov/employer-req...

a “Space Force”, if you will

Seattle's mayor race update:

Katie Wilson's lead grows to 1,346 votes over and incumbent corporate-Democrat Bruce Harrell.

Kate Wilson won 61.23% of the 6,121 ballots counted today.

Overall total:

Katie Wilson 50.08% 137,217
Bruce Harrell 49.59% 135,871
Write-in 0.33% 908

Wilson now leads in the Seattle mayoral race by 91 votes. Prior to today, Harrell had been leading by 4,300 votes, but this latest vote batch netted Wilson 4,391 votes.

Graph showing the type, number, and cohort of challenged ballots

There's still a lot of curable ballots from Seattle (about 1,800). Most are unsigned or signature mismatches, and most skew younger.

HOLY SHIT crazy news for Spokane progressives. Dixit closed the gap even more in the most recent ballot drop to less than 70. And there’s still 24k total ballots left to count in the county. City turnout is looking wildly high for an off year election

I talked with @kuow.org yesterday about the story of Alex Kuhnhausen, a 25-year-old WA prisoner who died last year from an infection that prison medical staff failed to treat and corrections officials kept hidden from his wife. www.kuow.org/stories/help...

Early results have just started coming in Washington.

Spokane food banks are seeing ‘COVID levels’ of stress on services – RANGE Media With the future of SNAP in jeopardy, here’s how our region is impacted and who is stepping up to help.

Spokane food banks are seeing ‘COVID levels’ of stress on services, impacting 83,000 Spokanites. With the future of SNAP in jeopardy, here’s how our region is impacted and who is stepping up to help:

NOAA cancels funding for data collection crucial to tsunami warning systems Direct feeds from seismology stations across Alaska are expected to stop in mid-November, state officials say.

NOAA cancels funding for data collection crucial to tsunami warning systems