Law enforcement remains in the lead to re-criminalize drug use and possession / Noisy Waters Northwest

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April 20, 2023 Dena Jensen

April 20, 2023  Dena Jensen

On April 10, 2023, five out of seven members of the Bellingham City Council voted to approve an ordinance making it illegal to publicly use controlled substances in their city. Council Members took the action after amending the original ordinance which had been presented by Mayor Seth Fleetwood about a month earlier. Enforcement will guarantee that some people living outside will be exposed to increased scrutiny and pursuit by the Bellingham Police Department.

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New Bellingham drug use law looks to rely on diversion program with high barrier to entry / Noisy Waters Northwest

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Click the graphic to access video and meeting materials for the 4/10/23 Bellingham City Council Public Health, Safety and Justice Committee

April 14, 2023 Dena Jensen

I’ll try to give a rough overview of the Bellingham City Council Members’ discussion on Monday, April 10, 2023 in their Public Health, Safety, and Justice Committee meeting about potentially proceeding forward to approve their ordinance to make public use of controlled substances a crime. (I haven’t gotten a chance yet to listen to the brief review of community courts which was the second item on their agenda).

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Displacement creates a stronger need for increased emergency sheltering options / Letter to Bellingham and Whatcom County officials

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Click the screenshot of a NEWS webpage on the website of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness to read the statement from USICH Director Olivet, “Collaborate, Don’t Criminalize: How Communities Can Effectively and Humanely Address Homelessness”

October 31, 2022 Dena Jensen

On Friday of last week, I had posted on Facebook about a recent article in Cascadia Daily News, “Bike lanes to displace homeless campers on Cornwall. At the time of my post, I was just responding to information in the article. Since that time, I have had a chance to listen to a recording of the Bellingham City Council Members’ October 24, 2022 Committee of the Whole discussion of the proposal to eliminate parking on portions of four Bellingham streets, including the section of Cornwall Avenue that is near the Bellingham waterfront.

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Regarding Bellingham Police Department officers using text messages to conduct agency business / Letter to Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood

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The images above display screenshots from Bellingham Police Department Lieutenant Claudia Murphy’s body cam video recordings in late 2021 related to her work enforcing City of Bellingham parking code for recreational vehicles

August 4, 2022 Dena Jensen

There is an August 1, 2022 post here on Noisy Waters Northwest related to the subject of this email sent today to City of Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood. As of the time of that post, I had not yet received a response from the Mayor or Bellingham City Council President Hannah Stone regarding questions I had about Bellingham Police Department officers being advised, back in January of 2021, to delete their text messages weekly. Here is the link to that post: https://noisywatersnw.com/2022/08/01/waiting-for-answers-regarding-bellingham-police-department-texting-practices-noisy-waters-northwest/

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Part One – The race to displace: reviewing parking enforcement videos for obstacles to services for those in crisis

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Edited body cam still frame in black and white of a car with rear door open showing the car interior and a person in jeans and socks laying under a long sweatshirt on the back seat. There is some graffiti on the door and seat-backs and one white athletic shoe next to the person on the seat. Some identifying material in the original image is removed.

April 22, 2022 Dena Jensen

Preface

On March 14, 2022, a presentation was given on RV parking code enforcement by Bellingham Police Department’s Public Information Officer, Lieutenant Claudia Murphy to Bellingham City Council’s Committee of the Whole. This presentation was given about three and a half months after City of Bellingham had initiated rigorous parking code enforcement following the lifting of the statewide ban on evictions.

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Weeks, and weeks, and weeks of parking and sheltering predicaments / Letter to Bellingham and Whatcom County officials

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Screenshot of Bellingham Police Department Lt. Claudia Murphy’s 12-30-21 body cam still frame showing a road and parked vehicles covered with snow, blue sky overhead, sun low toward the horizon, and the silhouettes of a person in a hat with their dog

April 10, 2022 Dena Jensen

Sent: Sunday, April 10, 2022, 06:06:37 PM PDT

Dear Bellingham City Council, Mayor Fleetwood, Whatcom County Council, and County Executive Sidhu:

Over the last week or two, I have been reviewing body worn camera recordings of Bellingham Police Department’s Public Information Officer, Lt. Claudia Murphy related to City of Bellingham’s increase in parking enforcement during the current pandemic. 

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Riveters Collective Justice System Committee reviews investigation of complaint against BPD officer

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Click the graphic displaying text from the Riveters Collective Justice System Committee’s review about the BPD internal investigation of their officer’s handling of a traffic incident involving Lelo Juarez in 2015 to access that full review

September 30, 2021 Dena Jensen

Although I’m not currently working with Riveters Collective Justice System Committee, I am excited about their latest work. 

Here’s the link to access their full review of Bellingham Police Department’s internal investigation regarding one of their officer’s handling of an incident involving 15 year old, Alfredo ‘Lelo’ Juarez, who ended up being detained at the Northwest Detention Center back in 2015 after being pulled over for a traffic stop:  https://riveterscollective.org/2021/09/learn-why-we-believe-police-reform-is-necessary/

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Notes: Bellingham City Council Committee of the Whole continues to broach civilian oversight of law enforcement / Noisy Waters Northwest

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June 22, 2021 Dena Jensen

At Bellingham City Council’s June 21, 2021 Committee of the Whole meeting, Council Members discussed the content of a memo prepared by the City’s Legislative Policy Analyst Mark Gardner. The memo provided them with information samples of boards and commissions that provide oversight of law enforcement in other small and medium-sized cities in the United States. The memo also noted, “A few larger cities are included for comparative purposes.”

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On pretext traffic stops and the Bellingham Police Department / Facebook post, Sj Robson

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Still frame from Bellingham Police Perspective Project YouTube video / 20E1: Race Policing & Defunding the Police, showing BPD officer Jon Knutsen talking with BPD’s then-Deputy Chief Flo Simon about race

April 18, 2021 Sandy Robson

Last Friday, the Whatcom Democrats Facebook page posted an April 15, 2021, article published by Vox, titled “Daunte Wright and the grim financial incentive behind traffic stops.”

The subtitle underneath the article’s headline reads: “How pretext traffic stops fund police departments — and put Black drivers in danger.”

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