Attorney General Bob Ferguson released the following statement on the resolution of the Oso landslide litigation:

"The Oso landslide represents one of the most tragic events in state history, and the sympathies of Washingtonians remain with those who lost so much.

"Today’s settlement of the legal chapter of this tragedy represents a fair resolution for all parties."

Charles Urlacher civilly committed since 2011

TACOMA — Prosecutors with the Attorney General’s Sexually Violent Predator Unit seek to prevent a sex offender from being released into the community in a Pierce County Superior Court trial.

Charles Urlacher, 63, was convicted of first- and second-degree rape of a child in 2000. He was civilly committed to the state’s Special Commitment Center on McNeil Island in 2011 after a Pierce County jury found him to be a Sexually Violent Predator (SVP).

Statement from Washington State Attorney General’s Office Communications Director Peter Lavallee:  "I want to set the record straight:  Contrary to any insinuation by the Kim Wyman campaign, Attorney General Bob Ferguson played no role in the decision, the substance or the filing of today’s campaign-finance complaint.  Career Attorney General’s Office legal staff made those calls.
 

“I respect today’s order from Judge Rogoff in the Oso litigation.  I recognize and take responsibility for the errors of my office in conducting discovery in this important case.

Ferguson recused from case

OLYMPIA — The Attorney General’s Office today announced the filing of a complaint in Thurston County Superior Court alleging campaign finance violations by Secretary of State Kim Wyman and her campaign, Citizens for Kim Wyman. The complaint alleges the Wyman campaign failed to timely file contribution and expenditure disclosure reports, as required under the state’s campaign finance laws. It also alleges that the campaign failed to timely deposit contributions.

Tugboat sank in Bainbridge Island’s Eagle Harbor Marina in 2013

PORT ORCHARD — At a hearing today in Kitsap County Superior Court, a judge ordered the former owner of the sunken tugboat Chickamauga to pay more than $44,000 in restitution to the state departments of Ecology and Natural Resources.

The case, prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Criminal Justice Unit, stemmed from the sinking of the tugboat in 2013, which released between 200 and 300 gallons of diesel fuel into Bainbridge Island’s Eagle Harbor.

21 states call for Backpage.com to be held liable for its conduct

OLYMPIA — Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, joined by 20 states, is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the appeal of a case against Backpage.com, which is accused of facilitating child sex trafficking.

Three “Jane Doe” plaintiffs — underage girls who were allegedly marketed for sex through Backpage.com — attempted to sue the website and its operators, only to be turned away by the trial court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston.

More than 2,400 Washington customers to receive relief from retailer

OLYMPIA — Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced today that Virginia-based retailer USA Discounters will provide more than $2.1 million in relief to service members who entered into contracts in Washington state over allegations the company engaged in unfair, abusive and deceptive debt collection practices.

WALLA WALLA — Prosecutors from the Attorney General’s Sexually Violent Predator Unit are appearing in Walla Walla County Superior Court opposing the conditional release of convicted sex offender Justin Mackey into the community.

Mackey, 36, was found to be a Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) in June 2008 and was civilly committed to the state’s Special Commitment Center on McNeil Island. His criminal sexual history includes convictions in 1993 for three counts of Rape of a Child in the first degree.

State’s top lawyer files three new court actions

OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced the filing of campaign finance complaints against Tim Eyman, three political committees, and their officers and treasurer. The AG alleges that shoddy accounting practices and improper disclosure of the source of funds for the committees and their ads violated Washington law.