Reclaiming heritage
The Snoqualmie Indian Tribe purchased 12,000 acres of ancestral forestlands in the Tolt River Watershed, completing a decades-long effort to regain control over territory that is “enormously important to the Tribe,” tribal officials announced on Feb. 3.
The forest has been used for timber for more than a century, but has significant cultural, historic and economic value to the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe, according to the release. The 12,000 acres are near lands promised to the tribe by the federal government in the 1930s, an agreement the United States did not honor.
“Going forward, our Tribe will sustainably manage these lands to produce revenue for our Tribe while we steward the functioning ecosystems and thriving wildlife populations that have shared these lands with our People since time immemorial,” said Snoqualmie Tribal Chairman Robert de los Angeles. “Caring for these lands is the sacred duty given to our Tribe by the Creator, and no one can do it better.”
The purchase follows a $125 million deal for the tribe to buy the Salish Lodge and Spa and areas around Snoqualmie Falls.
Hitting deadlines
The City Attorney’s Office will make filing decisions within five business days of a case coming in. The goal is to stop the growth of the backlog of approximately 5,000 criminal cases that has resulted in two-year waiting times for some victims, the office announced on Feb. 7.
The recommendation came from former U.S. Attorney Brian Moran. City Attorney Ann Davison brought Moran into the office in January to help the criminal division “identify process improvements” and address the case backlog. The criminal division deals with misdemeanor crimes in Seattle. It is smaller than the civil division, which handles a variety of non-criminal matters from land use to defending Seattle laws in court.
“My recommendation and assessment is just the first step to solving the City Attorney’s Office case backlog,” Moran said in a release.
Moran’s primary responsibility is reviewing the case backlog, although he will also review staffing and procedures for the criminal division, a spokesperson for the City Attorney’s Office said in an email in January. He will be paid a maximum of $200,000 for the work.
COVID-19 update
Public Health – Seattle & King County reports that new coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths are decreasing. However, public health experts recommend that people use more protective, higher quality masks because of the contagiousness of the Omicron variant.
The best type of mask, recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are N-95 masks, followed by KN-95 masks. N-95 masks, in particular, were difficult to get at the beginning of the pandemic. Officials recommended that they be saved for health care workers.
Ashley Archibald was the editor of Real Change through July 2023, and is now a communication specialist for Purpose. Dignity. Action.
Read more of the Feb. 9-15, 2022 issue.