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Seattle Times sues city of Seattle over Mayor Jenny Durkan’s missing text messages during protests

 The Seattle Times filed a lawsuit Thursday alleging that the city of Seattle mishandled requests from reporters for officials’ text messages during a tumultuous period last summer when police abandoned the East Precinct and used tear gas on protesters.

The complaint, filed in King County Superior Court, follows a whistleblower investigation that found Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan’s office violated state public records laws in its handling of requests after discovering the mayor’s texts were missing for a 10-month period.

Four Seattle Times reporters were among the requesters affected. Their requests were largely focused on officials’ communications surrounding a series of events last summer, including fatal shootings in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest area that formed following the precinct’s abandonment and the resignation of former Police Chief Carmen Best. None of the reporters were informed that the mayor’s texts had not been retained.

The Seattle Times, represented by attorney Kathy George, claims the city violated the Public Records Act by withholding or destroying the mayor’s records after they were requested. The Times also argues the city did not respond to requests in a timely fashion and with the fullest assistance, as required by state law. 

The city has said that one of Durkan’s city-issued cellphones was set to delete texts after 30 days, which goes against state law and the city’s retention policies. It is still not clear who is responsible for changing the retention setting to 30 days, the shortest standard option on an iPhone. Texts from seven police department officials, including the former chief, and the fire chief are also missing.

The Seattle City Attorney’s Office said it did not immediately have a response to the lawsuit, but would respond over the course of the litigation.