Yesterday, four Washington County Sheriffs sued the State of WA, the State Legislature, and Governor Bob Ferguson, asking the court to block a blatantly unconstitutional new law that gives a newly formed, unelected state commission the power to end their careers without a vote, a recall, or a court order.
Of all the terrible bills the (other than their unconstitutional income tax) that Democrats passed in the 2026 legislative session. 2SSB 5974 may be the worst. Duly elected County Sheriffs, Police Chiefs, and Town Marshals are now subject to a state-appointed, unelected bureaucratic board and can be “decertified” and removed from office.
This is another blatantly unconstitutional and sinister Democrat bill, where over 50 Republican Amendments were not adopted! Under the law, its 21 commissioners are appointed by the Governor (who appoints them to six-year terms, with some staggered).
Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels, Pend Oreille County Sheriff Glenn Blakeslee, Stevens County Sheriff Brad Manke, and Ferry County Sheriff Ray Maycumber filed the complaint in the Superior Court of the State of Washington, in Pend Oreille County. A hearing on their motion for a preliminary injunction is scheduled for April 16.
The legal action comes with the consent and support of Spokane County Prosecuting Attorney Preston McCollam, Pend Oreille County Prosecuting Attorney Dolly Hunt, Stevens County Prosecuting Attorney Erika George, and Ferry County Prosecuting Attorney Michael Golden.
The sheriffs’ motion argues the governor and legislature “adopted a modern-day McCarthy loyalty oath in the form of 2SSB 5974,” calling it “not a close constitutional call but rather a flatly prohibited practice from a dark period of our country’s history that must never be resurrected.”
Hellbound and Down 