Bike cops in the West Precinct will be the first Seattle cops to get body cameras.
Bike cops in the West Precinct will be the first Seattle cops to get body cameras. SPD

Some Seattle Police Are Now Wearing Body Cameras: Bike officers in the West Precinct are now wearing cameras and the city promises to expand the program in coming months. “Bottom line:" said Council President Bruce Harrell in a statement, "Body cameras will improve transparency with our community and promote accountability, help us better train our police officers and provide better evidence as to what actually happens in the field."

Civilian Watchdogs Won't Investigate Complaints Against King County Sheriff John Urquhart: After a former sheriff's deputy accused the sheriff of raping her 14 years ago and took her complaint to the county's Office of Law Enforcement Oversight (OLEO), that office told her it does not have the legal authority to handle individual complaints, Lewis Kamb reports. "More than five years after its establishment—and more than a year after King County voters approved a charter amendment to expand its powers to independently investigate deputy misconduct complaints—OLEO’s authority largely remains restricted, interviews and records show," Kamb writes.

U.S. Attorney Says SPD Is in Initial Compliance With DOJ Agreement: The Seattle Police Department "is making progress in supervising, investigating, and counseling officers to help them do their jobs effectively and increase accountability," U. S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes said in a statement yesterday. According to the Department of Justice, the SPD has shown initial compliance with DOJ requirements about notifying the chain of command about uses of force, creating a consistent management structure, and training sergeants. The City of Seattle will be in court this morning for a status conference addressing ongoing questions about reform and the police union.

The Lummi Nation successfully blocked the construction of a proposed coal terminal at Cherry Point last year.
The Lummi Nation successfully blocked the construction of a proposed coal terminal at Cherry Point last year. MATIKA WILBUR

Department of Natural Resources Expands Cherry Point Aquatic Reserve, Rejects Sublease for Coal Terminal Plant: In one action Tuesday, outgoing Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Peter Goldmark added 45 acres of aquatic lands to the permanently protected Cherry Point Aquatic Reserve. The Lummi Nation successfully fought a proposed coal terminal at Cherry Point last year. "The expansion of the reserve today is just as significant to the Lummi people as the Corps’ decision [to block the terminal],” said Jay Julius, Lummi Indian Business Council member, in a statement. “In May, we protected Cherry Point from a single project. Now it’s protected from any projects in the future.” In another decision Tuesday, Goldmark rejected a sublease proposal from Millennium Bulk Terminals for a loading dock at the Longview coal-export terminal, which environmentalists and tribes are also fighting.

Cascade Mall Shooting Suspect Charged: "The Oak Harbor man suspected of killing five people in an October shooting at Cascade Mall in Burlington will be formally charged in Skagit County Superior Court Wednesday, according to the county Prosecutor’s Office," the Seattle Times reports.

Seattle Developer Charged with Fraud: "Developer Lobsang Dargey fooled lots of people," writes Mike Rosenberg at the Seattle Times. "First, it was hundreds of investors from Asia who funneled $150 million into his projects with the hope of receiving a green card under a U.S. program designed to give permanent residency to foreigners who create jobs. Then it was the federal government, which gave conditional green cards to the foreign investors, relying on Dargey’s assurances." Dargey faces federal charges of fraud and concealing information from the government and a maximum sentence of 10 years.

Four New Flu Deaths Reported in Washington in the Last 10 Days: State health officials say it's not too late to get the vaccine, KOMO reports .

Trump's Team Asks Homeland Security for Border Wall, Aerial Surveillance Info: Reuters reports that in early December, Donald Trump's transition team asked the Department of Homeland Security "to assess all assets available for border wall and barrier construction," revealing more about his immigration plans. His team also asked about an aerial surveillance program and about expanding immigrant detention.

Republicans Prepare to Dismantle Obamacare: Mike Pence met with House Republicans this morning, promising a “two-track approach” to use legislation and executive orders to rollback the Affordable Care Act. Pence said Donald Trump is “working on a series of executive orders that will enable that orderly transition to take place," the Washington Post reports.

NAACP Leader Arrested Protesting Jeff Sessions: National NAACP President Cornell William Brooks and a small group of NAACP protesters were arrested after staging a sit-in at Sessions' Mobile, Alabama, office asking him to withdraw his name from consideration for attorney general.


Democracy Vouchers Are on Their Way to Your Mailbox: What you need to know.

The Cold Is Here to Stay: And there's a "little shot" of snow in the lowlands.