Washington

Congratulations to Judge Raquel Montoya-Lewis, Appointed to Whatcom County Superior Court

Victoria Sweet

Here is the press release from Governor Inslee’s office:

Gov. Jay Inslee announced today that he is appointing Raquel Montoya-Lewis to a new seat on the Whatcom County Superior Court. The new position was approved by the state Legislature in 2013 and established a fourth judge on the bench.

Montoya-Lewis currently serves as the Chief Judge for the Nooksack and Upper Skagit Indian Tribes in Washington and is an associate professor at Western Washington University. She is also an Appellate Court Judge for the Nisqually Tribal Court of Appeals and the Northwest Intertribal Court System and previously for the Nooksack Tribal Court of Appeals. Montoya-Lewis is from the Pueblo of Isleta and the Pueblo of Laguna Indian tribes, and will be the only Native American Superior Court judge in Washington state.

“Raquel’s 15 years of experience as a judge will be well appreciated on the Superior Court,” said Inslee. “She is wise and has a strong commitment to service and to promoting justice. I know she will serve the community and the court exceptionally well.”

Montoya-Lewis is currently an appointee on the Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice and was appointed by Gov. Christine Gregoire to the Washington Partnership Council on Juvenile Justice. She has a J.D. and master’s in social work from the University of Washington and her B.A. from the University of New Mexico.

Montoya-Lewis’ term on the Whatcom County Superior Court begins in January 2015.

Link to the press release here.

Link to news article on Judge Montoya-Lewis’ appointment here.

Bill to Clear Treaty Fishing Convictions Heads to Gov. Inslee

Kate Fort

Here.

American Indian tribal members arrested while exercising their treaty fishing rights before 1975 would get the chance to clear their criminal records under a bill headed to Gov. Jay Inslee’s desk.

House Bill 2080 passed the Senate unanimously Wednesday. It passed the House in February.

The measure would allow tribal members to apply to the sentencing court to expunge their related misdemeanor, gross misdemeanor or felony convictions. Family members and tribal officials also could seek a vacated criminal record on behalf of a deceased person. The court would have the discretion to vacate the conviction, unless certain conditions apply, such as if the person was convicted for a violent crime or crime against a person.

via @SmithsonianNMAI

Yakama Nation Celebrate Sockeye Return to Cle Elum Lake for the First Time in 100 Years

Victoria Sweet

Yakama Nation biologists released thousands of sockeye salmon into a Central Washington lake over the past four summers to restore fish runs that were decimated with the damming of area rivers and streams. Each fall, the just-released fish swam up the Cle Elum River to spawn and die. Their babies, meanwhile, spent a year in the lake before swimming to the ocean to grow into adulthood. Now, four years after the first release in 2009, those adult fish are returning to their birthplace to spawn, and tribal members are celebrating what they hope is the resurrection of a revered species to its native habitat. “You are part of a sacred ceremony to celebrate the return of an important ingredient to our body, our hearts, our life,” Yakama elder Russell Jim told the crowd gathered on the shore of Cle Elum Lake.

Some great pictures from the celebration here.

Thanks to JO for the article.