Two members of the Senate Republican Caucus have prefiled bills for the 2023 legislative session that aim to reverse recent criminal-friendly laws passed by Democratic majorities.
“One of our main goals this session is to advance bills that will help make people and communities safer in our state,” said Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, who is ranking Republican on the Senate Law and Justice Committee and was a Spokane County District Court judge from March 1995 until January 2007. “Unfortunately, thanks in large part to harmful laws passed by our Democratic colleagues, many people throughout Washington are feeling less safe in recent years. They have every right to expect the Legislature to take action to reverse this alarming increase in crime.”
The three key public-safety proposals introduced by Padden and a Senate Republican colleague include:
Senate Bill 5034, prime-sponsored by Padden, would change state law to again make it easier for law-enforcement officers to pursue suspects in vehicles. In 2021, the Legislature changed the legal standard required for officers to engage in vehicular pursuits, limiting law enforcement’s ability to pursue and detain suspects.
“It’s no coincidence that crime has dramatically increased since this law was passed because it has severely restricted law-enforcement officers from pursuing suspects. Until we make it easier for officers to do their job, we’ll continue to see this spike in crime. Communities deserve better,” said Padden.
Senate Bill 5035, introduced by Padden, would make possession or use of illegal drugs like fentanyl, methamphetamine and heroin a class C felony with diversion opportunities and drug court.
“In 2021 the Democratic majorities in the Legislature passed SB 5476, which reduced the penalty for drug possession to an unenforceable misdemeanor that does not effectively utilize data-supported drug court programs. It’s no wonder fatal drug overdoses are expected to hit record numbers in Washington this year. The Democrats’ law that decriminalized drugs has been an absolute and costly failure,” said Padden.
Senate Bill 5011, prefiled by Sen. Lynda Wilson, R-Vancouver, supports her recent vow to restore second-degree robbery to the list of offenses counted as a strike under Washington’s voter-approved “three-strikes” law. Majority Democrats had dropped that crime from the list in 2019, then applied the change retroactively in 2021 – which allowed Clark County child-rapist and murderer Roy Wayne Russell, Jr. to evade the mandatory life-without-parole sentence that comes with a third “strike.”
“There are more on the lifer list who could be resentenced and walk free someday. It’s as though the majority did this with no regard for the victims’ families,” said Wilson. “We need laws that are fair to victims, and this mistake needs to be fixed. I hope those who thought weakening the law was a good idea will recognize the error they made and join us to correct it.”
The 2023 legislative session is scheduled to begin on Jan. 9 and end on April 23.