West

‘Green River Killer’ transferred from state penitentiary to county jail: report

Published

1 year ago

September 12, 2024

‘Green River Killer’ transferred from state penitentiary to county jail: report

“Green River Killer” Gary Ridgway was booked into the King County Jail in Washington state Monday morning, though reasons for the transfer are unknown, according to reports.

FOX 13 in Seattle reported that Ridgway, who pleaded guilty in 2003 to murdering 49 women in King County from 1982 to 1998, was booked into the jail just after 10:40 a.m. on an institutional hold put in place by the King County Sheriff’s Office.

The notorious serial killer was serving 49 consecutive life sentences at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla, without the possibility of parole.

The transfer to a lower-level jail has raised questions, though officials have not provided details as to why Ridgway was moved.

‘GREEN RIVER KILLER’ VICTIM IDENTIFIED AS RUNAWAY WASHINGTON TEEN

Gary Ridgway prepares to leave the courtroom where he was sentenced in King County Washington Superior Court, Dec. 18, 2003 in Seattle. (Josh Trujillo-Pool/Getty Images)

Fox News Digital has reached out to the King County prosecutor’s office for comment.

In November 2003, Ridgway pleaded guilty to the murder of “Bones #20,” Denise Bush, and Shirley Sherrill, along with 45 other victims. He also later pleaded guilty to the murder of the 49th victim.

Throughout the 1980s, Ridgway terrorized and instilled fear across the state of Washington. He was convicted of killing 49 women but has confessed to 71 murders. However, investigators believe that he killed more victims.

TED BUNDY WAS INTRIGUED BY GREEN RIVER KILLER GARY RIDGWAY FOR THIS REASON, DOC SAYS: ‘WORRIES WERE REALITY’

In an undated King County prosecutor’s office handout photo, Green River killer Gary Ridgway sits in the backseat of a vehicle while taking investigators to one of the sights where he allegedly buried one of his victims. (King County Prosecutor’s Office via Getty Images)

In December, authorities identified one of the victims as 15-year-old Lori Anne Razpotnik, who ran away from her home in Lewis County in 1982.

Razpotnik’s remains were found in 1985, on a road embankment in Auburn, south of Seattle, alongside the remains of two other victims. Investigators could not determine who those victims were, and the remains were listed as “Bones 16” and “Bones 17.”

DNA EVIDENCE IDENTIFIES LAST KNOWN VICTIM OF GREEN RIVER KILLER ALMOST 40 YEARS LATER

Green River killer Gary Ridgway listens during his arraignment on charges of murder in the 1982 death of Rebecca “Becky” Marrero at the King County Regional Justice Center in Kent, Wash. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson/File)

Bones 16 was identified through DNA testing in 2012 as Sandra Majors, but the identity of Bones 17 remained unknown until a forensic genetic genealogy firm, Virginia-based Parabon Nanolabs, was able to develop a new DNA profile and determine they belonged to Razpotnik.

Razpotnik’s mother provided a DNA sample that confirmed the results, the King County Sheriff’s Office said.

After authorities linked Gary Ridgway to the killings through DNA evidence in 2001, he led them to the site where the three victims had been found.

Bones 16 and Bones 17 were among the 48 slayings he pleaded guilty to in 2003. Many of his victims were young female runaways or sex workers.

Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Greg Wehner is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital.

Story tips and can be sent to Greg.Wehner@Fox.com and on Twitter @GregWehner.

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Oregon

FOX 12 Investigates interview: Oregon AG Dan Rayfield

Published

23 minutes ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

FOX 12 Investigates interview: Oregon AG Dan Rayfield

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) – Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield sat down with FOX 12 Investigates Reporter Ezra Kaplan to discuss how he successfully blocked the Trump administration’s push to deploy National Guard troops to Portland. Watch the entire interview here in the player above, or on the FOX 12 Oregon app for Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV.

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Utah

Utah lawmakers fast-track controversial court expansion bill to the governor

Published

1 hour ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

Utah lawmakers fast-track controversial court expansion bill to the governor

The Utah Legislature is sending the courts expansion bill to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, making it one of the first bills to make it to his desk for the 2026 session.

The bill, SB134, passed after a vote on the House floor Friday morning, 57 to 18. Once Cox signs the bill, as expected, it will mark the first time since 2016 that a state has increased the number of judges on its Supreme Court bench.

The court expansion bill, headed by Sen. Chris Wilson, R-Logan, adds two more judges to the state Supreme Court’s five-person bench. It also adds judges to the Court of Appeals, and one district court judge each in Salt Lake City, St. George and Provo.

So much of the feedback given through public comment during the bill’s circulation in the legislature was focused on opposition to the two additional Supreme Court justices.

Wilson’s bill, and others focused on overhauling the judiciary this session, have been accused of court packing, ignoring the requests made by the state’s judiciary and trying to breach the independent separation of powers between the two governing bodies.

When asked during Senate availability what it says about the House and Senate’s priorities to be sending this bill so quickly through the Legislature, Senate President Stuart Adams said, “It tells you we value the courts.”

Wilson added that SB134 is the “biggest commitment” Utah lawmakers have made to their law-interpreting counterparts. During the House floor vote, the bill’s floor sponsor, Rep. Casey Snider, R-Paradise, said he hopes that public perception sees the bill as “in the spirit with which it is offered, which is that of one in hopes of being helpful.”

Utah Democrats oppose Utah court expansion, but GOP says it’s overdue

Despite GOP lawmakers’ intentions, the bill was largely opposed by their Democratic colleagues. Rep. Grant Amjad Miller, D-Salt Lake City, said that though he favored some of what the bill offered, he ultimately voted against it because it doesn’t prioritize the needs of the public. He also noted “the great expense” it would cost the state to expand the Supreme Court alone.

“The courts have issued a wish list to us,” Miller said during the House floor vote. “At the top, they have asked for support for their staff and for their judiciary clerks and assistants. Nowhere in their wish list have they asked for two Supreme Court justices.”

Rep. Andrew Stoddard, D-Sandy, added that he believes adding more judges to the bench would further complicate the process.

“I don’t think that this is the route if we want to speed up our cases,” he said. “The hold up is in the district court and occasionally in the court of appeals, but is not the Supreme Court.”

Despite their opposition, Wilson said that “it’s a great bill” and “a great step forward … ”Looking at the number of filings, looking at the case complexity, it’s obvious, in my opinion, with the data and evidence, that it’s long overdue.”

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