Randy Slovic Uncategorized

Richland City Council Member Robert Thompson’s DUI Case Kicked Down the Road for a Fourth Time

Note:  This hearing and all previous hearings were held at the Benton County District Court with a judge and prosecutors from Yakima. A hearing was scheduled for 8:30 a.m., May 19, 2020, at the Benton County District Court.  However, on May 18, 2020 the Benton County District Court announced that future hearings would be held in the Yakima District Court. To date, no hearings have been scheduled in Yakima.

Robert Thompson’s DUI Case will tentatively go to court on July 6, 2020 at a location to be announced later. The Case is being handled by Yakima prosecutor Joseph Brusic and Yakima Judge Brian Sanderson because Benton County Prosecutor Andy Miller recused his court from the case. In July it will be over a year since Washington State Trooper James Stairet stopped Thompson for speeding in Kennewick and ultimately charged him with a DUI.

Today both Thompson and Stairet testified as the court reviewed the film from Stairet’s patrol car taken June 29, 2019, the night of the stop. At one point the defense attorney Kevin L. Holt demanded that this observer erase a cellphone picture taken of a portion of the patrol car video. Judge Sanderson responded that the hearing was public and the patrol car recording was a public document.

Thompson’s attorney had filed a motion in January to declare the arrest illegal and the breathalyzer results and the case thrown out. However, at today’s hearing the defense and the state agreed to a time of arrest and to breathalyzer results being admissible. According to the prosecutor, Thompson’s requested blood test showed higher numbers than the breathalyzer results.

Other arguments from the defense included a motion to recuse the Yakima prosecutors for “retaliatory prosecution” due to past cases that Thompson as a defense attorney had tried in Yakima. The judge dismissed that motion pointing out that Yakima had nothing to do with bringing charges.

The defense plans to have a toxicologist testify about retrograde extrapolation –how the body processes alcohol. This and other issues will be discussed at a Status Conference tentatively scheduled for Thursday April 14 at a location to be announced.

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Benton County Steaming Ahead with Ballot Processing, as of Today 32,756 Returned

Here I am at the Benton County Election Office in Prosser. This machine photographs ballot envelopes and kicks out unsigned ballots.

Employees of the Benton County Election Office in Prosser have geared up again and are processing ballots for the 2020 presidential primary election. As of Sunday March 8, Benton County voters had returned 32,756 ballots.

Amanda Hatfield, Manager of the Benton Council Election Office, recently walked me through each step between the time that the first ballots are received and the time that the election is certified.

  1. Upon arrival primary ballots are separated by hand into Democratic Party and Republican Party based on the box checked on the envelope. As of Sunday, 753 ballots did not have a checked box that declared a party. Those voters will receive a letter and will have a chance to correct the omission so their votes can count.
  2. Ballots are then run through a machine ( pictured above) that takes a picture of the front of the envelopes and kicks out ballots that are not signed. Voters who fail to sign their ballots receive a letter and have an opportunity to correct the problem.
  3. Pictures of the signature side of the ballot envelopes go into a computer program.
  4. An election department employee goes through the ballot envelope pictures four at a time on a computer to make sure that signatures match those on file. Voters with signature match issues receive a letter and a chance to prove the signature is theirs..
  5. An election department employee takes approved ballots and removes the cover envelope with the signature and party declaration. On election day, March 10, votes are removed from the inside sleeve and votes received through Saturday are counted.
  6. On Wednesday votes that arrived by mail or were placed in ballot boxes after Saturday are processed and counted.
  7. Votes that are postmarked by the deadline 8:00 p.m. Tuesday continue to be counted. Votes with corrected signatures or party designations are counted.
  8. A trickle of votes continue to be corrected and counted until certification.
  9. The Board of Elections meets on March 19, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. to address any outstanding issues and certifies the election the next day, March 20.

May 24, 2016, 34,991, votes were cast in Benton County in the presidential primary, 34.37% of registered voters. However, the Democrats had already chosen delegates in caucuses that were held on March 26. Based on early returns for the 2020 primary, officials at the election office predict that participation this year may reach 50%.

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Richland’s New Mayor Ryan Lukson Brings Change to City Council

Richland Mayor Ryan Lukson

Tuesday night Richland City Council will vote to change their meeting time from 7:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and eliminate the pre-meeting format. See email from Lukson below.

When Richland City Council Candidate Ryan Lukson interviewed with the Tri-City Herald editorial board prior to the 2017 election, he admitted that he had a problem with the way the pre-meetings were held:

“Lukson also takes issue with the council’s pre-meeting before the regular city council session. He questions why — since it is open to the public — it can’t be held in the large council meeting room. Instead, council members meet in a cramped chamber that limits the number of people who can attend.

It’s a question we have as well. With Lukson’s experience in county government, perhaps he could persuade his fellow city council members to be more transparent and more obliging in their dealings with citizens.”

Although the pre-meetings were moved to the new council chamber in the new city hall, they were not televised or taped and many people still thought the meetings weren’t opened to the public. Issues discussed in pre-meetings included the budget, the lodging tax, the marijuana petition, and locations and plans for proposed new parks among other topics.

Richland Mayor Ryan Lukson.

Randy Slovic Uncategorized

Attorney for Richland City Council Member Robert Thompson Throws Everything but the Kitchen Sink at DUI Charges

Trooper’s Wife Drawn into the Case

Councilmember Robert Thompson’s attorney, Kevin L. Holt, has thrown everything but the kitchen sink at the court attempting to have Thompson’s DUI (Driving Under the Influence) charges dismissed. In his briefs, Holt has questioned the reliability of breathalyzers. He also argues that Thompson’s blood alcohol level at time of testing could be higher than at time of driving due to “involuntary intoxication” caused by dehydration; that there was no probable cause to stop Thompson; and the arresting trooper’s wife who was driving along with her husband was Thompson’s “adversary”.

Holt writes:

‘The trooper was accompanied that evening by his wife Michele [sic], who was doing a ride along. Michelle was or had been an Assistant Kennewick City Attorney. I believe this was her last night of employment with the city, as she had submitted her resignation previously and had informed this attorney her last day was to be June 30, 2019. Michele [sic] was a cougar football fan and alumni of WSU. As a local prosecuting attorney and a Tri City Cougar alumni she would have been aware that the Cougar vanity plate, KANANI 1, was her adversary Robert Thompson. She knew Mr. Thompson very well, she often exchanged WSU information with Mr. Thompson, who was a regular in her court, in fact she had recently been on the losing side of a criminal case with Mr. Thompson. It is not unreasonable to speculate that she informed her husband Trooper J. Stairet that he was about to stop the Mayor of Richland, her adversary Robert Thompson.”

Holt’s discovery requests include email, texts and electronic data transmitted by both Officer James Stairet and his wife Michelle Dorsett Stairet for “29 June 2019 at 2300 PDST thru 30 June 2019 at 1000 PDST and the following 10 days.” In addition, he has asked for the personnel files of both Officer Stairet and his wife. Holt also wants the National Highway Traffic Association and the Washington State Patrol policies on “ride along”.

For the same time period he requests all communication between the WSP [Washington State Police] employee to Benton County Prosecuting Attorney, City of Kennewick, or the Tri City Herald or any other news agency.

A judge and prosecutor from Yakima County are handling the case. A hearing is scheduled for March 10, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. at the Benton County Court House.

Randy Slovic Uncategorized

Richland Mayor Bob Thompson was Compensated More in 2019 by the City of Kennewick than the City of Richland

In 2019 Mayor Bob Thompson, collected $39,950.84 from the City of Richland for wages; medical, dental and vision insurance; and mileage compensation. In Kennewick his paycheck was $49,472 for defending former Mayor Steve Young from a recall petition. It is unclear what services were provided in 2016 when Thompson received $25,000 from Kennewick. The 2016 payment was also greater than Thompson’s Richland compensation that year as the insurance coverage that Richland council members now receive wasn’t approved until March 21, 2017.

Recently Thompson also defended current Kennewick Mayor Don Britain in his successful effort to have a recall petition dismissed. Britain said he would pay his own legal fees but did not indicate if he would then ask the Kennewick City Council members to vote to cover his costs as they did in the Young case. https://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/article240212007.html

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Compensation for Tri-Cities Council Members Has Wide Range, Trumbo in Kennewick and Thompson in Richland at the Top

Kennewick City Councilman John Trumbo Richland City Councilman Bob Thompson

Based on information obtained from Richland, Kennewick and Pasco governments, in 2019 city council member compensation had a wide range. The amount depended on whether the jurisdiction provided medical, dental and vision insurance for its members, whether the members enrolled in those programs and how many family members were covered.

In March 21, 2017 Richland City Council voted unanimously to provide 100% visual and dental coverage and 88% of the medical coverage for city council members, replacing a 2001 ordinance that allowed members access to the employee insurance program. Kennewick officials could not pinpoint when the current insurance benefit was adopted but believed that it was some time before 1984. Kennewick city council members also pay 12% of the cost of the medical insurance coverage.

Kennewick City Councilman John Trumbo collected more in base pay and medical, dental and vision insurance than any other council member in the Tri-Cities, $42,339.48. Bob Thompson collected the second highest amount for the same year, $37,862.88..

The base pay in Kennewick for 2019 was $14,700. For the city council members in Kennewick who were on the Council for all of 2019, the compensation range including base pay and medical dental and vision insurance ranged from Trumbo’s $42,339.48 to $27,332.97 for Bill McKay. Don Britain received $36,546.98; Steve Lee, $35,353.68. Paul Parish who didn’t run for re-election received $35,880.72 for a partial year. Charles Torelli, appointed to replace Matt Boehnke who was elected to the state legislature in 2018, received $11,522.48 for a partial year (he did not participate in the medical or dental program). Steve Young who died in May 2019 received $13,065.70 and his appointed replacement, Ed Frost, received $6,968.17.

Base pay for Richland City Council members was $13,920.00 in 2019. Compensation in Richland for 2019 ranged from $13,920 collected by Brad Anderson and Sandra Kent to Thompson’s $37,862.88. Michael Alvarez was the second highest compensated member of the Richland Council at $34,862; Phil Lemley third at $29,753.04; Terry Christensen and Ryan Lukson each received $15,777.84.

Base pay for Pasco City Council members was $13, 379.60. Pasco does not provide health, dental or vision insurance to its members.

For purposes of comparison Social Security, Paid Family and Medical Leave and Medicare were not considered because the three jurisdictions did not treat them the same way. Kennewick pays those and treats them as a benefit. They are subtracted from the city council compensation in Pasco. Richland did not indicate how they were treated.

Randy Slovic Uncategorized

Ex-Mayor Bob Thompson Moves to have his DUI Case Dropped on a Technicality.

Bob Thompson has kicked the can down the road on his DUI case for a third time. He says his arrest was illegal.

At the time of his arrest, Thompson asked for a blood test and was taken to the hospital for that purpose, but the results of that blood test have not been released. Here is the police report from his arrest on June 29, 2019. The 4th page has the officer’s narrative about the incident including the blood test which is mentioned in the next to the last sentence.

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About Randy Slovic

A wife, mother and grandmother, Randy has experience in government and business. She’s excited to share her personal and professional experience with Richland, her home for the past 10 years.

When her two girls were very young, Randy worked as an assistant to Maryland state delegate Jennie Forehand, later joining the legislative staff of U.S. Sen. Ernest F. Hollings of South Carolina. She then became a Congressional legislative director, a job few women held at the time, to U.S. Rep. Lane Evans of Illinois.

Randy also has experience running family businesses. She helped her husband, Bob, run a mid-sized oil company that remains in the family to this day, almost 100 years after its founding. Randy has also been a partner in a family-owned commercial property business.  

She moved to Richland in 2009 after Bob, an engineer, accepted a transfer to Hanford.

Randy is passionate about the environment.

She is certified in wetland delineation, trained in macroinvertebrate identification, and experienced in stormwater management issues.  

For the past three years Randy has introduced Benton County 5th graders to the world of aquatic insects at the annual Salmon Summit. Her Benton County Heritage Garden has been featured on the Academy of Children’s Theatre Garden Tour.

What People Say

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