Re: “Pierce Council flips on judges” (TNT, 11-14).

The article reports yet another flip-flop in the gymnastic event leading up to the selection of the next Pierce County District Court judge. This time the Pierce County Council, without notice, has determined to restore Prosecutor Mark Lindquist’s position on this committee.

Why? As this paper reported, Councilman Roger Bush said the current process is weighted toward defense attorneys because two members come from the Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association (TPCBA). Based on this information, he concluded that the committee was “skewed really badly now” and “has a definite sense of unfairness.” …

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Re: “Pierce Council flips on judges” (TNT, 11-14).

I smell a rat. There is another axiom that states, “If ain’t broken, don’t fix it.”

I’m totally opposed to the decision made by our Pierce County Council to add the prosecutor to the panel that fills judicial vacancies. This decision has a deadly political tone to it; if we follow the smell it will lead us to the person or persons who are so politically motivated that they are trying to manipulate the judicial system, hoping this will secure his or her future in politics.

This climbing the ladder in …

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Re: “Enforcing pot laws cost millions, report claims” (TNT, 8-29).

I’d like to correct some misleading information in coverage of the ACLU’s new interactive map on the significant costs of enforcing current marijuana laws.

Contrary to law enforcement assertions, the map’s data do not include costs for cases where marijuana possession was a relatively insignificant factor. Rather, the government’s own arrest data used for the map follows the “hierarchy rule” – which means in cases where more than one offense occurs, only the highest ranking offense is reported. If someone is arrested for marijuana possession and assault, only the …

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Re: “Is Pierce County still a dumping ground?” (letter, 7-18).

The letter writer, justifiably concerned about Pierce County being a dumping ground for felons from other counties, asks an excellent question: “Has anything changed?”

Yes. Since the passage of Senate Bill 6157 in 2007, we have made significant progress. Before SB 6157, an unfair share of offenders from other counties were being released to Pierce County. As the News Tribune stated in a 2008 editorial, “Between 1992 and 1995, the Department of Corrections released 20 percent of state prisoners to Pierce County, which has only 12 percent of the …

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It is with sadness and frustration that I read “In Lindquist’s hip pocket” (Peter Callaghan column, 11-11).

Didn’t voters deserve to know these facts before the election? On Aug. 30, I provided your editorial board with the pertinent documents and challenged you to investigate further. Instead, you endorsed Mark Lindquist for Pierce County prosecutor. You and others simply ignored this issue until after the election.

Callaghan tries to dismiss the impact of the misconduct. He states that it is “doubtful that many voters reached these pages by mistake,” citing the fact that Google and Bing searches list my official website …

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Being a public servant is not only a privilege, it is an honor that I personally do not take lightly. Never have I claimed nor practiced the art of smooth and silky talk that is devoid of truth or integrity. I do not care to participate in such endeavor.

As the top real estate appraiser for Pierce County, it is my sacred duty to ensure the assessments of all properties are uniformly and equitably administered. The injury inflicted to our system, with hundreds of thousands of falsified appraisals entered into the public records, will take at least four more years …

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I think Mark Lindquist has been a great, honest prosecutor. The recall petition by Alberto Ugas (TNT, 10-22) does not pass the “smell test” with the timing of the filing so close to the elections.

The chaos at the Pierce County assessor’s office should not damage a servant of the public.

I was surprised to read that Pete Philley had been assigned to the Boundary Review Board (BRB) last year.

I’ve know Philley professionally for several years as the deputy Pierce County prosecuting attorney assigned to Pierce County Public Works and Utilities. Pierce County Public Works and Utilities include the Surface Water Management Department in charge of flood-control issues. Philley worked closely with Brian Ziegler, the director of Public Works and Utilities who has been designated the administrator of the newly formed Pierce County Flood Control District.

Philley is a knowledgeable and experienced attorney whom I respect. However, there appears …

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