The Coffee Cottage on Highway 101 closed abruptly after a break-in—allegedly by the same out-of-county repeat offender previously featured by CC Watchdog. Days later, Olympia’s well-known vehicle prowler, Logan James Turner, was booked into the Clallam County Jail. At the same time, local business owners say they can’t even reach their doors due to people sleeping, using drugs, and leaving hazards in their entryways.
Is it easier to be a business owner—or a drug-addicted criminal—in Clallam County? And which one are our policies attracting?
Coffee Cottage’s Break-In
The Coffee Cottage, a small business just west of Port Angeles on Highway 101, was forced to shut down after workers arrived to find both windows smashed out.
Security camera footage captured one of the windows being smashed.
Video surveillance images were posted online, asking the community to help identify the suspect.
Soon, local residents commenting on Facebook recognized the individual as Hector Olivarria-Garcia.
The same man previously featured in CC Watchdog’s investigation into an out-of-county offender arrested under an alias for drug possession. A private citizen alerted authorities that the name was false; his identity was corrected—and he was released the next day.
Within days, he was back in contact with local law enforcement over warrants, false statements, and multiple out-of-county misdemeanors.
The following day, the Coffee Cottage was left with shattered windows, missing equipment, and lost business.
For small businesses struggling to stay afloat, these aren’t “incidents”—they are costs of doing business in a county that prioritizes offenders over employers.
Another Arrival: Olympia’s Repeat Offender Now in Clallam County Jail
Currently, the Clallam County Jail roster lists Logan James Turner, age 28, booked Saturday on a felony bench warrant. Turner is not a new name to law enforcement—but he is to Clallam County.
Turner’s recent history from the Olympia area includes:
2021: Arrested on suspicion of theft of a firearm, vehicle prowl, and unlawful possession of a firearm.
1/6/24: Arrested for 2nd degree vehicle prowling.
7/3/24: Arrested on suspicion of trespass.
12/1/24: Arrested twice in one night for out-of-town misdemeanor warrants.
Even more astonishing is Turner’s 2021 incident documented by The Journal of Olympia, Lacey, & Tumwater (JOLT):
An Olympia officer found Turner leaning into a stranger’s truck. When asked what he was doing, Turner reportedly replied: “Honestly, yes.”—admitting to vehicle prowl on the spot.
He was issued a citation and released at the scene.
And now he’s here.
Clallam County increasingly seems to be where out-of-county offenders drift when their home jurisdictions won’t tolerate their behavior anymore.
Local Business Owner: “I can’t even get inside my business door.”
Yesterday, a downtown Port Angeles business owner reached out to CC Watchdog with a message many in the community quietly echo:
“I’m starting really, really to resent Port Angeles. This is what our city council has done. I can’t even get inside my business door.”
She described arriving to her building only to find her entrance blocked by tarps, bedding, backpacks, clothing, and two people—one slumped over, possibly under the influence.
Around the corner sits a “free Narcan” vending machine. A symbol of compassion, perhaps—but also of policy priorities.
Other days, her entrance is blocked by makeshift shelters, bicycles, shopping carts, and people refusing to move.
Statement from a Port Angeles Small Business Owner
“I’ve reached a breaking point with what it means to run a business in Port Angeles today. Just this week, I had three people trespassed from my doorway because they wouldn’t leave, and I couldn’t get in or out of my own building. The police had to come help me. To their credit, Port Angeles officers have been really, really good to me. They encourage me to keep calling, and they told me that at least one-third of their calls are about trespassing. That alone tells you where we are as a community.
I even told one officer that I was going to take the Narcan dispenser around the corner and set it on the sidewalk outside Mike French’s home so he could understand the consequences of his passion project—and maybe clean up after these people himself. The officer laughed and agreed.
After that, I emailed both [County Commissioner] Mike French and [Port Angeles Mayor] Kate Dexter, because I know them personally, and told them I needed to talk to them about what’s happening to my business. Neither responded. I’ll bet money neither ever will.
Even after police removed the three people we trespassed, a fourth—along with a poor dog—was still sleeping in my alcove. They left a mess behind for me to clean up, like always.
On another recent occasion, I had to wake a junkie up and get him out of my doorway while my five-year-old daughter stood there with me. It took forever for him to get up, and when he finally crawled out of his sleeping bag, his crack pipe rolled out onto the sidewalk. My daughter almost picked it up. She has such a sweet, compassionate heart—she even wanted to give the man her pillow because she thought he must not be able to find a hotel. I had to tell her to get in the car.
And then I hear Mike French and Kate Dexter proudly claim they’re ‘taking care of the most vulnerable in our community.’ That is not true. The most vulnerable people in our community are our children, and mine has to witness this chaos on a regular basis.
I’ve talked about this everywhere I can. I’ve shared all of this with law enforcement, who agree with me. I’ve shared it with Joe DeScala with 4PA, who does try to help however he can and often reminds me these folks technically have somewhere else they can go. I’m not quiet about this problem—I deal with it every day. And still, it feels like nobody cares.
Meanwhile, I just got hit with a 131% increase in my property taxes. Yes, you read that right. My friend and fellow business owner is dealing with the same thing. They reduced her increase somewhat, but I got a letter saying I have to attend a hearing and bring ‘evidence’ for why my property shouldn’t be taxed higher. Well, I’ll be bringing photos—photos of the tents, the needles, the trespassers, the piles of trash, and the vandalism I have to clean up constantly. Do they have any idea how much this devalues my property? Or the cost of my time? Or the cost to my tenants?
The new restaurant that just moved into my building has already called me because they couldn’t even get into their restaurant to unload supplies. How are we supposed to attract good tenants or customers when this is what they’re greeted with?
And my biggest issue is this: these junkies are making conscious decisions to do dangerous and illegal drugs. They know the risks—one of which is death. We ticket people for not wearing a seatbelt, but we spend $50,000 to encourage junkies to stay on drugs. We are literally providing illegal paraphernalia. Mike French says someone can’t get rehabilitated if they’re dead. Fine. But if they survive an overdose, can we fine them for breaking the law and costing society money? If this is his passion project, let him pay for it out of his own pocket. Let him put on gloves and come clean up my storefront.
And the last thing I want to say is this: putting these Narcan dispensers in our beautiful public spaces—spaces meant for farmers markets, families, tourists, and community gatherings—is not just tolerating illegal drug use. It is inviting it. It’s encouraging it. It’s basically saying: ‘Come on down to the Gateway Center and overdose. We’ve got a Plan B waiting for you in case things go south.’
For those of us trying desperately to clean up downtown, to make it welcoming, to create something beautiful—it is a constant slap in the face. Every time we try to lift this town up, our local leadership drives it back down. I love this community, but right now, our policies are punishing business owners and rolling out the red carpet for drug use. And we can’t survive like this.”
This is what running a business in Port Angeles looks like for many owners.
This is the daily overhead.
This is the “cost of compassion.”
The Big Picture: What Are We Attracting—Businesses or Criminals?
Let’s state the uncomfortable truth plainly:
Clallam County makes it easier to live here as a drug-addicted criminal than as a business owner.
What do offenders get?
Free meals
Free pizza
Free drug paraphernalia
Free Narcan
Free luxury housing
A revolving-door jail
Case management
Transportation
Endless second chances
What do businesses get?
Broken windows
Trespassers blocking entrances
Lost revenue
No responses from elected officials
Cleanup costs
Liability risks
Frustration
And when small businesses struggle, we lose:
Jobs
Local tax revenue
Community spaces
Economic vitality
When storefronts sit empty, the public should ask: Who would choose to open a business here?
And equally: Who would choose to come here as an out-of-county, drug-addicted career criminal?
One choice is easy.
One choice is hard.
And right now, Clallam County’s policies reward the easy choice.
Port Angeles Is at a Crossroads
Port Angeles is either on the brink of a renaissance or on the brink of collapse.
But it cannot go both ways.
A community cannot thrive when the people who create jobs, generate taxes, and keep our economy alive are treated like barriers to someone else’s ideology.
If we want a downtown full of open businesses, we must stop incentivizing those who destroy them.
If we want growth, safety, commerce, and prosperity, we must stop punishing the very people who provide those things.
The question for every voter, every official, every resident is simple:
Is it easier to be a business owner—or a drug-addicted criminal—in Clallam County? And which one do we want to attract?
