Archive - Northwest
Alaska Requires DNA Be Collected From People Arrested for Violent Crimes. Many Police Have Ignored That.
By failing to collect DNA samples when they arrest people as the law requires, Alaskan law enforcement left the state’s DNA database with crucial gaps, allowing at least one serial rapist to go undetected.
After 3 Years and $1.5 Million Testing Rape Kits, Alaska Made One New Arrest
In the state with the highest rate of sexual assault in the nation, testing the backlog of rape kits may not be enough. Many were from cases where the identity of the suspect was already known, or were opened only to find no usable DNA.
States With Few Coronavirus Restrictions Are Spreading the Virus Beyond Their Borders
Lax states are attracting shoppers and students from stricter neighbors — and sending back COVID-19 cases. The imbalance underscores the lack of a national policy.
Junior Staffer Says Top Alaska Official Told Her to Keep Allegations of Misconduct Secret
She received hundreds of “uncomfortable” texts from Alaska’s attorney general, leading to his resignation, and says Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s staff knew of the misconduct for months but no investigation began until a whistleblower appeared.
When the Political Divide Turned Deadly in Portland
The two middle-aged white men shared a common backstory: Both were raised in the rural Pacific Northwest and found a sense of greater purpose and belonging on opposite sides of radical politics. Then both ended up dead.
Despite What the Logging Industry Says, Cutting Down Trees Isn’t Stopping Catastrophic Wildfires
For decades, Oregon’s timber industry has promoted the idea that private, logged lands are less prone to wildfires. The problem? Science doesn’t support that.
He Made a Minor Mistake Filling Out an Unemployment Form. Then the State Demanded $14,990 From Him.
State unemployment agencies are discovering errors in payments affecting hundreds of thousands of jobless Americans. Even when the agencies made the original error, they’re taking aggressive steps to get the money back.
Alaska’s “Him Too” Moment: When Politicians and Allies Come With Accusations of Their Own
As scandals force Alaska politicians to resign, nowhere have the accusations been more severe than this remote rural district, where male leaders are proving to be part of the very problems they’re supposed to be solving.
New Eyewitness Accounts: Feds Didn’t Identify Themselves Before Opening Fire on Portland Antifa Suspect
Local law enforcement officers deputized as U.S. Marshals have given conflicting accounts of the shooting. Witnesses say they heard no warning before the agents shot Michael Reinoehl dead, an outcome President Trump termed “retribution.’’
It’s His Land. Now a Canadian Company Gets to Take It.
Federal regulators have given a Canadian oil company the power to seize property from Oregon landowners for a gas pipeline that will help … Canada.
Her Stepfather Admitted to Sexually Abusing Her. That Wasn’t Enough to Keep Her Safe.
More than 30 years after telling a teacher that her stepfather was molesting her, Sherri Stewart is running out of time to understand why he remained free, and why she was sent back to endure more harm.
The Woman Propositioned by Alaska’s Former Lieutenant Governor Tells Her Story for the First Time
In 2018, Jody Potts was the target of misconduct from then-Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott. Two days later, he resigned, but the details of what happened have never been publicly told until now.
What Can Mayors Do When the Police Stop Doing Their Jobs?
In cities across the country, leaders face a phenomenon encountered in Baltimore and Chicago: officers slowing their work in the wake of high-profile episodes of police violence. Reporter Alec MacGillis asks: Will the result be different this time?
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown Calls for Audit After Our Reporting on a State Institute That Lobbied for the Timber Industry
The Oregon Forest Resources Institute worked to undercut academic research and acted as a lobbying and public relations arm for the timber industry. Now, the governor has asked for an audit.
Alaska’s Attorney General Resigns Hours After We Published “Uncomfortable” Texts He Sent to a Younger Colleague
An Anchorage Daily News and ProPublica investigation revealed Kevin Clarkson texted a much-younger state employee hundreds of times, often using kiss emoji and commenting on her appearance.
Alaska’s Attorney General on Unpaid Leave After Sending Hundreds of “Uncomfortable” Texts to a Young Colleague
Kevin Clarkson texted a much-younger state employee to come to his house at least 18 times, often using kiss emoji and commenting on her appearance. He’s been on unpaid leave for weeks, but the state never told the public he was gone, or why.
For Election Administrators, Death Threats Have Become Part of the Job
In a polarized society, the bureaucrats who operate the machinery of democracy are taking flak from all sides. More than 20 have resigned or retired since March 1, thinning their ranks at a time when they are most needed.
What Happened When a Public Institute Became a De Facto Lobbying Arm of the Timber Industry
Internal emails show a tax-funded agency created to educate people about forestry has acted as a public-relations agency and lobbying arm for Oregon’s timber industry, in some cases skirting legal constraints that forbid it from doing so.
Portland Protesters No Longer Being Banned From Attending Protests to Win Release From Jail
After a ProPublica report, federal prosecutors and defenders made a joint request to the court that the practice be stopped.
“Defendant Shall Not Attend Protests”: In Portland, Getting Out of Jail Requires Relinquishing Constitutional Rights
A dozen protesters facing federal charges are barred from going to “public gatherings” as a condition of release from jail — a tactic one expert described as “sort of hilariously unconstitutional.”
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