KUOW Blog
News, factoids, and insights from KUOW's newsroom. And maybe some peeks behind the scenes. Check back daily for updates.
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Stories
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Suspicious packages sent to Seattle synagogues part of national rise in threats to Jewish, Arab, and Muslim communities
Several suspicious packages that have been sent to Seattle-area synagogues have prompted the FBI to join the investigation into the incidents.
“FBI Seattle, Seattle Police Department, and Seattle Fire Department responded to several suspicious letters sent to Jewish synagogues in the Seattle area, some of which contained an unknown substance," FBI Seattle said in a statement.
"Law enforcement and public safety officials are working to determine how many letters were sent, the individual(s) responsible for the letters, and the motive behind them."
RELATED: Mayor Harrell says Seattle police increasing patrols around places of worship
The FBI said it would not comment further about the "ongoing matter," but did state that "the public can be assured that law enforcement will continue to keep the public's safety as its top priority."
The most recent package was discovered Monday evening at a synagogue in Seattle's Hawthorne Hills neighborhood. The Seattle Fire Department concluded that it was not hazardous.
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Why ballots are rejected in Washington state and how to make sure yours counts
Around 1% of Washingtonians' ballots are rejected every election. It’s more likely to happen to specific groups, including people of color, younger voters, and rural voters, according to a new report by the University of Washington’s Evans Policy Innovation Collaborative project.
Researchers studied why those ballots are being rejected and have offered ideas to voters and elections officials about how to make improvements.
The most common reason ballots get rejected is that they're turned in too late. Ballots need to be postmarked or placed in a ballot drop box before 8 p.m. on Election Day. Authors of the recent study recommend getting it in as early as possible, which many voters are increasingly reluctant to do, waiting until Election Day to vote.
Other times, there are problems with a voter's signature, which is how ballots are verified in Washington state. Some people simply fail to sign their ballot altogether, or their signature doesn’t match the one their county elections office has on file.
“We found that most people don't even know what signature is being used to compare on their ballot or really why they should sign at all,” said Cali Jahn, a co-author of the new report.
The report recommends voters make sure their ballot signature matches the one on their driver's license, because most people register to vote when they get licensed. If not, use the one that you used when you registered to vote.
If your signature doesn't match, elections staff will try to contact you to resolve the problem, but that process can take time — another reason to get your ballot in ASAP.
“In terms of getting their voices heard, it is incredibly important for voters of color, younger voters, voters in rural areas to make sure that they are signing their ballot accurately and turning it in early. That way they can correct it should there be an issue,” Jahn said.
The report authors also offer advice for elections officials on how to make it easier for voters, including redesigning the ballot envelope.
“I think we have some great design recommendations in there, working alongside the Center for Civic Design, to improve the number of signatures that we get and the accuracy of those signatures," Jahn said.
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Some King County voters received mysterious mailings due to clerical error
King County Elections said a “clerical error” is to blame for problems with a recent mailing. The agency sent about 14,000 letters to addresses that did not match the names on the envelope. Some recipients said the mistake created confusion and could harm public trust in the agency.
Jack Walsh is a city councilmember in Federal Way, in South King County, currently seeking re-election. He told KUOW all the voters in his household recently received letters from King County Elections bearing their address, but with other people’s first and last names. Only their middle names or initials were correct.
When he heard similar reports from friends, he became alarmed. Walsh said he contacted King County Elections and was told there had been a mix-up. Walsh called the mistake “gross incompetence” and a waste of public money. He said he’s also worried that mistakes like this could harm public trust.
“One of the things it can do is make people doubt the election process,” he said. “Even if the election process itself is going perfectly, people may doubt it and say, ‘If there’s problems, I’m not even going to turn in my ballot.’”
RELATED: See all of KUOW's ongoing coverage of the 2023 elections.
The mailing was not a ballot, as Walsh initially feared, but a letter informing people that they can request elections materials in languages other than English.
Halei Watkins, the communications manager for King County Elections, said the agency sent the letter around the same time that ballots went in the mail, “because folks are paying attention to elections at this time we were hoping it would hook them in that way.”
She said the letter went to 30,000 voters “who live in ZIP codes that have a higher likelihood of communities that speak Russian or Somali, based on 2020 census data,” to let them know that they can now request elections materials in those languages.
“Unfortunately, due to a clerical error, about half of the mailings that we sent out did feature the wrong names,” Watkins said. “Nothing in the envelope is tied to a specific voter, so we’ve been telling folks, ‘If it doesn’t apply to you, just go ahead and recycle it.’ But of course it can be a little confusing when you get something from us that doesn’t have the correct name on it.”
Watkins said King County Elections has heard from about 50 people who had questions about the mailing.
“Anytime that happens, of course our concern is going to be that it casts a greater shadow on elections," She said. "In every conversation we’ve had with voters so far they’ve been really understanding about the issue.“
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The other reason Bezos may be moving to Miami
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos recently announced that he is leaving Seattle for Miami to be closer to his girlfriend, parents, and the Florida operations of Blue Origin, his space company.
But Bezos also has a history of picking cities based on another factor: taxes.
In the past, taxes have always been a top consideration for Bezos. He reportedly launched Amazon in Seattle in the 1990s because of the city's low sales tax burden. At the time, online retailers paid sales tax based on the population of their home state. Washington also famously doesn’t have an income tax.
In his online announcement about the move, Bezos reminisced about Amazon’s original home in the Seattle area, his garage.
In recent years, Washington has become an increasingly more expensive state for the wealthy. State legislators recently passed a capital gains tax, which would mean a big price tag whenever Bezos sells Amazon stock.
Washington's capital gains tax has been challenged in court, and was upheld by the state's Supreme Court. It has already prompted some wealthy residents to leave the state. Backers of the capital gains tax point to research showing these types of policies are not a top consideration when wealthy people choose to move.
Washington's capital gains tax continues to face legal challenges with conservative groups aiming to get the issue in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. Meanwhile, Seattle leaders have eyed a local capital gains tax of their own. In 2023, Seattle Councilmember Alex Pedersen introduced a proposal to replace the city's water tax with a local 2% capital gains tax.
Bezos lives in Medina, and therefore would not be on the hook for any such taxes in Seattle.
In his new Florida home, Bezos won’t be on the hook for state income or capital gains taxes.
RELATED: What could Amazon's Jeff Bezos be losing or gaining from the move?
Update 11/7/2023: This post has been updated to include Seattle Councilmember Alex Pedersen's proposal to replace the city's water tax with a local capital gains tax.
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Miami vs Seattle: What could Amazon's Jeff Bezos be losing or gaining from the move?
Now that Amazon's founder Jeff Bezos has announced he is leaving overcast Seattle for the sunny skies of Miami, let’s take a look at what he's trading, gaining, or missing by making the move.
Company: Bezos is worth about $161 billion. Living in Miami, honestly, he’ll be slumming it. His big-bucks counterparts in Seattle are Bill Gates (about $111 billion) or Steve Balmer ($101 billion).
In Miami, the closest would be Ken Griffin with his paltry $35.4 billion, or Dave Tepper with $20.6 billion — how embarrassing. Makes me nauseous just reading such low wealth. What could Bezos possibly have in common with these peasants? Er, I mean, people. They’d have nothing to talk about. Can they even afford a sky fortress? Or to fund a colony on an asteroid? Bezos could. Seattle's higher class of billionaires delivers a clear win for the Emerald City.
Art museums: Bezos is trading SAM for PAMM. SAM has more than 25,000 pieces of art across 312,000 square feet, and a nine-acre park. PAMM is a popular choice for local art in Miami. With a smaller collection, it still draws hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. Tie.
Taxes: The government’s price tag to live in Miami is 7%, while taxes in Seattle add up to just over 10%. The richest man in the world can stay just a little richer in Miami.
Cinephiles: Seattle has its beloved Cinerama, now called SIFF Cinema Downtown after its new owner the Seattle International Film Festival (I call it “SIFFerama”). This movie theater, yes, has chocolate popcorn, but also luxurious seats, movie memorabilia, amazing sound and picture. The Miami Beach Cinematheque is run by the Miami Beach Film Society. This theater also comes with an indie vibe, but on a much smaller scale with a humble 50 seats, and a few couches. The win goes to SIFFerama.
Breweries vs breweries: Both cities have a lot of breweries — a lot — each with their own funky labels and names. At first glance, you’re not really losing anything here, however, it appears that Miami breweries produce a lot of beers that aren’t IPAs. In contrast, Seattle brews about 99% IPAs (a statistic that I 100% made up). So Miami wins in this regard.
Pop culture: Sure Bezos lived in Miami previously, but that was when he was in high school. Things have changed.
To get up to speed, he can start with "Miami Vice" and jump straight into playing "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City" for a more modern take. Then he can watch “Dexter” and “Burn Notice” to become aware of Miami's modern serial killer and spy community.
If he wants to reminisce about Seattle, he need only watch “Frasier.” Sure, the show is from the 1990s, but Seattle has grown quite nicely into Frasier’s world — a high class and expensive milieu, filled with craft wine and boutique cafes with menus that say “cornichon” instead of “tiny pickle.”
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Centrist in Seattle? How this week's election could change City Council politics
Election Day is Tuesday, and some big changes are afoot, especially when it comes to the Seattle City Council.
Longtime Council firebrand Kshama Sawant is stepping aside, along with at least three other incumbents; Sawant's departure alone will shift the politics of the Council.
So, what will the shakeup mean for the Council and the future of Seattle?
"Mayor [Bruce] Harrell is big on cooling some of the fiery rhetoric in city politics and bringing lawmakers together to work on solutions," said KUOW politics editor Catharine Smith. "And in this election, Mayor Harrell has backed candidates who he thinks can do that. Most of these people that he's backing happen to be kind of center-left candidates."
Those candidates include: Joy Hollingsworth in District 3, which Sawant currently represents, Cathy Moore in District 5 and Maritza Rivera in District 4.
Smith said the mayor appears to be angling for candidates who agree with his policies and who won't have to fight with each other to get them passed. In theory, less division on the Council could mean more action.
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Pro-Palestinian protesters block Port of Tacoma entrance, saying they believe military supplies leaving for Israel
A group of pro-Palestinian protesters blocked the entrance to the Port of Tacoma early Monday morning, in an attempt to prevent military supplies from entering the port and being loaded onto ships headed to Israel.
"We are stopping the ships, we are stopping the boats, we are causing a delay in whatever they do to support, basically, sending military supplies to Israel to continue bombing our children," said Nour, a 25-year-old Palestinian at the port entrance.
Nour did not give her last name. KUOW has not been able to confirm any information around a ship picking up military supplies at the Port of Tacoma.
The Seattle chapter of the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network began planning for the demonstration on Friday, after it says it received information that a ship had left Oakland, Calif., and was headed to Tacoma to pick up military supplies destined for Israel.
RELATED: Seattle woman fears for kidnapped relatives in Gaza after losing aunt and uncle in Hamas attack
"I'm just sick of it," Nour said. "I see that there is action being taken, and I have to step up. It's my people. I have to step up with the rest of the world that isn't scared of speaking for the truth."
"Gaza is my family. Palestine is my family. They are all my family," she added.
Nour said that protesters planned to stay at the entrance until port workers go home.
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This water taxi captain prevented a runaway barge from ramming into downtown Seattle. Here's his account
Captain Dan Krehbiel was steering a water taxi boat from West Seattle on Thursday when he spotted a runaway barge — a six-story wall of steel containers — headed at a clipped pace in the direction of the Great Wheel and the Seattle Aquarium.
What follows is Krehbiel’s account of what happened.
We were in West Seattle, ready to make our trip across to the downtown side.
As we started hitting toward Seattle, a barge came out from the pier.
It was moving faster than you ever see tugs moving. We thought, this isn't right. This is bad. It’s windy. And it’s headed for the waterfront.
We got around to the other side of the barge to check if there was a tug dragging it, but nope, sure enough, there were no tugs on it. At that point, we knew it had broken away from its moorings. We had to see if we could divert it.
I couldn’t get too reckless – I had passengers on board. I had to keep them safe, and also try to keep the barge off the waterfront.
We made a quick announcement that we were going to be delayed to divert a runaway barge. I think I heard somebody downstairs say, “Cool.”
I knew by its size that we weren’t gonna be able to stop it. I was going to use this boat as a tugboat – and steer it away from the waterfront.
I tried to nose up to the barge without hitting it too hard, because I don’t have rubber fendering like a tugboat. It’s pretty hard to hit a big steel barge with a little aluminum boat.
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Black College Expo returns to Seattle Saturday at Rainier Beach HS
The 6th Annual Seattle Black College Expo returns to Rainier Beach High School Saturday, Nov. 4 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The event is open to all students and their families.
Students get a chance to meet one-on-one with college representatives from historically Black colleges and universities, and other institutions.
Event organizers are also urging juniors seniors and college transfer students to bring their transcripts and ACT or SAT test scores for a chance to get accepted on the spot and get those application fees waived.
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Class action lawsuit against Alaska Airlines in wake of pilot emergency
Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air face a class action lawsuit after last month's high-profile incident, when an off-duty pilot attempted to shut off an airplane's engines mid-flight.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of three passengers aboard that flight in King County Superior Court.
RELATED: In wake of Alaska's mid-air scare, researcher cites mental health gaps for commercial pilots
"The airlines need a wake-up call," said Attorney Daniel Laurence with the Stritmatter Firm that filed the case. "We understand that most pilots are heroes every day for safely operating our airliners. But they are not immune from sleeplessness, drinking, drugs, or a mental health crisis. Airlines are charged with the lives of passengers and, by law, have the highest duty of care."
The flight began in Everett, Washington, and ended with an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon.
Attorneys say Joseph Emerson was allowed to ride in the cockpit's "jump seat" — where off-duty pilots can hitch a ride — even though he admitted he did not meet the federal minimum requirements for pre-flight rest and drug use.
Emerson reportedly was in the cockpit and reached for instruments that would shut off the plane's engines. Pilots were able to stop him. He later admitted to eating psychedelic mushrooms 48 hours prior to the incident, and that hadn't slept since.
RELATED: Off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot arrested following attempt to disable engines mid-flight
"Airlines can and should take simple and reasonable steps before each flight to challenge the presumption that every pilot who shows up at the gate is rested, sober, and in the right state of mind to fly," Laurence said in a statement. "Emerson’s statements while in the air and shortly after his arrest show that had the airlines here done so, he would never have been allowed aboard. Our clients suffered needlessly as a result. Only luck prevented it from becoming a mass disaster."
Attorneys say that pilots who ride in the jump seat can be called upon during an emergency and argue the air carriers have failed to make sure everyone in the cockpit meets the pre-flight security requirements.
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Washington state aims to connect with other markets to help reduce carbon costs
Washington officials aim to link the state’s fight against climate change to similar efforts elsewhere in North America.
The Washington Department of Ecology announced Thursday its intention to connect the state’s new market for carbon pollution to the decade-old markets in California and Quebec.
“I have determined that seeking to link with California and Quebec offers our state the best path to a successful, durable carbon market,” Ecology Director Laura Watson said. “It will allow us to meet the greenhouse gas emission limits that are set in state law.”
Since February, Washington has been auctioning off the right to emit carbon dioxide to certain large polluters under the state’s 2021 “cap-and-invest” climate law.
The resulting price to pollute the climate has been higher than predicted and higher than in California and Quebec.
RELATED: The numbers are in: Washington's carbon credit auction raised nearly $300M
Washington Republicans and some businesses have blamed the carbon auctions for driving up the ever-changing price of gasoline.
The Inslee administration and environmental groups blame other factors, including oil company profit margins.
RELATED: What we do and don't know about high gas prices in Washington state
Inslee administration officials say connecting with the California-Quebec market, which is about six times bigger than Washington’s, will bring down the price to pollute, possibly immediately.
“Even an expectation of linkage could put downward pressure on prices,” Watson said.
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Domestic violence surge 'easing' in King County, prosecutors say
Prosecutors in King County say the number of domestic violence cases overall is trending downward. That’s after a spike in cases during the pandemic.
Domestic violence homicides have fallen each year since 2020. Prosecutors expect this year’s final numbers to be 20% lower than that pandemic high. There were 18 domestic violence homicides in King County in 2020, and that number has fallen every year since, to 11 cases so far in 2023.
The downward trend in domestic violence cases is in contrast to King County’s overall homicide rate, which has continued to set new records since 2020.
David Martin, who chairs the domestic violence unit for the King County Prosecutor’s Office, said it’s hard to pinpoint the reasons for the decline in domestic violence homicides. But he notes that people at risk of harming themselves or others have surrendered a record number of firearms this year.
“It’s an important way to reduce risk,” Martin said. “If we know that domestic violence is a driver of violent crime and violent death, we do not want domestic violence offenders to be armed.”
The Regional Domestic Violence Firearms Enforcement Unit, which seeks to enforce Domestic Violence Protection Orders as well as Extreme Risk Protection Orders known as “red flag” laws, has collected 911 firearms so far in 2023, already surpassing the total of 901 it collected in all of 2022. Both types of orders can seek to prohibit someone from possessing firearms.
RELATED: Should we think of gun violence as a 'disease'? These epidemiologists do
Martin said Washington state in general has also seen a long-term decline in the numbers of strangulation homicides, which are disproportionately associated with female victims and domestic partner or intimate partner violence. He said the state was one of the first to enact a felony strangulation assault law in 2007 and King County has prioritized enforcement.
He points to a recent study by former King County Chief Medical Examiner Richard Harruff that appeared in the September issue of The Journal of Forensic Sciences. It analyzed female strangulation homicides in the county from 1978 through 2022.
Researchers found a striking decline in strangulation cases in recent decades up through the year 2020. In the 1980s, King County saw an average of more than six such cases per year. That rate declined more than 80% to average just over one case per year between 2010 to 2019. However, they found that cases did tick up again in 2020 through 2022.
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