Docket No. 83645-1 Facts: Judge James Cayce of the Superior Court for King County presided over the taking of a deposition from a witness in a criminal trial in an empty courtroom. In response to a motion by defense counsel, Cayce agreed to close the courtroom to non-parties. Tacoma News, Inc., whose representatives had attempted to enter the courtroom during the deposition but were refused entry, subsequently petitioned the Supreme Court of Washington for a writ of mandamus compelling Cayce to open the deposition to the public, asserting that closing the taking of the deposition had violated both Article I §10 of the Washington State Constitution’s guarantee of the open administration of justice and the 1st Amendment to the United States Constitution’s implicit guarantee of public access to criminal trials. Continue reading
Category Archives: 2010 Arguments
Samantha A. v. Department of Social and Health Services
Docket No. 84325-2 (from Thurston Case No. 07-2-02555-1) Facts: Respondent Samantha A., a child who suffers from a host of medical problems and receives in home Medicaid personal care, filed suit against the petitioner Department of Social and Health Services in the Superior Court for Thurston County, asserting that Washington Administrative Code §388-106-0213, which provides for automatic reductions in the number of hours of Medicaid personal care received by children based upon their age and whether or not they live with their parents, violates 42 U.S.C. §1396a(a)(10)(B)(i)’s Medicaid comparability requirements. Continue reading
Dolan v. King County
Docket No. 82842-3 Facts: Respondent Kevin Dolan, a public defender employed by a non-profit organization contracted by petitioner King County to provide legal services for indigent defendants, filed suit against King County in the Superior Court for Pierce County on behalf of himself and others similarly situated in an effort to obtain the right to enroll in the state’s Public Employees Retirement System. Continue reading
Hardee v. Department of Social and Health Services
Docket No. 83728-7 (from Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 62436-9) Facts: Petitioner Kathleen Hardee’s home child care license was revoked by the respondent Department of Social and Health Services after Hardee’s son sexually assaulted a child in Hardee’s home and a subsequent investigation by the Department of Social and Health Services revealed that Hardee’s son had had unsupervised access to children under Hardee’s care in violation of a safety plan imposed in response to his previous convictions for harassment, intimidation, and assault. Continue reading
Beggs v. Fregeau
Docket No. 84098-9 (from Spokane Case No. 07-2-05477-9) Facts: Following Tyler DeLeon’s death as a result of neglect and abuse by his adoptive mother, petitioner Breean Beggs and his other adoptive siblings filed suit against respondent David Fregeau in the Superior Court for Spokane County, alleging that Fregeau, as DeLeon’s physician, had been aware of the neglect Continue reading
Mills v. Western Washington University
Docket No. 83597-7 (from Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 62402-4) Facts: Respondent Perry Mills, a professor at Western Washington University, was suspended without pay for two academic quarters following a hearing before a university disciplinary panel that concluded that Mills had engaged in a pattern of abusive and inappropriate behavior toward students and faculty. Continue reading
In re personal restraint of Nichols
Docket No. 83742-2 (from Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 59750-7) Facts: Petitioner Glenn Nichols was convicted of possession of cocaine with intent to deliver and possession of marijuana in the Superior Court for King County after a hotel desk clerk identified Nichols to police officers as the occupant of a hotel room in which a cocaine purchase had occurred, the officers discovered that Nichols’ driver’s license was suspended, and the officers proceeded to arrest Nichols for driving with a suspended driver’s license and discovered cocaine and marijuana in a search of Nichols’ person incident to the arrest. Continue reading
Washington v. Robinson
Docket No. 83525-0 (from Court of Appeals Division II Case No. 36918-4) Facts: Petitioner Michael Robinson was convicted of burglary, theft of a firearm, unlawful possession of a firearm, and possession of methamphetamine after a search of an automobile he was riding in following its driver’s apprehension for reckless driving revealed stolen property. Continue reading
Washington v. Wilson
Docket No. 83797-0 (from Court of Appeals Division II Case No. 37496-0) Facts: After reaching a plea agreement with prosecutors, petitioner Jason Wilson pled guilty to two counts of identity theft in the Superior Court for Grays Harbor County and was sentenced. Continue reading
Blair v. TravelCenters of America
Docket No. 83715-5 (from Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 62033-9) Facts: Petitioner Maureen Blair filed suit against respondent TravelCenters of America in the Superior Court for King County after injuring herself by slipping and falling on a gasoline spill in the parking lot of a truck stop operated by TravelCenters of America. After Blair failed to timely submit a complete list of witnesses she planned to call at trial, the trial court struck two of the witnesses that had been untimely added and granted TravelCenters of America’s motion for summary judgment on grounds that Blair could not prove causation in the absence of the two witnesses that had been struck. Continue reading