Autopsies offer the best chance at flagging whether mistreatment contributed to an incarcerated person’s death. But state officials often skip them.

Police in Washington are backpedaling on using Flock Safety cameras after a tattoo artist filed lawsuits asserting their databases are public record.

In April, 25-year-old Alex Kuhnhausen died of a bacterial infection he contracted at Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla.

From youth labor violations to housing abuses to pandemic aid fraud, Cascade PBS investigative reporters cast light into undercovered corners of WA in 2025.

A case of fraud put a stop to emergency aid in Thurston County for months, but county leaders never pressed charges against the alleged perpetrator or demanded the money back.

Auditors flagged dozens of payments to Lance Benson’s property management company as suspected fraud. But county leaders chose to go after the nonprofit aid distributor instead.

Five years after its power lines started a devastating fire in Malden, Avista has settled lawsuits for $27M — but fallen behind on disaster prevention.

Despite ambitious goals toward combating climate change, Oregon and Washington lag far behind other states when it comes to adding renewable energy.

Two men died after requesting medical help they never received. WA’s nation-leading jail death rates have led to millions in payouts, and local reforms.

Legislators voted last year to stop intercepting payments meant for low-income families. Now with a budget deficit, they plan collections through 2029.

The Northwest states passed aggressive goals to decarbonize the power supply but left it to the Bonneville Power Administration to build the transmission lines needed for wind and solar. The agency…

Former energy consultant Kurt Beckett now heads the agency tasked with permitting his ex-clients’ wind and solar plants.

Though the cost of living remains above the $20-plus pay floor, activists say raising wages has been a success and are pushing other cities to follow suit.