Longshoremen Union-Backed Attempt to Recall Washington Sherriff Fizzles

An ILWU-backed effort to recall the Cowlitz County, WA Sheriff failed this week after a Washington judge ruled that none of the charges raised by the Longshormen's local met any of the legal requirements for a recall election.

[Judge] Warning said his ruling was based on the fact that union offered no witnesses to demonstrate there was a good-faith belief that the claims were based on actual incidents. Warning also said elected officials have broad discretion to carry out their duties and can't be recalled based on actions of their subordinates, such as deputies making arrests.

[Sherriff] Nelson said after the ruling that he was relieved to be able "to get back to work." He added the recall was a "distraction" that's "taken up far, far too much time, and I want to get back to doing the things the sheriff ought to be doing."

During the hearing he said that he's urged both sides to follow the law since the protests began but had to make arrests "once unlawful actions began."

"I respectfully submit I've done nothing wrong except work to keep the peace," Nelson told Warning.

There has been some speculation the recall and a federal civil rights lawsuit were attempts to intimidate law enforcement to back off at future protests.

"If that's true, those people don't know me very well," Nelson said after the hearing.

Union officials said they were disappointed with the ruling and needed time to "regroup" before deciding if they'll appeal to the state Supreme Court.

During the hearing, ILWU lawyer Laurie Davis repeatedly said Nelson had failed to protect union members from harm and that voters should get to decide if he remains in office. She acknowledged that many union supporters have been arrested, but said it was how they were arrested and treated that the union questioned.

"Just like we are accountable for the behavior we did, he's accountable for not supervising his subordinates and keeping them from injuring us," Davis said. "It's his job to protect every citizen in Cowlitz County, and that includes ILWU members."

Warning said he was surprised the union didn't have any witnesses, saying the roughly hour-long hearing concluded much more quickly than he had expected. Officials had reserved the courtroom for the entire day.

The recall effort was launched just weeks after members of ILWU Local 21 raided a grain unloading facility in Longview, WA with baseball bats and axe handles taped to picket signs before dumping grain and cutting the air lines on a parked freight train and wrecking a vehicle belonging to one of the port's security gurads.

Illegal Immigrants Taken Into Custody in Vermont Traffic Stop; Governor Demands Investigaton- of State Trooper

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin demanded an internal probe of the State Police stemming from traffic stop on Interstate 89 in Middlesex, VT involving two illegal aliens who were taken into custody this week.

After reading this account from the Burlington Free Press, I'll let you guess Gov. Shumlin's political affiliation.

Gov. Peter Shumlin on Tuesday night ordered an internal investigation of a Vermont State Police traffic stop earlier in the day involving migrant farm workers that later led to a protest at the Middlesex state police barracks.

Two passengers were detained in the traffic stop on Interstate 89, including a leader of the Vermont Migrant Farmworker Solidarity Project.

“The governor is concerned by accounts of the incident and ordered an immediate internal investigation to determine the facts of what happened and if Vermont State Police bias-free policies were followed,” a news release issued by Shumlin’s office stated.

How exactly does 'bias-free policing' work, anyway? If a policeman pulls over a motorist wearing a Lone Ranger Mask, Hamburglar shirt and bags marked with dollar signs next to him, does he refrain from asking the motorist a few basic questions for fear of having some sort of 'bias' complaint lodged against him?

Vermont State Police Director Tom L’Esperance said a state trooper stopped a vehicle for going 88 mph on the interstate in Middlesex. The trooper followed the vehicle for a short distance before pulling it over, police said.

During the traffic stop, the driver provided valid identification and faces a civil citation in connection with the vehicle’ speed. But the trooper became aware that two of the passengers might not have been in the country legally, L’Esperance said.

The two passengers taken into custody were determined to be in the U.S. illegally, said Mark R. Henry, operations Officer at the Swanton Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol.

They were later processed at the U.S. Border Patrol station in Richford, Henry said. Henry said both men — whose names and nationalities were not made public – were most likely to be released with an order to appear for a hearing at a later date.

I find it quite telling that the Vermont State Trooper in question did nothing out of the ordinary, yet Gov. Shumlin demanded a probe of the traffic stop that very day. In 49 other states, I think what that State Trooper did would be considered basic police work.

Good to see that in less than a month, Vermont has sufficiently recovered from the worst flooding in nearly 80 years for the good governor to investigate why the State Police are doing things like pulling over speeding motorists and taking people who are in violation of the law into custody.

Don't worry- it gets even better!

After the traffic stop, state police took the two suspects to the Middlesex barracks, where an incident took place involving supporters of the men who were in the car. When the Border Patrol attempted to leave with the two illegal-immigration suspects, five people attempted to block the federal officers, state police said. Troopers ordered the individuals to move, and three did not, police said.

Those three individuals were arrested on charges of disorderly conduct. The individuals are accused of forming a shield, said Capt. Dan Troidl, commander of Troop A, which covers five northwestern counties.

I'm guessing that at some point during either the traffic stop or at the Middlesex barracks, the phrase 'Do you have any idea who you're dealing with?' was uttered- and not by anybody in uniform.

Well, the good news is that the Governor of Vermont's term lasts two years instead of the four years that is typical in most other states, so Shumlin could be looking at an ouster for this Bloomberg-caliber micromanaging as early as next year. The bad news is that this is Vermont, and odds are enough people will either see no problem with this or think Shumlin didn't go far enough that he will remain safely ensconced in Montpelier after November 2012.

Let us never forget......

Let us never forget the World Trade Centers and American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175.

Let us never forget United Airlines Flight 93.

Let us never forget the Pentagon and American Airlines Flight 77

Let us never forget the Policeman, the Firemen, and the hundreds of people that helped save lives and gave their own life while saving others.

Let us never forget the innocent lives that were lost that day.

Let us never forget to forgive and let our hearts heal.


"Throughout life people will make you mad, disrespect you and treat you bad. Let God deal with the things they do, cause hate in your heart will consume you too." .... Will Smith