Immigration detention center operator sues city of Tacoma

TACOMA – The private company that runs the Northwest Detention Center is suing the city of Tacoma over an ordinance passed last month that restricts the facility from expanding.

Florida-based GEO Group sued in federal court Thursday, saying that while Tacoma’s ordinance purports to be about land use control, it’s meant to ban federal immigration detention facilities such as the Northwest Detention Center because of the city’s political disagreement with current federal immigration policy.

GEO Group is a for-profit company that runs the immigration detention center in Tacoma on contract with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.

The company is asking the court to invalidate the ordinance.

The News Tribune reported that Tacoma Deputy City Attorney Steve Victory said the ordinance was meant to protect economically valuable land in the port of Tacoma from encroachment by nonindustrial uses, including detention and correctional facilities.

Police: Blaze at mosque probably not hate crime

BELLEVUE, Wash. – Police said investigators do not believe that a fire at a vacant mosque in Bellevue last week was a hate crime.

Bellevue Police Chief Steve Mylett told a community meeting Saturday that those involved will be brought to justice, but he said there’s nothing to indicate that the blaze was started as a result of hate or bias toward the Muslim community.

Wednesday’s blaze comes after a homeless man set the mosque on fire in January 2017.

The police chief said investigators found mattresses and other trash indicating that the vacant mosque was being used. He said individuals, who may have been teenagers, were seen running from the structure minutes before smoke was reported.

Partially treated sewage sent into Willamette River

MONMOUTH, Ore. – Officials said about 1.3 million gallons of partially treated sewage went into the Willamette River after an equipment failure at the city of Monmouth’s wastewater treatment facility.

The Statesman Journal reported the city of about 10,000 people located near Salem waited five days to notify the public. The sewage spill began March 16 and ended the next day.

City wastewater operations manager Mark Landau said water samples at two locations downstream of the sewer outfall showed E. coli levels below the amount allowed by the city’s permit.