May 2016
Seattle's trash police defeated in privacy suit
 
 
As you may have heard, PLF and our clients have achieved a major win in Bonesteel v. City of Seattle -- our challenge to Seattle's garbage snooping program. Since January 2015, the City has used its garbage collectors to hunt through residents' garbage cans in search of prohibited food waste. On April 15, we held oral argument before Judge Beth Andrus at the King County Superior Court, where we urged the court to protect Seattleites' privacy from City prying.
 
The judge didn't take long to side with privacy. On April 27, she issued a decision invalidating the search program. The judge said the rule "allow[s] trash collectors to open and search the contents of a resident's garbage bags, even when food or compostable paper is not in plain view," and concluded that the state constitution's right to privacy cannot abide this warrantless intrusion.  
 
What happens next? The City has not said whether it plans to appeal. The City Council has not commented on the decision, nor do changes to the rule appear to be on their agenda. A notice of appeal would be due imminently, and if one is filed, you'll read about it here.
 
PLF appreciates our clients' commitment to this case and the many positive comments we have received from our supporters and the general public. PLF charges no legal fees for its role as watchdog, and we depend on our donors to prosecute cases like this one. Please consider joining the ranks of our donors today!

Read more about this case in our blog. View our video about the case.  
Alaska: PLF challenges permafrost = wetlands rule  
 
     
PLF attorneys have challenged the Army Corps of Engineers' arbitrary designation of permafrost as "wetlands" subject to the Clean Water Act. Filing suit in the U.S. District Court for Alaska, PLF represents Richard Schok and his family and their businesses. The family's plan to relocate their pipe insulation and oil-exploration-support business headquarters to a larger property was foiled when the Corps designated 200 acres of that property as permafrost "wetlands," a designation that contradicts their own wetlands delineation manual as well as the intent of Congress.

 
Read more about the case here.
 
Washington Cattlemen and PLF challenge take rule

Washington Cattlemen's Ass'n v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Earlier this month PLF's Board approved a request to represent the Washington Cattlemen's Association in petitioning the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to overturn a regulation that forbids the "take" of a threatened species. The Endangered Species Act, as written, forbids take (basically anything that harms a species or its habitat) of endangered species, those in immediate danger of extinction. But Congress opted not to extend this burdensome restriction to threatened species, which face only remote risks. Ignoring Congress' choice the Service's regulation extends the prohibition to the hundreds of threatened species, including the Northern spotted owl and the newly listed Oregon spotted frog. As a consequence, local economies throughout Washington and Oregon have suffered. In the petition, and in litigation should it be necessary, PLF attorneys will argue that the regulation is beyond the lawful power of the Service and must be repealed.
 
PLF celebrates Rob Rivett as retirement looms

The days are counting down until the retirement of long-time PLF president Rob Rivett. A PLF attorney for 41 years, Rivett also helped found the Pacific Northwest Center in the 1990s, before becoming president of the Foundation as a whole in 2006. Earlier this month, PLF staff and trustees gathered in Sacramento to celebrate the service of our longtime president and chief baseball fan.

 
Rob Rivett, with wife Barbara, at his retirement party
May 12. Seen here with specimen of the Sacramento River Cat, thought to be a threatened species.


John Groen will serve as PLF's Interim President  

Washington-based Principal Attorney John Groen accepted the position of interim president, effective June 1. Groen also serves as PLF's general counsel, as well as principal attorney in charge of the U.S. Supreme Court case, Murr v. Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, the Foundation continues its search for a Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer to replace Rivett.
 

Pacific Legal Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization.

Contributions are tax deductible to the 

fullest extent permitted by law.

  

Recent YouTube Videos

 

Roadblock to Economic Liberty in West Virginia  

 

If You Believe, You Can Achieve: The Story of Edmund Lee, Jr.  

  Eroding Freedom: A Family's Fight to Protect Their Home  

 

Minnesota Business Challenges the Feds to Have Their Day in Court 

Visit our website or listen to our latest podcast to learn more about how PLF is rescuing liberty from coast to coast.
 
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