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PENINSULA DAILY NEWS February 8, 2016 | 75¢
Port Townsend-Jefferson County’s Daily Newspaper
Need on rise for law officers
Winning image gets pass
BY ROB OLLIKAINEN PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
JAKE MORRISON
The Olympic National Park’s upcoming annual pass will feature this photo of the Queets Basin taken by Jake Morrison of Quinault.
County sheriffs and city police chiefs on the North Olympic Peninsula are looking for a few good men and women. With a generation of peace officers set to retire in the next few years, officials said there is a growing demand for qualified replacements. “It’s a rewarding career,” said Clallam County Sheriff Bill Benedict, a retired Naval flight officer. History has shown that Benedict the best officers come from their own community, Benedict said. To that end, the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office encourages prospective candidates to test their mettle this Saturday.
Top contender in contest to adorn new park passes PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
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The 2015 photo contest was sponsored by park partner Discover Your Northwest and was announced and publicized on the park’s social media channels. Photographers were invited to enter up to three images for consideration on the park’s new annual pass. Images were submitted to the park’s Facebook page.
“The photo contest has been a great way to celebrate a new year at Olympic OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — and kick off the National Park Service When the national park’s new annual centennial,” Creachbaum said. pass is issued in June, it will feature an “The photos illustrate both the park’s image of the Queets Basin taken by diversity and the diversity of people Jake Morrison of Quinault. who have found their park at Olympic.” The new Olympic National Park All annual passes, no matter when annual pass will go on sale June 1. they are purchased, are good for one It will cost $50, an increase of $10 year from the date of purchase. from the current annual pass. Seven-day entrance fees will also Other winning shots “We are very proud to announce the increase June 1, with a seven-day passes top three winners in this year’s Olympic Second place went to Linda Morrell for vehicles, motorcycles and individuals National Park – Discover Your NorthVerrier of Portland, Maine, for her photo- going to $25, $14 and $10, respectively. west photo contest,” Superintendent graph of the Hoh Rain Forest in autumn. These and other park fee increases Sarah Creachbaum said. Third place was awarded to Erin Hal- were announced last May. The 209 images can be seen on loway of Tannersville, Pa., for a photo of a For more information about the Olympic National Park’s Facebook page. lone wilderness hiker on Lillian Ridge. park, see www.nps.gov/olym.
CHARLIE BERMANT/PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
Wendy Davis, left, who was sworn in as a Port Townsend Police Officer last week, gets some advice from Officer Nate Holmes.
PT officer Arrest follows PT knife threats readies Man in custody after reports of weapon for duty BY ARWYN RICE
PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
PORT TOWNSEND — A man has been booked into the Jefferson County jail after police say he threatened at least one person with a knife in the downtown area over the weekend. Robert Leroy Bates, 37, who is described as a transient, was arrested Saturday and booked into the jail for investigation of harassment, a dangerous weapon violation and reckless endangerment, Port Townsend Police Officer Patrick Fudally said in a news release Saturday. At 3:40 p.m. Saturday, the Jefferson County 9-1-1 call center received multi-
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ple calls in the downtown area to report a man brandishing a large Bowie knife and threatening people, Fudally said. When officers arrived, they recognized the description of Bates as matching a man they had contact with earlier in the day when he was screaming at officers near the Penny Saver, 2140 E. Sims Way, he said.
Racial rants Fudally said that during the incident at the Penny Saver, Bates was ranting about “Jewish” people and referring to others with racial slurs against blacks. Officers responded to the call about the knife and located Bates near the Jef-
ferson County Winter Shelter at 209 Monroe St., he said. Initially, Bates would not listen to commands from officers, but the officers were able to convince him to cooperate though Bates continued offering minor resistance as officers moved in to handcuff him. While talking to officers, Bates continued to use racial slurs, Fudally said. Near a back lot at Port Townsend City Hall, officers found a 15-inch Bowie knife believed to be the one Bates had been seen with earlier, he said. During interviews with witnesses and victims, officers learned that Bates had threatened a 30-year-old darkskinned woman by saying she was “going to die” while holding the large knife in his hand.
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PORT TOWNSEND — After being sworn in as the city’s newest police officer earlier this month, Wendy Davis wondered what took her so long to make the move into law enforcement. “When I look back, all of the things I’ve done in my life have prepared me for this, although it’s something that I never thought I’d do,” she said. Davis worked in the hospitality industry “for decades” and in support of her husband’s contracting business, Brent Davis Construction, before joining the Jefferson County Prosecutor’s Office as a legal assistant in 2014.
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