Washington State

Office of the Attorney General

Attorney General

Bob Ferguson

AG prosecutors seek to prevent release of Pend Oreille County sex offender into community

NEWPORT — A Pend Oreille County Superior Court judge found probable cause to civilly commit a sex offender today after the Washington Attorney General’s Office filed a petition to prevent his release to the community.

Zachery Haugh, 27, was convicted of second-degree rape by forcible compulsion in 2006, indecent liberties with forcible compulsion in 2009, and communication with a minor for immoral purposes with sexual motivation in 2015. Haugh was due to be released from confinement on Jan. 2, 2020 after serving his sentence for his 2015 conviction.

Senate passes bill to repeal death penalty with bipartisan support

Attorney General-sponsored bill converts death penalty to life without possibility of parole

OLYMPIA — Today, the Washington State Senate passed Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s proposal to repeal Washington’s death penalty in a bipartisan 28-18 vote. This is the third time in as many years that the Senate has passed Ferguson’s bill, which will formally end the practice after the Washington State Supreme Court found the state’s method of applying the death penalty unconstitutional.

AG Ferguson statement announcing legal challenge against the Trump Administration’s “double-billing” rule

Trump rule requires insurers to send two separate invoices, jeopardizing health coverage

OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced that he will file a lawsuit against the Trump Administration over its rule requiring health insurance companies to send consumers two separate bills for monthly insurance premiums. This unlawful rule would affect thousands of Washingtonians and cause many to inadvertently fail to pay their premiums in full, jeopardizing their health coverage.

Victory for Puget Sound: Navy signs legally enforceable agreement to stop polluting Puget Sound with ship scrapings, take steps to prevent additional environmental damage

OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced a court order requiring the U.S. Navy to stop scraping the hulls of decommissioned ships in a way that releases metals and other contaminants into Sinclair Inlet near Bremerton. The Navy must also begin a multi-million dollar project to reverse the environmental damage caused by scraping decades of marine buildup off the hull of a ship.

AG Ferguson leads multistate lawsuit over new Trump Administration effort to allow release of 3D-printed guns

Federal judge found previous attempt unlawful

SEATTLE — Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a federal lawsuit today challenging the Trump Administration’s latest effort to allow 3D-printed gun files to be released on the internet, leading a coalition of 21 attorneys general. These files would allow plug-and-play access to 3D-print unregistered, untraceable firearms that can also be very difficult to detect, even with a metal detector. Untraceable firearms are sometimes called “ghost guns.”