Wash. Supreme Court published opinion — 1012055.pdf

Citation: Wash. Supreme Court published opinion — 1012055.pdf
Jurisdiction: Washington (state)
Source verification: official_capture_completeness_unverified
Original Source: https://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/1012055.pdf ↗

Related Parts of This Source

Full Text

1,747 chars

notification by the police, the agreement addendum and the landlord declaration of

participation provide a time frame of only three days, and the latter states that

landlords must serve eviction notices without opportunity to comply or quit.

Compare id., with SMC 5.02.030(A)(3), and 2 Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 494.

While landlords are typically required to pay an annual fee for a rental housing

license, the City waives this fee for landlords who participate in the CFRHP. SMC

3
For the current opinion, go to https://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/wareports/.
State v. City of Sunnyside et al.
No. 101205-5

5.02.020(B), (D). If a landlord fails to comply with the CFRHP, the City will revoke

the license and charge the landlord 110 percent of the fee plus interest. SMC

5.02.020(D). Failure to maintain a residential housing license is also a civil

infraction punishable by a fine of $1,000. SMC 5.02.070. However, in the

information it provides to landlords, the Sunnyside Police Department describes this

as a misdemeanor punishable by the fine “and/or a jail sentence of up to 90 days.”

2 CP at 495.

The Washington State Attorney General’s Office first raised concerns about

the operation of the program in 2017. According to the City, it “took steps to address

the concerns,” including conducting an annual training on the CFRHP for police

officers. 1 CP at 151. Police training records indicate that a CFRHP training was

given once in 2011 and not offered again until 2019. Those records show that only

two of the five respondent officers participated in those trainings.

As a matter of practice, the police department has placed one officer in charge

of the CFRHP; other officers would refer CFRHP-related matters to them.