SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

Due process is dead

Jun 29, 2016, 11:28 AM | Updated: 11:29 am

Due process is dying on the vine. Due process is this: you’re considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. You are allowed to defend yourself and question your accuser.

There is something going on in the state of Oklahoma. Police have a new technology that can scan your cash card and seize money on your pre-paid cards if they think you’ve broken a law involving that money.

No warrant has been issued; no judge has said that anything can be seized from you. But the Oklahoma police can still take it away.

This has become a multi-billion dollar business for police forces in the United States; taking things from people who have been convicted of nothing!

This is flipping the presumption of innocence on its head. That means that every person is presumed guilty. And once there is the presumption of guilt on everyone in America, then everyone is a criminal.

The dawn illuminates the Senate side of the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026, a day befo...

Associated Press

When will we know who controls Congress? It could be a while

WASHINGTON (AP) — The stakes in Tuesday’s election — which party will control Congress — are crystal clear. But when that will be known is impossible to say. The Associated Press will be calling races in all 435 House districts and the 35 Senate contests that are up for election this year. Control of the […]

33 minutes ago

Abortion rights supporters rally inside the Missouri Capitol on Jan. 21, 2026, in Jefferson City, M...

Associated Press

Trump’s agenda meets the ballot box as states vote on abortion, redistricting and voter ID mandates

WASHINGTON (AP) — A battle over abortion rights is playing out in several states Tuesday as voters decide 145 proposed laws and constitutional amendments, including some that could affect voting for future elections. The ballot measures provide a political undercard for a high-profile midterm election that will determine which party controls Congress, state legislatures and […]

34 minutes ago

Senate candidate Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, left, speaks with President Donald Trump on stage duri...

Associated Press

A referendum on Trump, election monitors and a Democratic shift: What to watch on Election Day

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has repeatedly encouraged voters to pretend he’s on the ballot this Election Day. He’s not, of course. But there is reason to believe that Tuesday’s midterms, above all, will be a referendum on his performance over the last two years. History, polling and early voting numbers suggest it could […]

42 minutes ago

Whit, 2, sits on the shoulders of father Hayden Anderson-Michaud as he casts his ballot at a pollin...

Associated Press

Election Day arrives after a surge in early voting, with observers keeping close watch at the polls

WASHINGTON (AP) — The final day of voting in this year’s midterm elections arrives Tuesday against a backdrop of uncertainty after a year in which President Donald Trump has tried to interfere in how states run their elections and sown doubts about the outcome should Republicans lose. Millions of Americans already have cast their ballots, […]

50 minutes ago

President Donald Trump walks from the podium after speaking at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool...

Associated Press

After Election Day, Trump stares down the specter of Democratic probes and the race to succeed him

WASHINGTON (AP) — For Donald Trump, Tuesday’s elections will chart the course for the final two years of his presidency. If his party loses control of Congress in the midterm elections, the rest of his time in office is likely to be consumed by Democratic-led investigations into his administration and his business dealings, and possibly […]

51 minutes ago

People wait in line to cast their ballot at a polling location open for early voting at the Curtis ...

Associated Press

Midterm elections coming to a close as voters pass judgment on Trump’s second term

WASHINGTON (AP) — Voters struggling with high prices and angry over an unpopular war with Iran will decide whether to drastically shift power in Washington in midterm elections Tuesday that will serve as a referendum on President Donald Trump ’s second term. Democrats were cautiously optimistic about their prospects as they watched Republicans spend the […]

56 minutes ago

Due process is dead