AUDIO: The ranking Republican on the state Senate’s Law and Justice Committee is speaking out against Thursday’s Washington Supreme Court ruling that sentencing youth to life without parole is unconstitutional. Senator Mike Padden says that, in 2012, the Legislature passed a law that allows life in prison in specific juvenile...

Today Sen. Mike Padden attended the international Juvenile Sex Trafficking Conference in San Diego, where he joined others in congratulating San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan on being awarded a Pathbreaker Award. “District Attorney Stephan has been a national leader in the fight to end sexual exploitation of children,”...

No monkey business with initiatives, court tells Legislature A state Supreme Court ruling Tuesday sends a police-deadly-force initiative to the November ballot, protects the initiative process, and establishes the supremacy of the state constitution over the whims of some legislators who find it inconvenient, says Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley....

A week ago I traveled to Olympia for the signing of two bills I sponsored. One bill concerned the use of body cameras for law enforcement and the other dealt with pretrial release conditions that trial court judges may impose. There are additional details about both bills later in this...

Measures would clarify rules on body-cam use and restore judges’ ability to protect the public from drunk drivers and other potentially dangerous offenders awaiting trial Today Sen. Mike Padden joined the governor, members of law enforcement and concerned citizens at a ceremony at the Capitol where two of his public-safety...

One of my chief frustrations this session was the way the Majority seemed determined to twist and torture – and sometimes completely circumvent – the constitution of the state in order to get its way. A key example of this was the Legislature’s response to Initiative 940 on police use...

Thursday, in a vote of 95-2, the Washington State House of Representatives approved Senate Bill 6408, aimed at clarifying the rules surrounding the use of police body cameras. The measure is sponsored by Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley. Legislation approved in 2016 established public-disclosure and other requirements relating to body-worn...

Today the Senate voted unanimously to pass Senate Bill 6410, concerning school safety. Under the measure, sponsored by Sen. Mike Padden, first-responders would be required to notify both public and private schools during any situation in their vicinity that would warrant an evacuation or lockdown. The bill would also create...

Today the Senate Law and Justice Committee received public testimony on Senate Bill 6408, aimed at clarifying the rules surrounding the use of police body cameras. The measure is sponsored by Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, the ranking member on the committee. In 2016, the Legislature passed House Bill 2362,...