Public safety, transparency, and common sense — too often missing from Clallam County’s agenda.
The Halloween Catch-and-Release
Michael Heller, a man well-known to local law enforcement, was arrested on Halloween for multiple charges — including malicious mischief, assault, and obstructing officers — only to be released from Clallam County Jail after five days.
Heller has long been a fixture in police logs and scanner reports, accused of setting fires in Sequim and harassing residents near Port Angeles’ Dream Playground.
Within 48 hours of his release, Heller was back in the scanner feed — medics staging at the Traveler’s Motel, disturbing customers at Jack in the Box, and reportedly throwing objects near the same playground parents avoid because of him.
It’s a familiar cycle: arrest, release, repeat. Yet despite the obvious risk to public safety, there’s little appetite to fix a system that treats chronic offenders as temporary inconveniences instead of ongoing threats.
Transparency on Pause at OMC
After months of public requests, Olympic Medical Center’s board has decided not to record its public meetings — even though they’re already streamed live. Interim CEO Mark Gregson and commissioners said state law doesn’t require recordings, and cited fears of “manipulation” of video footage as justification.
Gregson, who earns $12,000 a week and flies home to Arizona every weekend, didn’t explain how dozens of other agencies and organizations manage to record meetings without incident. Instead, OMC says it will rely on meeting minutes and summaries — which are, of course, written by the same people being scrutinized.
When public institutions choose secrecy over sunlight, it’s not transparency — it’s control. And in a community hospital funded by taxpayers, that should worry everyone.
When Nature Has More Rights Than You
The Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe’s Dungeness River Center is hosting “Rights of Nature and Indigenous Relations,” featuring attorney Elizabeth Dunne of the Earth Law Center — a group pushing to grant legal personhood to elements of nature like rivers, trees, and even wild rice.
The concept gained national attention when wild rice (Manoomin) was granted legal standing in a Minnesota tribal court case — the first of its kind in U.S. history. Now, similar ideas are making their way to Clallam County, where Commissioner Mark Ozias invited Dunne to present alongside the Center for Sustainable Forestry during a recent discussion about the Doc Holliday Timber Parcel.
The idea that salmon, trees, and rivers could have more legal rights than citizens trying to build a home or dig a well is no longer theoretical. It’s policy in the making — and it’s happening here.
The League That Loves Loopholes
The vehamently “non-partisan” Clallam County League of Women Voters recently celebrated blocking a proposal that would have required proof of citizenship to vote — calling it a victory for democracy.
Three days later, they reassured residents on Facebook that Washington’s elections are “secure.”
It’s an odd contradiction: if proof of citizenship isn’t required, how can anyone confidently claim our system is secure? You can’t have it both ways — transparency without verification, or trust without proof.
The League’s credibility hinges on logic, not slogans. And when logic falters, so does public trust.
Rediscovery’s Double Standard
On the scanner this week: an “unwanted person” was reported sleeping in the alcove of the Rediscovery building — and staff wanted them “moved along.”
The irony? Rediscovery is a harm reduction outreach program run by the Olympic Peninsula Community Clinic (OPCC), which prides itself on compassion and engagement with the homeless.
OPCC’s website highlights partnerships with syringe exchanges, Narcan distribution, and non-punitive outreach for those struggling with addiction — all under the banner of “meeting people where they are.” Apparently, that doesn’t apply when “where they are” happens to be their own doorway.
For a program built on tolerance, the optics are rough. It’s hard to preach acceptance by day and call the police by night.
DCD’s War on Affordable Living
This Monday, county commissioners will consider new zoning changes restricting the use of RVs, park models, and tiny homes — including a proposed rule limiting RV living to 180 days per year. The Department of Community Development says it’s about “standards and consistency.”
In reality, it’s another blow to affordable housing options. With property values and rents rising faster than wages, many residents have turned to RVs and ADUs as their only path to ownership or stability. The new rule would take many of those options away.
It’s baffling that the same county lamenting a “housing crisis” is working so hard to outlaw one of the last affordable solutions.
Attend and give public comment:
Monday, November 10th, 11:30 am
Clallam County Courthouse, Room 160
Ron Allen’s Two Hats
Jamestown Tribe CEO Ron Allen isn’t just a local tribal leader — he also chairs a U.S. Treasury advisory committee overseeing tribal taxation and IRS training related to Native enterprises. It’s a powerful national post for the head of a tribe with just over 500 members, only about 200 of whom live locally.
Allen frequently reminds audiences that Jamestown’s $100 million annual enterprise was built “without federal assistance.” Yet his federal connections and policy influence are exactly what keep the tribe thriving in competitive sectors like healthcare, gaming, and construction.
The success is undeniable. The humility — less so.
The Solar-Powered Food Bank Van
The Port Angeles Food Bank just unveiled a new solar-powered distribution van with dimmable lighting and retractable awnings, explaining they were “tired of coolers, ice and the long load/unload times.”
The Food Bank also made an announcement urging residents to donate, citing fears that federal SNAP benefits might be cut.
There’s no question the Food Bank does important work. But when you boast about “stretching every dollar” while rolling out a luxury-equipped van, it raises eyebrows.
Generosity deserves gratitude — and accountability. If donors are asked to give more, they deserve to know where every dollar goes.
The Cult of Harm Reduction
In “The Cult of Harm Reduction,” author Kevin Dahlgren walks readers through Portland’s open-air drug scene, exposing the brutal reality behind well-intentioned but deadly policies. Harm reduction, he argues, has become less about saving lives and more about normalizing addiction.
From outreach workers handing out fentanyl paraphernalia to activists preaching “bodily autonomy” as overdose deaths soar, Dahlgren’s reporting is raw and personal. He’s seen addicts die with Narcan in their pockets — supplied by the very programs claiming to “reduce harm.”
It’s a powerful read that challenges feel-good slogans with street-level truth. You can find it here. Highly recommended for anyone questioning where our own “harm reduction” dollars are really going.
The Strait Shooter’s Safari Solution
The satirical “Strait Shooter” is back — this time skewering Clallam County’s homelessness policies with a parody so close to reality it hurts. The piece, titled “Olympic Game Farm–Style Housing Project: Visitors Can Drive Through Slowly and Observe,” imagines a taxpayer-funded “habitat” where tourists can feed the homeless — from the safety of their cars.
Each section of the fictional park highlights the absurdity of modern policy: the “Urban Survival Enclosure,” the “Rehabilitation Meadow,” and the “Morning Coffee Zone,” complete with social workers handing out pamphlets and hope.
It’s biting satire with a tragic undertone — because in Clallam County, the line between parody and policy gets blurrier every week.
