“I’m going to bring myself, a few of the Mariners players will stop in,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said.

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They’ll be serving up a special beer on tap called Dog Parade by Seattle-based Hellbent Brewing Company.

“JP Crawford’s a huge dog lover. Ty France. George Kirby,” Scott Servais said. “A number of our guys [will] sign a few autographs, pour a few beers for fans and have a good time and hopefully, along the way, raise some money.”

The event this Wednesday night, sponsored by CARA Veterinary, is aimed at supporting dogs in eastern Washington’s Okanogan County. It’s an area about the size of Connecticut with only a patchwork of private rescue groups but no countywide animal control.

Servais’ wife, Jill, is spearheading the fundraising event to build a shelter as part of her nonprofit, .

“It’s a very small group, but we’re pretty mighty,” Jill Servais said. “We’ve already sent over 20,000 pounds of dog food, and we’ve done a bunch of spay/neuter over there. Last October, we did 250 animals in three days.”

Jill Servais got into animal welfare about 30 years ago while Scott was playing in the minor leagues in Tucson, Arizona. That’s where she worked at one of the city’s municipal shelters.

“The first month that I was working there, they got in 1,700 animals, and we euthanized 1,300 of them,” Jill Servais said. “And that was abhorrent, of course. I just decided at that point that that was going to be my passion in life.”

When the Servaises came to Seattle, Jill continued that passion by volunteering at local shelters. It was there that she heard about a mom-and-pop pup shop on the other side of the state in Cashmere, Wash.

“Everyone kept saying you have to meet this guy. He’s a retired pilot. He’s basically turned his entire house into a dog rescue,” Jill Servais said. That guy is Tom Short, president of , a private animal rescue organization in Cashmere.

A retired Air Force pilot, Short started Okandogs with his wife after years of volunteering with the Humane Society.

“And the more we did that, the more we would walk dogs, and it kind of grabs your heart after a while,” Short said.

Since founding Okandogs nearly 10 years ago, the Shorts have opened their home and hearts to about 7,000 dogs. That includes a yellow lab/golden retriever mix named Tucker.

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“Tucker was going to be put down. He’d swallowed a rock, and people didn’t want to pay for vet bills. So, we took on the responsibility,” Short said. “And then in our interaction with Jill Servais, the Mariners took an interest in him, and lo and behold.”

Tucker joined the roster of the Mariners, serving as their clubhouse dog. Manager Scott Servais said Tucker has really made himself a part of the squad.

“Tucker is in the clubhouse here every day,” Servais said. “Most of his time is in the cafeteria looking for scraps there, but he’s been a nice addition to our team.”

He’s also inspired first baseman Ty France to add a second dog to his family. He went through Okandogs.

“Okandogs had posted Buddy on their Instagram, and I told my wife, ‘I think this is a sign. Like I think we should just… apply for it and see how it goes,'” France said. “We had to do a meet and greet with our other dog and make sure everything went smooth, and thankfully it did, and now he’s with us.”

Fans at Monday’s Bark at the Park also have a chance to adopt. The Mariners are hosting several shelters to showcase their rescue dogs.

Follow Aaron Granillo on or email him here.

“It’s in meth right now, it’s in heroin,” said one Snohomish County woman, 51, who’s remaining anonymous due to her connections with local law enforcement. “It’s in everything right now. It’s going around.”

She’s been addicted for more than half her life, and has watched as the body count grows from the deadly invasion of fentanyl.

“At least 15 that I know,” she said. “A girl actually, her and her mom died within a week of each other.”

There seems to be no slowing the rapid surge in deadly overdose deaths involving fentanyl in Washington state.

In King County alone, 396 people died after using the opioid in 2021. That’s compared with 170 in 2020. Back in 2015, the county recorded .

Statewide, the Washington Health Department says more than 2,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2021, the most on record, and about a 66% increase compared to .

One of those recent deaths was 20-year-old Jayden Barker.

His aunt, Kendra Kruse, placed photos of her nephew surrounded by candles and flowers on a mantle in her living room.

“He played sports, loved soccer, played football,” Kruse said. “Straight A student. Had scholarships set up.”

Kruse says a couple of years after graduating from Everett’s Cascade High school, Jayden started experimenting with painkillers. About six months later, he came across a bad batch.

“I think it was a quarter of what he thought was a Percocet, and that’s all it took was a quarter. Kruse said. “It probably wouldn’t have even taken that much, but he never woke up.”

‘Not enough to just say ‘no’ to drugs:’ Bereaved Mukilteo mother on the need for fentanyl education

Fentanyl doesn’t care if you’re a long-time addict or a kid who’s newly hooked. 2021 was a record-setting year nationwide for deaths from overdoses, and about .

Frank Tarentino is a D-E-A Special Agent in Charge, overseeing the Seattle Field division, but he’s a father first, and tells his own kids:

“This idea that you can decide to experiment and it’s going to be okay is not what it used to be. It’s lethal,” Tarentino said.

Imagine 15 grains of salt, Tarentino said. That tiny amount of fentanyl is enough to kill, and it’s in nearly every street drug. Or it’s disguised as blue pills that look like they came from a pharmacy, which is how so many young people end up dead.

“We’re seizing an enormous amount of counterfeit prescription pills laced with fentanyl,” Tarentino said. “We seized 1.4 million pills in two months. That’s enough to kill every person in Seattle.”

Despite the DEA and border patrol’s attempts to thwart smuggling, little is being done on the other side of the border by the Mexican government to stop the cartels.

They produce it in clandestine warehouse labs with chemicals brought in from China and India. And, the smugglers play games with law enforcement to slip by, said Ali Bradly, an independent journalist embedded with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and other law enforcement.

“We have so many people crossing our border every single day and we don’t have the agents to do that job and also be out in the field,” Bradley said.

Border agents are encountering more people than ever before trying to cross the border; .

“Cartels know when they create these humanitarian crises, that’s when they’re pushing across people in the unmanned areas,” Bradley said. “That is how the drugs that are brought in that are not caught at our checkpoints are also being smuggled through.”

Border Patrol just released April’s drug seizure numbers. Agents stopped more than 1,200 pounds of fentanyl from entering the U.S, .

But they can’t catch it all, and that leaves the clean-up to the DEA… and local women and men in blue.

On a recent morning, the Snohomish County Regional Task Force pursued a drug bust operation, where a caravan of police units pulled up on a trailer, where a suspected drug dealer lives.

The man they find is a low-level dealer, who’s been busted before, about five years ago.

But when the pandemic hit, and he lost work doing construction, he needed extra income to support his family back in Mexico.

He said he makes about $150 extra per day. The drugs he sells comes from Mexico, and are delivered to him through a middle man in Seattle.

He claimed to not know the pills he sells contain fentanyl, only saying, “a lot of people are looking for [them].”

Inside the man’s trailer, police find plastic baggies filled with hundreds of the pills. Commander Jay Baines, who oversees the task force, says, “every one of those could represent an overdose… every one of those pills could kill somebody.”

Baines said almost all of the fentanyl they seize originates from Mexico.

“The crime down there and the cartel and the way they run things, I’m sure the officials in government down there are scared to death of them,” said Baines. “And for the Mexican government to take ownership in that I think is an uphill battle for the United States and our borders, and it’s more open than ever.”

And so the fentanyl continues to pour in and overdoses pile up.

Kendra Kruse, who lost her nephew Jayden Barker to fentanyl, knows there’s no one single solution, but she says education and awareness are key, especially among the youngest potential victims.

“It just takes one time of taking a pill that a friend of theirs who they trust gives it to them,” said Kruse. “And, that’s it. They’re done.”

Weddings rings are some of the most common pieces of jewelry married couples lose. More than in the past five years, according to British insurance company Protect Your Bubble.

Now, a growing network of treasure hunters, known as The , are on a mission to reconnect married couples with missing rings.

Julie Meador realized she lost hers after finishing a round of golf near Wenatchee, Wash., and noticing a hole in one of her pockets.

“I put my jacket on and my rings were gone out of my pocket,” Meador said. “I was like literally freaked out.”

Her wedding ring of 25 years and an anniversary ring were both gone.

“I was like, ‘how am I going to tell my husband this because he was in a foursome behind me,’” she said. “My heart hurt.”

The Meadors scoured the golf course over the next two days, but the rings never turned up. Then their search went online, where they came across TheRingFinders.com, a directory of more than 500 metal detector do-gooders who help strangers find lost items.

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“We’re actually going out and helping people recover things that have deep, sentimental value,” said Jeff Morgan, a Seattle-area ring finder, who joined about five years ago.

Since then, he’s recovered more than 50 wedding rings. He’s found them in backyards, in the snow, on shorelines, and even scuba diving in Puget Sound.

“It’s more than just a hobby, per se. It’s really become more of a passion to help more people,” Morgan said. “When you get that recovery moment it’s just like, ‘ah, yes, another ring saved.’”

One of Morgan’s recent missions took him to the golf course where Julie Meador lost her rings.

“I think he talked to the founding guy of Ring Finders about my situation and that guy was like, ’18 hole golf course? Odds are not good.’”

Chris Turner is CEO of The Ring Finders, which he founded in 2009. He was inspired by his first ring hunt as a teenager in the early 70s.

“I found my neighbor’s ring that was lost in her garden. The look on her face, I’ll never forget that. She just froze. She was stunned,” Turner said. “I got an apple pie on my doorstep for a year every Friday, so I was very happy about that.”

Today’s Ring Finders don’t accept baked goods as payment. In fact, they only ask for donations because Turner insists the business is not about making money.

“Why do I do it? I do it for the smiles. I really do,” Turner said. “I absolutely love what I do. It’s the best job I ever had — once you experience returning something to someone, you’re hooked.”

As for Julie Meador, she went searching for her ring with Jeff Morgan three weeks after it went missing.

Four hours into the hunt, they reached the 15th hole, when Morgan’s metal detector came to life.

“We’ve got your ring,” Morgan said to Meador.

“That’s the one I really wanted,” Meador responded, as she started crying. It was her wedding ring.

Moments later, Morgan found her other diamond in the rough.

Washington DOH: Act now to get COVID under control for holidays

“Laid there on the floor for like 45 minutes,” said the man, whose identity he’s chosen to keep anonymous. “And then I woke up. Couldn’t get up. I turned on my side as much as I could so I could have something to draw my breath in.”

His heart pumped at 120 beats per minute, approaching dangerous levels for a man in his 60s who also suffers from asthma, emphysema, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

“I could actually see my chest beating, moving from this,” he said. “At that point I’m terrified. I was terrified. It’s like what’s going on with me. Why am I overheated and why am I sweating?”

Medics rushed him to Swedish. Doctors hooked him up with oxygen and shocked his heart to restore its normal rhythm. A nasal swab confirmed the coronavirus had latched onto his lungs, infecting them with COVID-19.

Other patients in the hospital were testing positive too.

“At that point, I heard a doctor yell, ‘Everybody mask up. Mask up.’ And, that was basically the beginning of this pandemic in Seattle.”

It took more than 50 days, multiple rounds of steroids, and inhalers to get him out of the hospital. He returned to normal life for some time. Then in July, about four months after his first COVID infection, he started gasping for air again.

“I’m like getting sick. And I’m feeling like the very first time I had it.”

He went back to Swedish, where infectious disease physician, Doctor Jason Goldman, examined him.

“I had an immediate clinical suspicion that he was re-infected because of the time that had passed,” Dr. Goldman said.

through genetic sequencing, making him one of about 15 confirmed cases in the world. It showed the man caught two different versions of the coronavirus. The first one in March resembled the original strain from Wuhan, China. In July, he was infected with a slightly evolved strain that came over from Europe.

“I think this is something that most experts were anticipating. I thought that in Washington state, where we had some of the first infections in the country, we might see the first re-infections as natural immunity would start to wane.”

Dr. Goldman prescribed the patient dexamethasone, a steroid that helped quiet inflammation in his airwaves. He also received remdesivir, the antiviral medication recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a treatment for COVID-19.

It seems the man’s immune system was also better prepared, Dr. Goldman said, leading to a less intense infection.

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“Even though the patient got sick again, the virus was detectable again — it was a totally different strain — the immune system at least worked enough that the disease was not so severe the second time around,” Dr. Goldman said. “The patient recuperated quite quickly.”

A handful of re-infected patients, however, have had different outcomes. A 25-year-old-man in Nevada was sicker the second time. An 89-year-old woman in the Netherlands, who was also undergoing chemotherapy, died during her second bout with COVID.

“What’s happening in these one or two cases where the second infection is more severe? That remains to be seen,” Dr. Goldman said. “Because there are so few cases around the world where this is happening, I don’t think we have a real thorough understanding of the patterns.”

The Swedish Hospital system is investigating at least five more local cases of possible re-infection, and there could be dozens more across the state. University of Washington Medicine Virologist Dr. Alex Greninger is studying some of them, including the case of the Seattle patient.

“Some of these re-infections studied really do indicate that even if you have been infected… I think there’s a low chance, but there’s a chance that you still are at risk,” Dr. Greninger said. “Even if you have some immunity, that immunity declines over time.”

Greninger said it also raises some concerns about how effective a vaccine will be. Overall, he still feels good about the current clinical trials.

“From the phase 1, phase 2 studies things look good there,” Dr. Goldman said. “I think we should feel positive about the vaccine. I think the question will always be, ‘how long that immunity lasts?’”

Re-infected survivors are a part of finding that answer.

John Curley asks Tom Douglas: Why own a restaurant in Seattle

While that’s not a reality for thousands of foster children in Washington,  is giving some the chance to cultivate their culinary passion.

Four aspiring, young cooks recently met up in a gourmet kitchen in downtown Seattle for a cooking class taught by local legend, restaurateur, and chef, Tom Douglas.

Douglas invited the youth from Treehouse as part of the non-profit’s Launch Success Program, supporting foster children as they age into adulthood.

“It’s really made me realize how easily attainable this dream is,” said Journey, who has aspirations of becoming a chef. “It’s not just a dream anymore, I’m actually making my way there now.”

The students learned from Douglas how to properly cut and sear chicken, a simple lesson that makes a big impact, according to Douglas.

“With foster kids you’re being shoved into somebody else’s tradition, somebody else’s household, somebody else’s reason why they celebrate in this particular way,” Douglas said. “But I think the positive energy of starting your own tradition, understanding it’s okay to create that for yourself, is really a positive, awesome thing and I hope they take that away with them.”

Treehouse defines success by steering youth toward a degree or certificate, a living wage, and stable housing. Paris is on a path to achieve it all.

“Hopefully in the near future, I plan to have different restaurants, like different foods, like burger joints, taco joints,” she described.

Tom Douglas says ‘Seattle is a funny restaurant town’

After her cooking lesson with Douglas, Paris set up her own home-kitchen delivery business, a first step to achieving her goals. Treehouse and Douglas say they’ll be there in the coming years, as she transitions from foster care to becoming an entrepreneur.

“You have to find what your end goal is to get through these tougher times, these areas where you’re not as comfortable,”  Douglas said. “That’s what I like about Treehouse — is that it’s the same thing, they’re just there to support.”

Washington DOC to alter policy and allow used books for prisoners

More than 2,000 complaints were filed with the office since it first opened last year. The office was established to provide independent oversight of the state’s prison system.

The report, released Friday, shows most of the complaints were related to concerns over health care. the complaints came as the Monroe Correctional Complex deals with seven deaths at the facility. The prison’s top doctor was fired earlier this year in response.

Inmates at other jails also have gone on meal strikes to protest the quality of food.

DOC officials said they were reviewing the report, which also recommends the department focus more on helping inmates re-enter society.

“To truly see change, the Governor’s office and the Washington Legislature need to give DOC a new vision in line with today’s focus on rehabilitation and reentry,” said Ombuds Director Joanna Carns.

Program helps Washington women with life after prison

The Corrections Department has asked the Legislature for more funding to improve its healthcare and food options.

In a statement sent to the Times, a spokesperson for Gov. Inslee said he’s “pleased to see that DOC and the Ombuds have worked together to identify and address many issues and make improvements to benefit incarcerated individuals and their families.”

Island residents grumbling over Navy’s Growler jet noise

A self-described “sound tracker,” acoustic ecologist Gordon Hempton claims fewer than 10 places in the U.S. remain free of noise pollution. He considers true quiet not an absence of sound, but the complete removal of human-caused noise.

“Silence is so important to me, because without silence I don’t think I’d even know who I was,” said Hempton on a recent afternoon in Washington’s Olympic National Forest, a place he considered one of the least noise-polluted in the country… until recently.

As an award-winning acoustic ecologist, Hempton travels the world to record nature’s soundtrack. His audio portfolio includes snow melting, the Ecuadorian Amazon, and Haleakala Crater on Maui – dubbed “The Quietest Place on Earth” ­– where the sound pressure level is negative decibels inside the crater.

Hempton’s recordings span nearly four decades. After all those years, he’s declared one of the quietest spots in the lower 48. Established on Earth Day 2005, he calls it “One Square Inch of Silence.”

“This simple one square inch will be defended from all sources of noise pollution,” Hempton said, standing in front of the “gateway” to one square inch.

It’s located in Olympic National Park’s Hoh Rain Forest, where annual rainfall totals average 12 to 14 feet. Thick layers of moss cover nearly every tree and the “air is absolutely still and moist.” Hempton claims it’s even possible to hear a hemlock seed fall 300 feet to the forest floor.

Enter the Growler

In recent years, air travel has increased over the park, drowning out some of its natural sounds. That includes an average 2,300 training flights a year by Boeing-made , fighter jets built for electronic warfare. It takes them only about ten minutes to fly past the rain forest from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, approximately 75 miles away.

“We have a unique mission. We’re the only one that does it in the world,” said Commander David Harris, Commanding Officer for the Electronic Attack Squadron at NAS Whidbey, the Navy’s only Growler training team.

The stealthy planes contain electronic jammers that are used to scramble, confuse, and shut down enemy signals. They train in the Olympic Military Operations Areas, airspace established by the Federal Aviation Administration in 1977.

It stretches across a section of the Olympic Peninsula and extends into the Pacific Ocean. The growlers arrived in 2008, and now more are likely on the way after the Navy approved an expansion of the fleet.

“We are very much in demand because, not only the Navy, but all of our coalition and ally partners want the Growler there whenever possible, because we provide them this umbrella of protection,” said Harris. “We’re very, very busy and we could definitely use some help in getting more assets on board.”

The Navy’s plans include an additional 36 growlers, bringing the total to 118. Military officials estimate that will increase the number of flights over Olympic National Park to 2,600.

The Growler expansion has been scrutinized by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, who alleges the Navy’s environmental impact statement did not thoroughly examine the planes’ effects on people and wildlife. Ferguson has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Seattle, challenging the environmental review.

Dori: Ferguson suing Navy over Growler noise just grandstanding

While the Navy acknowledges the sound impact over Olympic National Park, officials said the FAA controls where the growlers can train. The National Parks Conversation Association argues they could voluntarily fly elsewhere.

The association has launched a campaign, called “Hear Our Olympics.” It calls for the Navy to leave the national park’s skies, suggesting they train at other airbases and military airspace.

One example, according to the association, is Mountain Home Air Force Base in Southern Idaho, where the Navy conducts similar training. NAS Whidbey officials estimate that would cost an extra $5 million a year and worry it would waste valuable training time. Harris estimated flying to the Idaho base would take up to an hour.

“There’s another huge cost that’s factored in and that’s the wear and tear on the aircraft,” said John Mosher, the Navy’s U.S. Pacific Fleet Northwest Environmental Program Manager. “Putting additional mileage on them just to get to and from another airspace decreases the service life.”

Mosher said they try to minimize the Growlers’ disturbance by flying high and using more flight simulators. Gordon Hempton said he appreciates the Navy’s effort but thinks it’s not enough to ensure his “One Square Inch of Silence” remains silent.

“They’re no enemies of quiet. They’re just people trying to do their job, and they just need their job redefined a little bit,” said Hempton. “Our national parks belong on earth and in the sky for everybody to enjoy.”

For now, the skies above the Olympic Peninsula belong to the Navy’s mission of defending freedom. What that sounds like is up for debate.

Public Health Seattle and King County reported at least 63 deaths in 2019 so far linked to fentanyl. That’s compared to 23 deaths in 2016.

Guns, money, $300K worth of fentanyl seized from Sammamish home

Just in the past few days, the county investigated at least five suspected overdose deaths, including the case of a 16-year old Skyline High School boy. Another 16-year-old student at the school died in August. Health officials believe they both consumed fentanyl-laced pills.

“We believe both teens likely ingested what they thought were legitimate oxycodone tablets,” said Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht during a news conference Tuesday.

Seven teenagers have died of fentanyl-related overdoses in King County this year. That’s compared to one in 2018 and one in 2017.

Public health official said the fentanyl cases are fueling the recent spike in overdose deaths across the county. Between mid-June and September there were 141 drug overdose deaths, compared to 109 overdose deaths over the same period in 2018, according to Seattle & King County Public Health.

The Issaquah School District issued a statement about the recent Skyline deaths, saying in part: “Our hearts ache for our students and school communities that have been and continue to be impacted by the devastating effects of opiates. Not only are we passionate about the educational success of our students, but we care deeply for their health and well-being.”

Johanknecht said fentanyl has shown up in King County in both pill and powder form. The most common counterfeit pills are blue-colored and stamped with “M30,” made to look like oxycodone. Other tablets are white or green.

“The vast majority of oxycodone pills purchased on the street in King County and elsewhere are likely counterfeit and likely contain deadly amounts of fentanyl,” Johanknecht said.

Starting in October 2020, the Transportation Security Administration will require enhanced Washington licenses to board flights. That’s because standard IDs don’t meet security standards under the 2005 REAL ID act. The legislation “established minimum security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards,” according to the .

New standard WA driver’s licenses still won’t get you through airport security

“Millions of passengers across the US could be prevented access through airport security checkpoints if they do not have REAL ID compliant licenses,” said Lance Lyttle, Sea-Tac Airport Managing Director.

of identification will also work at airport security, including passports and military IDs.

The enhanced license and IDs cost $78 for six years, while standard cards cost $54 for six years. The Washington Department of Licensing has provided more information on acceptable documentation required to obtain an enhanced ID.

A recent U.S. Travel Association survey found nearly 40 percent of Americans don’t have a REAL ID or any other form of identification that will be accepted at airport security checkpoints.

Washington DOL recommends people act now to obtain one before the busy travel season next summer.

“We have about eleven minute average statewide wait times for our driver licensing offices, but we do anticipate that’s going to increase over the summer and the fall,” said Teresa Berntsen, Director of Washington Department of Licensing. “So, please  think about acting now even if you’re renewing your standard driver license or ID card.

Of course, this is not the first time such warnings have been issued. Find more information about Washington’s enhanced IDs at .

“It is closing day,” said owner Dennis Nelson. “We are officially done tonight. Greenlake Vapor will no longer exist in Seattle.”

Gov. Inslee announces ban on flavored vape products statewide

The closure came one day before Washington’s new sales tax on all vapor products takes effect. The bill puts a new 27-cents-per-millileter tax on “closed” vapor products such as JUUL pods, a form of e-cigarettes. Products that are considered “open” or refillable, will be taxed at nine cents per millimeter.

Half of the tax revenues will go toward the Andy Hill Cancer Research Endowment Fund. The rest will go to public health efforts to stopping smoking and enforcement.

Owners like Nelson feared the tax would force them to go bankrupt, some saying it would double their costs.

“There could be a lot of other shops that have decided to stay open that could end up suffering,” Nelson said.

The new tax passed during the most recent legislative session, months before people started getting sick and sometimes dying from vaping-related illnesses. Nationwide, there have been 13 deaths linked to vaping and more than 800 illnesses, including seven in Washington.

“Our state hasn’t had any dollars to go out and do testing of these products,” said Rep. Gerry Pollet, who sponsored the vape sales tax. “We’re saying let’s use that stream of money to start enforcement.”

No common link exists in any of the vaping-related illnesses. Some people who’ve fallen ill said they were using THC, a psychoactive chemical in cannabis. Others reported vaping only nicotine. There is no product or device common to all of the cases. Some speculate, however, chemicals in vapor flavoring products may be to blame.

“What’s happening today in the last year that’s creating the problem? We believe it’s an additive, we believe it’s an ingredient,” said Rick Garza, Director of the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board.

Garza was at the news conference last Friday when Governor Jay Inslee , calling for a ban on all flavoring products. If approved by state Board of Health, it would affect both nicotine and THC products starting on October 10.

“These flavors exist for one reason and one reason only. And that is to make them appealing to young children,” Inslee said.

The state Liquor and Cannabis Board says Washington has approximately 4,000 electronic-cigarette retailers and 500 licenses cannabis businesses. Some in the industry confronted Inslee on Friday, saying his action would push customers to the black market and force stores to close.

“I will have to put my LLC into bankruptcy,” said Margo Ross, who has owned Cloud 509 Moses Lake for two years. “I am not going to be able to afford the bills I have.”

Rare tour of Tacoma immigration detention center

“Washington state’s misguided sanctuary law has not made your community safer,” said Seattle Field Operations Director Nathalie Asher. “It has made them less safe, returning dangerous criminals to the street while tying the hands of local law enforcement officers trying to keep offenders off the streets.”

Asher’s remarks came hours after acting ICE director Matthew Albence held a media briefing at the White House calling on the public to hold lawmakers accountable for creating sanctuary policies that refuse to help deport immigrants who are in United States illegally.

“It is frustrating to see senseless acts of violence and other criminal activity happen in our communities, knowing ICE could have prevented them with just a little cooperation,” said Albence.

The federal officials said they were fed up with local law enforcement not complying with detainers, or voluntary “immigration holds.” Under a recently-passed Washington state law, both local jails and state prisons are barred from complying with the requests. The laws also prohibit them from notifying federal authorities when an immigrant is about to be released from their custody.

Asher cited several examples of undocumented immigrants, who were charged with violent crimes and released from custody despite ICE asking they be held. They include Jose Ramirez Soto, who was arrested and booked into King County Jail for child molestation charges. He was convicted in 2018, and although ICE lodged a detainer, he was released. Ramirez Soto was arrested again in July 2019 for harassment and threats to kill. Asher said he was again set free and remains at large, despite ICE requesting again he be held.

King County Jail refused 370 immigration enforcement holds from 2015-17

State Sen. Lisa Wellman pushed the 2019 measure that made Washington one of the of strictest sanctuary states in the nation. She said the bill, known as the Keep Washington Working Act, is intended to protect the state’s workforce in the hospitality, agriculture, and high-tech sectors.

“Our nation and our state could not have been built without the hands of hard-working immigrants who came from around the world seeking better lives for themselves and their families,” Wellman said. “Despite renewed pressure from our federal government, we refuse to turn our backs on our friends and neighbors who have made Washington their home.”

Wellman added the measure ensures that state tax dollars pay for Washington services, saying “the federal government’s immigration responsibilities should not fall on the shoulders of our local law enforcement and state agencies.”

Asher called that a mischaracterization. “We are simply asking for a timely notification of an impending scheduled release of a person from jail or prison.”

ICE said by denying detainers, it forces the agency to track down criminals — sometimes entering immigrant communities — rather than taking them into custody at jail. Asher said that puts even more undocumented immigrants at risk.

“Instead of a safe transfer of an individual from a jail to ICE, we are forced to look for them in the community with the unavoidable consequence that when we are in the community to arrest these criminals, we lawfully encounter other individuals unlawfully in the United States, people who would not have been encountered by ICE absent sanctuary policies.”

In a statement, the office of Washington Governor Jay Inslee defended the state’s laws.

“The governor is committed to public safety across the state,” said Tara Lee, the governor’s spokesperson. “Unfortunately, the Trump Administration’s approach to immigration policy is not. Taking hard-working immigrants, who are contributing to our communities and our economy, away from their families is not about keeping the public safe — it is about instilling fear and stoking hate.”

ICE said the briefings on Thursday are part of the agency’s efforts to be more transparent and vocal about its mission to enforce federal laws. Earlier this month, ICE led a media tour through the Northwest Processing Center in Tacoma, saying it wanted to dispel falsehoods reported by the media and certain immigrant rights activists.

“We are overdue, frankly, in finding our voice finally in stating facts,” said Asher on Thursday. “We see all this bad information out there. I’m just so over it.”

State and federal agencies have noticed this anxiety in recent years. They say that mindset has become a life-threatening situation as more and more firefighters die by suicide.

Olympia firefighter battles cancer with father’s words

When George Gissler started his career fighting wildfires in the mid 1980s, crew members seldom discussed mental health. Gissler, now the Washington State Forester, said that during his time on the fireline crews were considered a “tool to get the job done.”

“In wildland firefighting, that is especially prevalent,” Gissler said. “We’re very much a can-do type of an organization. But that did sweep a lot of stuff under the table.”

Gissler wants to change the culture. As state forester, he oversees Washington’s largest on-call fire squad within the Department of Natural Resources. It’s made up of the men and women who fight flames in the woods and brush instead of buildings. It’s physically and mentally exhausting work as crew members often spend 16 or more hours in a day battling fire in rugged terrain while spending weeks, if not months, away from the comfort of their family and friends.

“I do know folks who struggle with it greatly. I have lost very dear friends who have succumbed to that depression,” said Gissler.

There are no solid statistics on wildland firefighter suicides because federal agencies don’t track deaths that happen off the job. But it’s become a major concern among the highest ranks of the country’s wildland firefighting community.

“It seems like that in the past couple of years there’s been more that I’ve known then when I first started, unfortunately,” said Shawna Legarza, National Director of Fire and Aviation Management for the US Forest Service.

She said reasons for the rise in suicides are unclear, though some speculate longer and tougher wildfire seasons may be affecting firefighters’ well-being.

“A lot of time, the firefighters that I’ve known, they don’t want to admit they’re feeling a certain way or feel like they need to ask for help,” Legarza said.

That’s what happened to Legarza’s husband, Mark Mullinex. They met in 2001 at Ground Zero as part of the first team of wildland firefighters to help with 9/11 recovery efforts. It was one of the many tragedies that weighed on his mental health, according to Legarza. Mullinex took his own life seven years later at the age of 48. He never sought professional help.

“Now, we’re really working on our firefighting culture to be able to give tools that are not just how to dig lines and spray water,” Legarza said. “Give them emotional intelligence and social science tools at a younger age to be able to be prepared for their life in wildland firefighting.”

Legarza, who earned a PhD in psychology after her husband’s suicide, said things can get especially tough when the season ends. Firefighters lose camaraderie, a paycheck, and for some, a sense of purpose. Gabe Baez knows that feeling.

“It’s a degree of anxiety, for everybody it’s going to be different” said Baez, a safety officer with Washington DNR. “Have I ever felt depressed? Yes, I have.”

Baez started as a structure firefighter in Lacey nearly 30 years ago. He said mental health is a well-known factor in suicides among the year-round firefighters who battle flames in buildings and homes. The Firefighter Behavioral-Health Alliance says the firefighters are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty, while a 2015 survey on suicide risk in firefighters found more than half contemplated taking their own lives.

Wildland firefighters face many of the same mental health challenges, though there are some stark differences. Structure crews usually have year-round work, steady health insurance, and trauma training. Wildland crews typically work for a few months and lack consistent health care. If they get down mentally, they’re not simply able to step away and seek therapy. They build tight bonds with their team before they’re suddenly split up for the off-season.

For the last few years, DNR has been working to address the situation by giving its firefighters preparedness guides that focus on mental health. The department is actively developing a peer support program and takes part in training sessions to learn about stress management.

“What are the flags and what are the signs and how can we notice those things before it’s too late or diffuse the mentality of depression and possible suicide or addiction to alcohol and drugs on the off-season,” Baez said.

A critical step, according to wildfire agencies, is breaking down the stigma of being the tough, pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps firefighters and realizing it’s OK to ask for help. That’s something the Wildland Firefighter Foundation preaches. The Idaho-based support group offers professional guidance to help struggling firefighters get the help they need.

“There’s a big relief for those people that have been harboring it for a long time and realizing that you’re not weak in any way,” said Mark von Tillow, the foundation’s outreach director. “You just need to be right in your mind, body, and spirit to do this job.”

September is National Suicide Prevention Month. If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, contact the  at 1-800-273-8255 (En Español: 1-888-628-9454; deaf and hard of hearing: 1-800-799-4889) or the  by texting HOME to 741741.

Seattle unveils new plan to curb affordable housing crisis

Standing in a vacant Seattle City Light lot in the Phinney Ridge neighborhood, Durkan said the land is slated to be converted into 19 family sized town-homes.

Another 8 condominiums are planned on Seattle City Light property in Loyal Heights. The land is being donated to non-profit developers Habitat for Humanity and Homestead Community Land Trust to build permanently affordable homes for ownership.

“While this is a small project, it is a big start,” Durkan said. “For everyone of those families it will make a life changing difference.”

The projects cost a combined $2.2 million and are expected to be approved by the Seattle City Council. Durkan said Seattle is the first city to use a new state law that allows cities to use surplus utility properties for affordable housing.

ICYMI: announces new investments in affordable homeownership opportunities on City-owned properties & further actions on housing affordability. WATCH:

— Seattle Channel (@SeattleChannel)

“One of the things we have to do is to put our public lands to work for the public,” Durkan said. “To make sure that when we have lands that are available and suitable for housing, we find a way to use them for that.”

Durkan advances plan for low-income housing in Discovery Park

The announcement came amid a series of recent summer proposals that are part of Durkan’s “Housing Seattle Now Plan,” including the recent sale of the so-called “Mercer Mega Block,” to build a mixed-use health science campus. That development would include 175 affordable housing units.

Durkan that she was nominating acting director of the Office of Housing, Emily Alvarado, to serve as the agency’s permanent director. The office has been operating without a leader director since mid-July, when former administrator Steve Walker departed. The City Council is expected to approve Alvarado’s nomination.

Today, I am proud to nominate Emily Alvarado to serve as the permanent director of . Emily is passionate about creating a more affordable, inclusive city for all our neighbors, and she is committed to centering racial equity and social justice.

— Mayor Jenny Durkan (@MayorJenny)

UW study looks at how marijuana impacts infants’ brain development

The research — aptly titled “Moms + Marijuana” — aims to examine marijuana use exclusively among pregnant women who don’t use other substances and/or alcohol.

“The very few investigations that have studied prenatal cannabis exposure and infant brain development have all involved women who are poly-substance drug abusers,” said Dr. Natalia Kleinhans, the study’s lead researcher.

Mainstream medicine already advises pregnant women against using cannabis to relieve morning sickness, citing studies suggesting it might negatively affect fetal growth, including low birth weight and infant brain deficits.

Supporters of the UW study said while they agree marijuana consumption during pregnancy is ill-advised, there’s also the need for more evidence.

“I don’t think the surgeon general’s advisory says that we know everything and therefore we don’t need anymore research,” said Dr. Susan Weiss, who directs outside research for the National Institute on Drug Abuse. NIDA provided nearly $200,000 for the UW study.

Dr. Kleinhans said she hopes to recruit 70 pregnant women during their first trimester. Half will already use marijuana at least twice a week. The other half will be clean. Their infants will undergo brain scans at six months to compare their development. While the participating women are paid $300, researchers will not provide the pot.

“I would absolutely not conduct a study where researchers were administering marijuana to pregnant women or randomizing women to be taking marijuana,” said Dr. Weiss. “That would be an incredibly unethical thing to do at this point in time.”

The research comes as surveys show the number of women using cannabis in the year before they became pregnant or early on in their pregnancy increases. U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug among pregnant women. A 2017 study showed about seven percent reported using it within the past month.

“Not enough people know that today’s marijuana is far more potent than in days past,” said Adams on Thursday as he issued the public warning. “This ain’t your mother’s marijuana.”

Adams said he’s concerned pregnant women are unaware of the hazards as marijuana becomes more mainstream and more potent. He said the products produced today include pot’s main active ingredient, THC, with levels of at least 12 percent, a three-fold increase over the last 20 years.

Babies of cannabis-using rats show negative cognitive effects

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar stood alongside Adams on Thursday stating that “no amount of marijuana use during pregnancy” is safe.

“When a pregnant woman uses marijuana, THC can enter the baby’s brain and poses risks for its development, a risk that continues during breastfeeding,” said Azar.

Critics of the UW study have called it bogus, arguing it unnecessarily threatens fetuses. But, NIDA has said the changing marijuana culture is one reason the UW study is so vital because previous research has not considered the latest products on the market.

“A lot of the data we have is from the previous generation of people who are primarily smoking marijuana,” said Dr. Susan Collins, co-director of the Harm Reduction Research and Treatment Center in Seattle. “That’s not going to necessarily be very indicative of what happens when people are vaping cannabis or people are using edibles or people are drinking teas or consuming it in the various different ways that are on the market these days.”

The “Moms and Marijuana” study requires participants to purchase marijuana only from licensed sellers, and send photos of the products they’re using so researchers can track the amount of THC and cannabidiol, a non-active compound in marijuana.

“We shouldn’t not do research on people who are using substances because we wish that they weren’t doing substances,” said Collins. “But it is a good idea to be watching substance users and seeing how their behavior is affecting themselves, their communities, their families.”

“Today, a full-time minimum wage job in America will not keep a mama and a baby out of poverty,” Warren said. “That is wrong and that is why I am in this fight.”

Warren wove in personal stories about her humble upbringing in Oklahoma, and how she became a special needs teacher and a young mother before pursuing bankruptcy law.

Ross: Why Elizabeth Warren should visit Fox’s hostile ground

The 70-year-old Massachusetts Senator has been surging in popularity lately, running either second or third . Her campaign said Sunday’s event was Warren’s largest rally to date. The staff estimated 15,000 attendees. When asked about the crowd size, Warren noted, “I just think it’s a sign that people are ready for change in Washington.”

The Senator’s opening remarks included a nod to Washington Governor Jay Inslee, who last week bowed out of the presidential race. Warren said the country owes Inslee a great deal of gratitude for pushing the climate agenda, and vowed to take on the issue if she becomes president.

“I’m going to put a moratorium in place. No new drilling, no new mining on any federal lands or off-shore,” Warren said.

Warren said the climate change debate is evidence of the corruption she promised to tackle head-on by ending “lobbying as we know it” and blocking “the revolving door between Washington and Wall Street.”

While she was short on specifics about many of her policy ideas, including Medicare For All, Warren went into most detail about her proposed wealth tax. The plan calls for a 2 percent tax on the 75,000 largest fortunes in this country, that includes families with $50 million or more in assets.

“First 50 million is free and clear, but your 50 millionth and first dollar you’ve got to pitch in 2 cents,” said Warren. “And 2 cents on every dollar after that.”

Warren claimed that would generate $2.75 trillion over the next decade, enough to cover childcare, pre-K, raise the wages of every preschool teacher, and provide college tuition for anybody who wants it.

While several polls found the plan has broad support, some analysts have doubts about its implementation. cited the Tax Policy Center, which argued a number of factors could throw it off-course. At least one separate analysis of Warren’s tax found it would generate only 40 percent of what Warren claims.

The Senator all but avoided another one of her headline-grabbing proposals: Splitting up big tech companies. Standing only a few blocks from Amazon’s headquarters and engineering centers for Google and Facebook, Warren did not call out the companies by name.

Elizabeth Warren’s Sunday town hall moved to Seattle Center

“The giant corporations have just gotten bigger and they just have so much power,” Warren said. “How about we get a president who’s got the courage to enforce the anti-trust laws?”

Warren’s proposal would appoint regulators to undo tech mergers, including Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods, Facebook’s deals for Instagram and WhatsApp, and Google’s purchase of Waze.

Her speech wrapped up with three questions from the audience about protecting LGBT rights, addressing immigration, and perhaps the top concern among Democratic voters, defeating President Trump in 2020.

Cybersecurity expert on Capital One breach

U.S. Magistrate Judge Michelle Peterson said prosecutors proved Paige Thompson is a serious flight risk and would be a danger to the community if she’s released.

Thompson, a former Amazon employee, was arrested last month for allegedly stealing the personal information of more than 100 million Capital One customers, and hacking dozens of other companies.

“You are highly talented and have the means to create additional havoc in our banking system,” Judge Peterson said.

Prosecutors said Thompson should be detained for several reasons, including her lack of ties to the community, residential instability, and unemployment. All of those factors, prosecutors said, make Thompson a risk of flight. They also laid out her erratic behavior in recent years, including threats to shoot up a California social media company and threatening to commit “suicide by cop.”

“The record in this case shows Ms. Thompson is a danger,” said assistant U.S. attorney Andrew Friedman.

Thompson’s lawyers argued she should be released from jail in part because she’s being held with men.

“She’s a greater risk inside as opposed to outside,” said Mohammad Ali Hamoudi, arguing Thompson should be placed in a halfway house instead of a men’s prison. “The federal detention center is not equipped to treat gender dysphoria.”

Thompson is currently being held at the SeaTac Federal Detention Center in the male wing because the Bureau of Prison houses inmates based on their “biological sex.” Prosecutors said the bureau is used to dealing with transgender offenders and that Thompson is receiving all hormone medication. Friedman told the judge the prison’s psychologists report Thompson “generally good and she feels safe.”

If convicted, prosecutors say Thompson could face more than 10 years in prison.

Upon news of the judge’s decision Friday, a Capital One spokesperson released the following statement:

Capital One appreciates the diligent and thorough work of the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office in this investigation, and their efforts to keep the community safe. We have seen no evidence that our customers’ data was used for fraud or disseminated, and the government’s statements are consistent with that. We continue to investigate this matter and will be as supportive as possible to federal authorities in their investigation and ongoing court case.

A case arguing for Seattle’s controversial bike lanes

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednesday, celebrating a new protected bike lane on 8th Avenue and Olive Way. It’s part of the Center City Bike Network, Seattle’s vision to link up protected bike lanes that take people into and through downtown.

The Seattle Department of Transportation said the network has been in the works since 2015. According to SDOT, the project has several goals, including improving safety, increasing ridership, and boosting business. 2019 projects include bike lanes on 8th Avenue, 9th Avenue, and Pike Street.

“The number one goal is safety,” said Dan Anderson, SDOT’s project delivery communications manager. “Make it a good place not only to walk and bike, take the bus and drive, but also to do business.”

Anderson said SDOT does not do economic studies on how bike lanes affect nearby businesses, but he pointed to recent data that showed a spike in ridership when bike lanes are built.

“On 2nd Avenue in downtown, we built protected bike lanes and I believe the number of people biking on 2nd avenue has quadrupled in the few years that we’ve put those in,” he noted.

Citywide, however, the numbers show a different story. Census data show commuting by bike in Seattle hit a 10-year low in 2017, when just 2.8 percent of workers who live in the city biked to work as their main mode of transportation.

Along Pike Street, some business owners said they didn’t see the benefit of adding bike lanes. Many argued against them because they remove parking spots, and citing fear the lanes could drive customers away.

At near Pike and Boren, owner Sean Virk was concerned about the removal of 13 parking spots.

“This is the city’s vision to install the bike lanes and they’re going to go ahead with that, and either we like it, or we don’t like it,” said Virk. “Eventually we’ll probably end up closing because I just moved here, [and] put half a million dollars into this place.”

Virk said about 80 percent of his business relies on parking. His delivery drivers use the loading and unloading zone while customers often stop by for pickup. When the new bike lane is complete on Virk’s block, it will leave only one 46-foot loading/unloading zone he’ll share with a hotel and two other businesses, including Pike Grocery.

“We have deliveries four days a week, Monday through Thursday, and mostly 30-footer trucks,” said Pike Grocery owner Michael Danford. “They do sometimes complain that they couldn’t find any parking space.”

Seattle’s plans for more downtown bike lanes

Danford said there are times his delivery trucks won’t fulfill orders when they can’t find parking.

SDOT officials said they worked with business owners to accommodate their needs, but admitted the bike lanes require “in some cases trade-offs or compromises.” Cycling advocates echoed SDOT’s sentiments, while also saying the downtown bike lanes are long overdue.

“If we, as a city, care about keeping people safe we have to actually allocate the space that will allow that to happen,” said Brie Gyncild, co-leader of . “There are so many competing uses for our space, but for years bicycle safety has been put at the bottom of the list.”

With its new network of downtown bike lanes, Seattle city officials said they’re making bicycle safety a top priority. Over the next six years, using resources from the Levy to Move Seattle, the city will invest $76 million to build over 50 miles of new bike facilities and 29 miles of new projects.

Canadian, Washington officials discuss strategies to save orcas

The two blue whales were seen feeding about 17 miles northwest of Grays Harbor on July 24th. biologist John Calambokidas said he documented them by chance while surveying humpback and gray whales.

“Immediately recognized them as blue whales that we’ve studied quite a bit in California, but only very rarely see off Washington,” said Calambokidas.

He wasn’t certain why the whales appear to have moved north this year in search of krill, their main food source. The animals are part of a population of 2,000 blue whales most commonly seen off the coast of California.

‘’I don’t know quite why we so rarely see them off Washington,” said Calambokidis. “As far as I know, this is only the third of fourth sighting in the last 30, 40 years.”

State lawmakers pass sweeping protections for Puget Sound killer whales

The whales have also been seen in unusual numbers off the coast of Oregon, though Calambokidis said it’s unclear if this pattern change will last. The population of whales ranges from the Gulf of Alaska down to Central America.

“This year it seems like they’ve just shifted a little further north,” said Calambokidis. “I think it just reflects annual differences in where there’s prey.”

Neighbors pitch in, harvest crops for sick Washington farmer

Among those most affected by the escalating trade war are the Pacific Northwest’s cherry farmers who rely on China as their top customer overseas. The Northwest Horticultural Council told approximately $130 million worth of the of the region’s cherries went to China last year.

Meanwhile, Washington’s wheat farmers haven’t had any business from China since the first round of tariffs came down in 2018.

“At the time they were the fifth largest market,” said Glen Squires, Washington Grain Commission CEO. “It’s not good if you have a major buyer that’s not buying.”

Squires said 90 percent of Washington’s wheat is exported. The Philippines is the number one buyer followed by Japan and South Korea. About 75 percent of the crop goes to Asia, according to Squires.

“And we were exporting soft white wheat out of the Pacific Northwest (to China) up to 300,000 metric tons so it’s been a hit,” Squires said.

Nationwide, China made up more than $5.5 billion in U.S. farm product exports last year, according to the U.S. Census. President Trump has tweeted farmers know that “China will not be able to hurt them” because the president has stood with them. The administration has tried to ease the pain for American farmers caught up in the trade war by rolling out two packages of aid worth $27 billion.

Garden guru Ciscoe Morris said he’s tired of those pesky rabbits and shared his secret to getting rid of them.

Morris has a complicated relationship with rabbits. He loved his childhood bunny, Snowball, but nowadays when he sees their fluffy faces and big ears, Ciscoe goes mad.

“These little guys will eat practically anything you’ve got in your garden,” Morris said. “They ate my broccoli, they’ve eaten my Brussels sprouts and that’s a serious infraction!”

Coyote sightings on the rise around Western Washington

The culprits are the eastern cottontail rabbits, the most common mammals in North America. They were first introduced in Washington as a game species in the 1930s.

Morris put up fences to keep them away. He let the dogs loose on them, but the rabbits are relentless. A couple years ago, he tried something different, a new kind of “bunny-be-gone” spray.

“I had to try and find the perfect secret recipe that is really going to repel these rabbits without causing any big problems,” Morris said. “It’s the oh, la, la ���𳦾����.”

The recipe calls for only three ingredients. First, one tablespoon of baking powder goes in a bowl with an egg yolk. Then, add a quart of water and whisk until the mixture becomes a pale yellow. Pour it in a spray bottle, and let it set for a few days before it really starts to smell, almost like sulfur.

“That’s the one bummer in this. It has to smell kind of bad,” Morris said.

Ciscoe Morris’ legacy transcends the garden

Rabbits, after all, avoid certain scents.

“I’ve spoken with individuals who use predator urine as a cue for danger to keep the rabbits at bay,” said Aaron Wirsing, an associate professor of wildlife sciences at the University of Washington.

Wirsing couldn’t say for sure why the number of cottontail rabbits appears to be on the rise this year. He had some theories, including the region’s recent mild winters, a trend that started around 2015.

“Any change in environmental conditions that even slightly bumps up offspring survival can lead to a population explosion,” Wirsing said. “It might also be that gardening and landscaping and the suburbanization of a lot of the surrounding regions to Seattle are basically creating extra ‘habitat.’”

Morris’ backyard must a be a bunny’s paradise. A fountain overlooks the lush lawn, dozens of rare plants, and a buffet of vegetables.

Ciscoe Morris responds to sudden fame from HBO segment

On a recent afternoon, Morris armed himself with the “oh, la la” mixture determined to keep the rabbits away. He plunged his spray bottle before layering a coat on the garden, covering each veggie with his special recipe.

“Just by spraying there’s nothing that you can’t eat in this,” Morris said. “Not harmful at all.”

Ciscoe said it’s important to spray daily. That’s the only way to keep up with the rabbits and their reputation for breeding.

“Every female bunny can have up to 28 young in one season — Oh, la, la, la, la,” Morris said. “You can be doing this a lot to say the least.”

Find more tips and information for co-existing with rabbits at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife .