Safe Shopping during a Pandemic, By Dr. Jeff VanWingen
Larry Haskell, Spokane County Prosecutor
Tom Konis, Spokane County Assessor
Spokane County Jail & Law Enforcement Oversight Part 2
Spokane Jail & Law Enforcement Part 1
Mike for Spokane 2019, Issues & Priorities
Mike for Spokane, 2019 Background
Police Report 14-162977 Redacted
Car and Bicycle Report Finally Released
The independent police report involving a sheriff car/bicycle fatality in the valley was released. Private investigators are calling it b.s. and it appears taxpayers can expect to pay another large settlement.
See the entire 632 page report here.
City and Police Management
The new Spokane Ombudsman Committee is unlikely to address continuing problems with city/police management. The independent report provided enough details that professional law enforcement individuals believe the credibility of the Spokane Police Department and County Sheriff’s office have been undermined by this investigation of a car/bicycle accident on a public street.
The above also calls into question the ability and intent of the local press. Glaring inconsistencies in a basic law enforcement matter is of no consequence, but the County Sheriff standing on a symbol of American Liberty in the imagination of militant liberals is front page news?
MFS August 2015 Update
The independent police report involving a sheriff car/bicycle fatality in the valley was released. Private investigators are calling b.s. and it appears taxpayers can expect to pay a large settlement.
The above also calls into question the ability and intent of the local press. Glaring inconsistencies in a basic law enforcement matter is of no consequence, but the County Sheriff standing on a symbol of American Liberty in the imagination of militant liberals is front page news?
Front line Constitutionalists are the elected representatives. They are sworn to defend the very rights which are being mocked by purveyors of fiction. Spokane’s major press outlets routinely malign good people and have refused to even report on Tea Party events that were some of the largest political events in Spokane history.
Mike for Spokane contracted with a firm owned and run by a couple of liberals. They were given $300 and a few quotes from the founding fathers and asked to interview people at a Spokane Tea Party event. They produced this video documentation of Spokane area people and their opinions about the “Threats We Face.”
Eight Years of Mike for Spokane
Mike for Spokane goals & objectives:
Citizen Oversight
The Spokane Police Ombudsman Committee has been revealed to be little more than a scam. There continues to be no independent citizen oversight of local law enforcement. Mike for Spokane provides a proposal for a quick and inexpensive solution to ongoing problems with the Ombudsman Committee.
Spokane Sanctuary City Status
Spokane Sanctuary City status came before the city council on July 13. The city council is still considering a ballot initiative challenging this status.
Sanctuary city status has become an increasingly controversial issue across the country. There has been proposed legislation announced at the Federal level that would block all federal funding for Sanctuary cities, which Spokane is now considered based on council action last Fall.
Mike for Spokane looks at some of the serious issues relative to sanctuary cities. If illegal aliens do not have to follow our laws then U.S.Citizens should not have to follow the laws either. There is no reason that tax paying citizens should have less Freedom than people who come to live in Spokane illegally.
Spokane Law Enforcement Oversight
White Wing Extremist Holiday?
For some reason American Exceptionalism has been referred to as a white legacy of hate and bigotry, but independence from Britain and the ensuing centuries of prosperity was never a “white thing.” Slavery was going to end with or without the Civil war, thanks primarily to Alexander Hamilton.
The North had the economic power needed to ensure victory and growing economic advancements and expansion across the new nation was making slavery increasingly a poor business proposition. Alexander Hamilton, a life long abolitionist, was most responsible for the political and economic conditions that had been driving out slavery for decades since his death. By the time of the Civil War the majority of blacks in the United States were actually free.
The colonies at the time of the American Revolution were multi-cultural, diverse and full of Liberty minded people that built this nation and it’s culture of responsibility, duty and Freedom.
(Paul Revere rode to warn Adams & Hancock. I mistakenly say Madison in the video. ~ Mike)
The Grand Union
“Grand Union” or “Cambridge Flag” was first flown over Prospect Hill, overlooking Boston in January 1776 during the Siege of Boston. While never sanction by the Continental Army, it is widely believed to be the first flag of this nation.
From the History of the United States by Henry William Elson:
[The British General] Gage had been ordered to arrest Adams and Hancock, who had been elected to the Second Continental Congress, and to send them to England for trial. The two patriot leaders, fearing arrest, were at Lexington in hiding. The British general discovered their hiding place, and on the night of the 18th of April 1775, sent a body of eight hundred regulars to make the arrest and, at the same time, to move on a few miles farther and destroy the military stores at Concord. Silently in the darkness the troops were rowed across the Charles River, and by midnight they were well on the way to Lexington. Every precaution for secrecy had been taken, but the vigilance of the patriots was too keen to be eluded.
Paul Revere, one of the noblest of the Sons of Liberty, stood by the river, his steed by his side, waiting for a lantern signal from the belfry of the North Church, which would inform him of the direction the troops had taken. The signal appeared, and a moment later he was galloping through the night toward Lexington. At every door, as he dashed along, he shouted the thrilling news ride that the British were coming. Reaching Lexington, he came to the house of the Rev. Jonas Clark, where Hancock and Adams were sleeping. The door was guarded by minute- men, who warned him not to disturb the inmates with his noise. “Noise!” cried Revere, “you’ll soon have noise enough; the regulars are coming!” Hancock, at an upper window, knew his voice and invited him in; and a few hours later, when the enemy came up, the two patriots had quietly proceeded on their way to the Congress at Philadelphia.
The news of the approaching enemy sped on to Concord, and to the surrounding towns and farmhouses; and the men arose, seized their guns, and hastened to the scene of the coming conflict. Colonel Smith, in command of the English, saw but too plainly, by the flickering lights on the hills, by the sound of bells and of signal guns, that his movements were known, and he sent back to Gage for reinforcements while he dispatched Major Pitcairn forward with six companies of infantry to secure the bridge at Concord. Pitcairn reached Lexington at sunrise, and found himself confronted by some forty minutemen under Captain John Parker. With an oath he called upon them to disperse, but they stood as motionless as a wall, and he ordered his men to fire. The soldiers hesitated, and Pitcairn discharged his own pistol, and thus fired the first shot of the war of the Revolution. Again he ordered the men to fire; they now did so, and the volley laid seven of the patriots dead and ten wounded upon the village green. Parker was greatly outnumbered, and, after making a feeble resistance, ordered his men to retire. But the day’s business was only begun. The British troops hastened on to Concord and entered the town unopposed, as the minutemen, to the number of two hundred, had withdrawn to the top of the hill beyond the river, taking with them or hiding most of the cannon and stores. The regulars destroyed the little they found, cut down the liberty pole, and set fire to the courthouse. But their work came to an abrupt close. Two hundred of their number had been left to guard the North Bridge that spanned the little river near the village, and on these the patriots, now increased to four hundred, made a descent and opened fire. The firing of both sides, the river flowing between them, was brisk for some minutes and a few of each were slain. This was the first encounter after that on the greensward at Lexington some hours before.Colonel Smith now understood the peril of his position, and determined to retire. But it was already too late. The whole surrounding country was roused; the farmers and villagers swarmed to the scene, and, without a leader, without order, from every hiding place — trees, fences, thickets, and hillocks, in true Battle of Lexington- Indian fashion — they poured an incessant fire into the retreating British. The latter were not wanting in courage; they made a brave effort to retreat in order, but the retreat became a rout, and every attempt to halt and form into line was thwarted by the deadly hail of patriot bullets from every side. Many of them fell dead or dying on the road; the rout became a race with death. They had marched all the night before; the day was hot, and they were well-nigh exhausted. The whole force would have been killed or captured but for the coming of reenforcements. When they reached Lexington, they were met by Lord Percy with twelve hundred men coming to their rescue. Percy opened his ranks to admit the fugitive soldiers; and they ran in, as a hunted fox finds his den in the mountains, and fell to the ground, with their tongues hanging from their mouths in sheer exhaustion. Percy planted his cannon, and for a time held the Americans at bay; but as he began his march toward Boston they attacked him in ever increasing numbers, and the battle ceased only at nightfall when the British found shelter under the guns of the royal ships in the harbor. The British loss was 273 and the American loss 93.
Thus ended the first armed conflict of the Revolution. That night was one of intense commotion in the vicinity of Boston. The patriots did not return to their homes; they encamped on the ground, and their numbers were rapidly augmented from every hill and valley of New England. Israel Putnam of Connecticut left his plow in the furrow to lead a band of fellow-farmers to Cambridge; Benedict Arnold brought a company from New Haven; John Stark arrived from New Hampshire with twelve hundred men, and Nathanael Greene from Rhode Island with a thousand. Within a few days after the affair at Lexington and Concord, Boston was beset by an untrained army of sixteen thousand men.
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So began the Siege of Boston. The Grand Union Flag was first flown the following Winter on Prospect Hill overlooking Boston. The next year sometime around July 4th 1776, the people of this new country declared its independence with one of the most famous and important documents in all of recorded history.
Hoopfest Weekend & @YoungTRaaw is heading to Florida!
Hoopfest weekend is upon us and it is going to be hot. A quarter of a million people are expected in downtown this weekend. Stay hydrated and watch for signs of heat stroke.
Mike for Spokane sends a thank you to Tyler Harvey, for showing us how it’s done! @YoungTRaaw is headed to Florida!
#GoEags! #GoMagic!
Independent Police oversight issues continue in Spokane.
New Sanctuary City Initiative headed for the ballot.
Mandatory Sick leave & $15.00 hour minimum wage debate.
Sheriff’s Town Hall meeting on Monday at Central Valley 6:30 to 9:00. If you go:
1 – Printed tickets from eventbrite registration are a MUST – no ticket – no entrance.
2 – Questions for the Sheriff MUST be submitted on 3×5 cards, will be reviewed (combine frequently asked together) and read to the Sheriff.
Have a great Hoopfest weekend, stay hydrated and Have fun. ~ Mike
Mike For Spokane Update: Grand Hotel and City Council Objections Over Environmental Clean-Up Bill
Mike for Spokane looks at recent objections voiced by Spokane City Council members over public funds being used to pay for environmental remediation at the site of the New Grand Hotel in Downtown Spokane.
Part Two:
Police Oversight Irregularities
The findings from an independent investigation conducted by the law firm Winston Cashatt was released to the public last last week. This investigation looked into the conduct of individual members of Spokane Police Ombudsman Committee and found numerous irregularities that led to Spokane’s Mayor and City Council President to call for the resignation of three committee members. The City Council held a special meeting on Thursday last week and voted to remove the Chairman of the ombudsman committee and accepted the resignation of another committee member. A third committee member was out of town and council voted to give this member a week to respond to allegations of impropriety.
The findings of the Winston Cashatt investigation seem to indicate that Spokane Police Ombudsman Committee has been mostly a sham and Spokane still does not have any real citizen oversight. The committee appeared to be more interested in a highly politicized agenda and was hostile towards local law enforcement.
The process and transparency of police oversight has been a problem in Spokane for well over a decade and the events of last week reveal that our community still has serious problems in this area.
In this Mike For Spokane update, we review elements of the investigative report, problems with accessing official records and what our elected representatives can do to resolve these problems now and to restore confidence in the highly important process of police oversight.
The findings of the Spokane Ombudsman Committee investigation can be found here: https://static.spokanecity.org/documents/news/2015/06/17/whistleblower-report-finds-commissioner-misconduct/report-to-the-city-of-spokane-whistleblower-committee-update.pdf
MFS Update June 14, 2015
Mike for Spokane update for the week of June 14, 2015. Police oversight, Sanctuary City, Mandatory Sick Leave, Sheriff’s Town Hall Meeting.
“Caught in the Act” North Indian Trails
Spokane’s North Indian Trails Neighborhood (Audio takes six or seven seconds to kick in)
Northwest Grass Roots
Meet and learn about the NW Grassroots; A local organization where Spokane area citizens work to keep an eye on the many dealings of government at the federal, state and local levels.
Government Favoritism in Spokane
Spokane has a long history of government favoritism where the wealthy benefit and the poor are taxed to pay for these benefits. It is simply government subsidies masquerading as economic revitalization at the expense of the poor and to the benefit of the politically favored.
Mike For Spokane Update for the Week of June 7th 2015
Mike for Spokane update for the week of June 14, 2015. Police oversight & national controversy involving Chairman of the Spokane Police Ombudsman Committee, Sheriff’s pending Town Hall meeting, Sanctuary City status, Mandatory Sick Leave and Sweet Public/Private deals involving tax payer funds & assets.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jO58qgtteE
Mike for Spokane update for the Week of June 7tjh 2015 – Spokane Police Department Investigation & Oversight, Letter to the State regarding new taxes, Mandatory Sick Leave, Sanctuary City, Waste to Energy Plant operational irregularities, Award of Municipal Contracting and Harassment of local Day Care Providers by State Agencies.
Mike for Spokane to due List for June 1sth 2015
Water & Garbage in Spokane
Reducing Property Crime
Finding, Tracking & Reducing Property Crime in Spokane, Washington.
Taking the ‘Sting’ Out of State Surveillance
“As Congress continues to debate the future of the National Security Agency’s telephone metadata collection program, Washington state has banned the warrant-less use of similar technology that allows law enforcement to track cell phones.” Story: http://watchdog.org/221322/cell-phone-surveillance-states/
Land Use Laws Hit Everyone’s Property Rights
Mitch Daniels on How to Cut Government & Improve Services