Category Archives: Washington state

Democratic congressman says home vandalized by Gaza ceasefire protesters

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Adam Smith of Washington state calls spray-painting of garage ‘sadly reflective of the coarsening of the political discourse’

A Democratic congressman says his home was vandalized on Thursday night by “people advocating for a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza”.

Adam Smith, a US House member from Washington state, called the vandalism to his home in the city of Bellevue “sadly reflective of the coarsening of the political discourse in our country, and is completely unwarranted, unnecessary, and harmful to our political system”.

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Macy’s workers launch Black Friday strike in Washington state

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About 400 workers walk out in dispute over allegedly unfair labor practices and failure to agree new contract

About four hundred Macy’s workers in Washington state began striking on Friday – known as Black Friday among retailers and one of the year’s busiest shopping days – citing allegedly unfair labor practices and the retail giant’s purported refusal to agree to a new contract.

The union representing the employees, UFCW 3000, said workers started arriving about 3am on Friday to form picket lines. Workers are striking outside the Alderwood, Southcenter and Bellis Fair Macy’s stores and plan to continue for three days.

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Woman who fled Saudi Arabia with daughter wins court battle to stay in US

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Bethany Alhaidari granted permission to defy custody order because of serious risk of death if she returned to Saudi Arabia

A US court has ruled that an American activist who fled Saudi Arabia with her daughter in 2019 will be allowed to defy a Saudi custody order and remain in the country with her child because she would face a serious risk of being put to death if she returned to the kingdom.

The case represents the first time that Saudi rules governing child custody and its use of the death penalty against female activists have faced judgment in a US court.

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Washington state wildfire leaves one dead and nearly 200 structures destroyed

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Evacuations ordered after wind-fueled blaze expands unchecked near eastern city of Spokane and shuts highway

A wind-driven wildfire in eastern Washington state has destroyed at least 185 structures, closed a major highway and left one person dead, authorities have said.

The blaze began shortly after midday on Friday on the west side of Medical Lake, about 15 miles (24km) west of Spokane, and then expanded, state Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Isabelle Hoygaard said on Saturday.

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Skin disease in orcas off North American coast concerns scientists

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Lesions found on 99% of southern resident orcas studied on Pacific north-west coast

Scientists studying an endangered population of orcas resident off the Pacific north-west coast of Canada and the US have recorded a “strong increase” in skin lesions on the animals’ bodies, which they believe is owing to the decreasing ability of their immune systems to deal with disease.

The lesions appear on the whales as grey patches or targets, or black pin points. Some resemble tattooed skin. Their presence on the animals’ graphically black and white bodies is “increasing dramatically”, according to Dr Joseph K Gaydos of the SeaDoc Society at the school of veterinary medicine at the University of California, lead author of the scientific paper.

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A 14-year-old Santa Clara University graduate is SpaceX’s newest hire

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Kairan Quazi, the youngest graduate in the school’s history, will start at the company’s satellite internet division Starlink in July

Kairan Quazi is years away from legally being able to watch an R-rated movie at the theater by himself or buy a drink at the bar, but he’s about to get a college degree and start a job at SpaceX.

Other than that, the 14-year-old insists he’s had a fairly normal academic journey.

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Washington governor signs three gun-control bills into law

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Democrats and activists applaud state for new legislation, which includes a ban on the sale of certain semi-automatic rifles

Washington’s Governor Jay Inslee signed a trio of bills meant to prevent gun violence on Tuesday – one banning the sale of certain semi-automatic rifles, one imposing a 10-day waiting period on firearms purchases, and one clearing the way for lawsuits against gun makers or sellers in certain cases.

A crowd of gun-control activists and Democratic lawmakers broke into cheers as he signed the measures, which he said would not solve all gun violence but would save lives.

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Podcaster and husband allegedly killed by stalker in Washington state

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Zohreh Sadeghi, 33, and Mohammed Naseri, 35, found dead along with Texas trucker Ramin Khodakaramrezaei who died by suicide

A Texas truck driver allegedly broke into the home of a woman who hosted a podcast to which he listened and killed her as well as her husband before dying by suicide in what authorities are describing as a stalking case.

Authorities identified the victims as 33-year-old podcaster Zohreh Sadeghi and her husband Mohammed Naseri, 35, according to the Daily Beast. The suspect, meanwhile, is Ramin Khodakaramrezaei, a 38-year-old trucker.

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Anti-abortion group to pay Planned Parenthood nearly $1m over protest at clinic

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Spokane county judge ordered Church at Planned Parenthood to pay $960,000 for interfering with patient care

An anti-abortion group has been ordered to pay almost $1m in fines to Planned Parenthood, over demonstrations outside a clinic in Spokane, Washington state.

According to its website, the group, Church at Planned Parenthood, was formed to stage “worship service at the gates of Hell”.

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Washington Circle K shooter apparently kills self as police close in

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Police say 21-year-old Jarid Haddock ‘just walked in and started shooting’, killing three in a ‘random situation’

A 21-year-old man wanted in connection with the random killing of three people at a convenience store in Yakima, Washington, early Tuesday shot and killed himself as officers approached him behind some warehouses several hours later, authorities said.

Yakima police chief Matt Murray said in a video message posted online that a woman called 911 on Tuesday afternoon. The caller reported that the man had used her phone to make a call.

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Teacher wins free speech case after wearing Trump-themed hat to school

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Eric Dodge wore Make America Great Again baseball cap twice but judge found no ‘tangible disruption’ to Washington school

A federal appeals court has ruled in favor of a former teacher in Vancouver, Washington, concluding that his wearing a hat supporting Donald Trump to school was protected speech under the first amendment.

Documents from the ninth circuit court of appeals show that Eric Dodge, a science teacher, brought the Make America Great Again baseball cap to an Evergreen Public Schools building twice before the 2019-2020 school year.

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Human toll of deadly US storm grows in ‘blizzard of the century’

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Heartbreaking stories pour in about people missing a heart transplant or dying inside a car

One man never came home from a grocery run. Another man missed a chance at a new heart. A woman died after getting trapped in her car.

The human toll that the winter blast which gripped much of the US last week has continued to mount. Since the “blizzard of the century” swept through multiple parts of the nation last week, at least 60 people have died countrywide, and details about the heartbreak their families are enduring have been trickling out.

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Skimpy latte: victory for bikini baristas as federal court rejects city’s dress code

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Ordinance in Everett, Washington, requiring coffee servers to cover up is unconstitutional, judge rules

A Washington city’s dress code saying so-called bikini baristas must cover their bodies at work has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal court.

The decision in a partial summary judgment this week comes after a lengthy legal battle between bikini baristas and the city of Everett, on the outskirts of Seattle, over the rights of workers to wear what they want, the Everett Herald reported.

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Washington state woman survives bear attack by punching animal’s nose

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Woman was taking dog out when she was ‘charged by an adult female black bear’ and sustained non-life threatening injuries

A woman in Washington state survived a bear attack on Saturday after she punched the animal in the nose, an official said.

The woman, who has not been named, was taking her dog out in the town of Leavenworth, in the middle of the state, when she was “charged by an adult female black bear”, the Washington department of fish and wildlife said.

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Washington state woman survives being stabbed and buried alive

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Victim was able to alert contacts via smartwatch after attack by estranged husband, then escape from early grave to seek help

A woman in Washington state managed to escape after allegedly being bound, stabbed and buried alive by her estranged husband.

Thurston county police officers were dispatched to a home around 1am local time on Monday, where they found a distressed woman hiding behind a shed screaming, “My husband is trying to kill me,” reported NBC News, citing a court document.

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Air quality plummets as smoke from roaring wildfires chokes US west

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Blazes in California, Washington and Oregon cause widespread damage as plumes travel across states and into Canada

California firefighters are battling large blazes across the state as the west’s fire season heats up, covering swaths of Oregon, Washington, California and Canada in heavy smoke that has also traveled across the US.

Rain from tropical storm Kay brought relief to firefighters in southern California after a punishing heatwave gripped much of the state for more than a week and sent some crews to the hospital.

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Washington state to ban sales of new gas cars by 2035, following California

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Public will have chance to weigh in on details of plan, with transportation accounting for 40% of state greenhouse gas emissions

Washington state will follow California and prohibit the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035, Jay Inslee, the state governor, said.

California regulators on Thursday moved forward with a landmark plan to phase out the sale of gas cars over the next 13 years in the US’s largest auto market.

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Republican who voted to impeach Trump projected to win primary

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Dan Newhouse, one of 10 members of Congress to vote for impeachment, set to beat Trump-backed Loren Culp in Washington state

Dan Newhouse, one of the few Republican House members to vote in January in favor of the impeachment of Donald Trump, is poised to move forward to the general election in Washington state, according to a projection by the Associated Press.

Newhouse was one of 10 Republicans who voted in January to have Trump impeached, even ahead of explosive revelations about the former president’s support and endorsement of the January 6 riots just a year prior.

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Homes destroyed as Washington state wildfire forces evacuation of town

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Fourteen structures burnt in Lind, in east of state, as forecasters in California warn ‘sleeping giant’ McKinney fire could grow further

A small town in Washington state was evacuated due to a fast-moving fire that burned a half-dozen homes, as crews in California made progress against the state’s deadliest and largest wildfire of the year.

In Washington, the Adams county sheriff’s office warned residents of Lind on Thursday afternoon to flee due to the encroaching flames.

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Typically mild Pacific north-west braces for another blazing heatwave

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Officials urge residents to take precautions as forecasts point to temperatures far above historic averages

A searing heatwave is expected to bring dangerously high temperatures to US Pacific north-west – a region known for its mild, temperate summers.

As Oregon, Washington, parts of northern California and British Columbia brace for a week of temperatures well above historic averages, officials are warning residents in the region – many of whom lack air conditioning and are unaccustomed to heat – to take precautions.

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