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Report from Olympia | November 17, 2015
 Beautiful Mount Spokane
Dear
Friends and Neighbors,
As we approach Thanksgiving, Hanukkah and Christmas, we are
reminded of the importance of family, faith and thankfulness for all the
blessings in our lives. I am particularly grateful for the opportunity you have
given me to be your voice in the Senate.
In even-numbered years, like 2016, the legislative session
is scheduled for 60 days, as opposed to odd-numbered years, where it lasts 105
days. The upcoming session, beginning on Jan. 11, will move quickly and there
are plenty of challenges that will need to be addressed.
With voters once again demanding a supermajority in order
for lawmakers to raise taxes (by passing Initiative 1366), the state Supreme
Court still pushing its will over that of the Legislature and the people, and
the need to protect our roads from impaired drivers being greater than ever
before, we must stay vigilant.
In order to represent your voice on all of these issues and
more, we must hear directly from you. That is why we have worked for increased
use of remote testimony to legislative committees and use tools like online
polls to learn where you stand on important issues. There is one such poll
in this e-newsletter that I hope you will take.
If there is anything I can do for you, or if you have
questions about anything in this e-newsletter, please give me a call or send me
an e-mail. Also, my legislative office is open in our district until the 2016
legislative session begins. It’s in Suite 305 at 11707 East Sprague Avenue, in
the Spokane Valley City Hall building, and is staffed by my legislative
assistant, Mike McCliment.
As always, it continues to be a great honor to represent you
in the Washington State Senate.
Best Regards,
Senator
Mike Padden
 WWII Veteran Harry Goedde shares stories about his time on the front lines.
The Legislature has enacted
legislation declaring November as a time to celebrate and commemorate the
contributions of veterans. In addition, Governor Inslee issued a proclamation declaring November 2015 to
be Veterans' History Awareness Month.
I had the opportunity to honor our vets at the "Welcome
Home" community tribute to all veterans at Felts Field. It was
the fourth annual event for our community at this historic venue, and each year’s
has been better than the one before.
This year, the keynote address was delivered by PFC Harry
Goedde, U.S. Army. PFC Goedde is a highly decorated World War II veteran who served
in the 3rd Army under Gen. George Patton and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.
He is also the author of "From The Depression Into WWII," an
autobiography of his life before and during WWII, and the heroic service which
earned him a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star and several other awards. PFC Goedde shared
his view of war and life after war, as seen from the foxhole.
Other
speakers included Col. Brian McDaniel, Wing Commander at Fairchild AFB and
Spokane Mayor David Condon. Also featured was the Spokane Brass Works, vintage
aircraft and other military displays. The Meadowridge Elementary School chorus
gave us rousing renditions of the song for each service – Army, Air Force, Navy
and Marines.
It
was a great event and a tremendous opportunity to thank our veterans and show
our appreciation to them for their sacrifice and service.
Committee to ask why victims’ families were not
consulted in Green River Killer’s relocation
During the “interim” between legislative sessions the
leaders of the Senate and House committees have the ability to call work
sessions to keep up with ongoing and emerging issues. As you have read in
previous updates, the Senate Law and Justice Committee has been active
throughout the summer and fall.
This week we are holding our committee assembly in Olympia.
This is a time for planning for the upcoming year, and gives us one additional
opportunity to look at some of the key issues we need to address.
On Friday the committee will meet to discuss
criminal-justice process issues in two high-profile cases. One involves Gary
Ridgway, the “Green River Killer,” who preyed on women in King County for some
20 years. Earlier this year it was revealed that he had been secretly
transferred to a prison in Colorado by the state Department of Corrections to
continue serving the life sentence he received in 2003. Sadly, family members
of Ridgway’s victims were never notified or consulted.
As noted in a KING-TV
news report, Mary Marrero, whose sister Becky was Ridgway's 49th victim,
said she was “disgusted by the Department of Corrections,” and called its
actions “unjustified.”
“I feel like the detectives and the families have been
totally disrespected in this case,” said U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert (R-8th
Congressional District). He was the lead King County detective in the
investigation that resulted in Ridgway’s arrest in 2001 and will be testifying
at our Nov. 20 meeting.
While the Department of Corrections reversed its decision
after complaints from families and law enforcement, there are still questions
as to why Ridgway was moved out-of-state in the first place.
The other case we will examine is a decision by the state
Indeterminate Sentencing Review Board, which could lead to the early release of
confessed murderer Timothy Pauley.
Pauley committed a heinous attack on five people during a 1980
robbery of the Barn Door Tavern in the SeaTac-area. Three of his victims were
killed and one, a 30-year-old woman, was raped and left hanging by her neck
from a railing.
Sentenced to three life terms in prison, Pauley could now be
freed in about a year and a half thanks to a decision by the Sentencing Review
Board.
“Our family never imagined that Mr. Pauley would be released
from prison — at least not during our mother’s lifetime,” Angie Dowell, the
daughter of one of Pauley’s surviving victims, told The Seattle Times. “Mr. Pauley continues to this day to minimize
his involvement in the robbery and murders.”
Ms. Dowell and other victims will share their testimony on
what they see as a lack of transparency and concern for the victims in the
Department of Corrections and Sentencing Review Board’s processes.
In addition to addressing these concerns, the committee will
also discuss a number of other important issues including school warrantless-search
exceptions.
Drones, 3-D printers and wearable technology for
athletes are just a few of the technology advances that will shape the future of
manufacturing. They were among the highlights of the agenda at the 2015 AWB
Manufacturing Summit that was held on Thursday, Nov. 12 in SeaTac.
A panel on “The Next Generation of the Manufacturing
Workforce” featured a discussion of 3-D printing from our own Spokane Valley
Tech.
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 Spokane Valley Tech Engineering students teamed with Marvel Universe LIVE!, Shriners Hospital, and e-NABLE to build 3-D printed prosthetic hands for three Shriners Hospital patients and others around the world.
Back
in June, Logan Wolkey, Chris Tveit and Connor Codd – three students from
Spokane Valley Tech – used the manufacturing skills they learned in class to
3-D print prosthetic hands to send to Nepal.
The
three advanced engineering students took part in an event coordinated by
Shriners Hospital for Children in Spokane and e-NABLE, a group of 3-D printing
enthusiasts. The event arranged for children with missing digits to be custom-fitted
with 3-D-printed, Marvel-inspired prosthetics that will allow them to grasp
small objects.
The work highlighted by AWB is just one example
of some of the tremendous Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (or STEM)
skills being taught at Spokane Valley Tech. We are extremely proud of the
students and teachers who have used those newly learned skills to help others.
Legislators often hold town-hall meetings with hundreds of
constituents at a time, or even telephone town-halls with thousands of
attendees. While these are productive, I really appreciate talking one-on-one
with the people I serve. This interim I have thoroughly enjoyed meeting with
folks over cups of coffee. If you have taken time to join me at one of these
coffee meetings, thanks!
If you haven’t had a chance to attend one in the past, don’t
fret. Before the 2016 session begins in mid-January, we have time for one more
of these “coffee tours” in our district.
I invite you to come by Forza Coffee in Spokane Valley on
Wednesday, Dec. 9, for a conversation with me over a cup of coffee. I am
preparing for the 2016 legislative session and want to hear your concerns,
ideas and questions so I can better address the needs in our legislative
district.
Normally I’d ask you to just drop in – but because of
limited seating, it would be easier if you phone my local legislative office at
921-2460. My legislative assistant, Mike McCliment, will schedule a time for us
to sit down and visit.
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