This week on Inland Journal, Investigate West has been reporting on cases of rape and sexual abuse by Idaho prison guards. Owen Henderson talks with reporter Whitney Bryen about new developments in the investigation.
"Last year, we were able to request through public records request all the names of officers who had left the Department of Corrections in the past decade. We got their names, we got their positions, what prison they worked at, the date they were hired, the date they left, and very importantly, we got the reason that they left the department. It was vague, but basically told us whether officers were fired, whether they resigned, retired, some left for active military duty. Now these state officials are saying we're no longer going to release that reason for separation from a state agency."
We spend time with Washington Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove. He offers his thoughts about why the legislature should not cut his budgets for wildfire prevention and response and maintaining recreational areas.
"One of my top priorities in the legislature right now is to make sure legislators understand the impacts of their proposed cuts to our recreation programs. Both the House and the Senate budgets that were rolled out this last weekend include additional deep cuts to recreation maintenance. And if those aren't reversed through the budget process between now and the end of session, we're looking at closing about 10 or 11 recreation facilities and limiting the hours and services on many more."
Eliza Billingham asks Spokane author Maya Jewell Zeller about her new memoir, Raised by Ferns. It’s a series of essays about living in the Northwest that will be released next week.
"What I don't want is for my students with privilege or my children who have some privilege to walk around the world feeling shame because they were born with something not all of their peers access. Instead, I would like them to have a sense of gentle, tender responsibility and to do something to try to redistribute resources."
