Washington
Families of victims to drunk driving gather in Washington DC, calling for action from congress
Honoring lives lost to drunk driving
The National Transportation Safety Board has called on automakers and the US Department of Transportation to make this a priority as families of those who lost someone at the hands of a drunk driver gathered in Washington DC.
WASHINGTON D.C. (FOX 2) – A rally was held Tuesday night outside the US Capitol lawn in Washington D.C. Members of congress along with the families of those who lost someone at the hands of a drunk driver, gathered with Mothers Against Drunk Driving, calling for congress to act to pass laws that stop a driver who is drunk from ever starting a car.
Rana Abbas’s life forever changed almost 6 years ago. Five members of her family were driving home to Dearborn when they were struck and killed by a drunk driver on I-75 in Lexington, Kentucky.
“My family was killed on Jan 6, 2019, not even a week after the new year,” she said. “It’s been six years and it doesn’t get any easier.”
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell says at the Abbas funeral it became clear what she needed to do.
“There were five, five of them that were active in the community,” she said. “Rema was in access, her husband was a doctor. We knew everybody. And overnight, I mean everyone had a good holiday and a drunk driver wiped out this family and devastated this community. Children that went to school with the kids looked at me and said technology exists to keep this from happening. Why haven’t you stopped it?”
Both Congresswomen Dingell and Rashida Talib worked with Abbas to get a law passed in congress. It was called ‘Halt,’ which requires all new cars to come equipped with tech that detects and stops impaired drivers from starting the vehicle. It was supposed to come into effect in 2026, giving time for regulations to be put in place. The candlelight rally in DC on Tuesday was designed to speed the process up.
“Every 78 secs someone is injured or killed by a drunk driver,” Abbas said. “When we hear that we needed three years, and we might need another three more, what we hear is we need 30,000 more people to be killed, and we might need another 30,000 more people to be killed before were ready to put this technology that’s available in vehicles and that is not okay.”
The National Transportation Safety Board has called on automakers and the US Department of Transportation to make this a priority.
Washington
Police finish DoorDash delivery after arresting driver in New Jersey
WASHINGTON TWP., N.J. — Officers in Washington Township, said they finished a DoorDash food delivery after arresting the driver who had warrants out for his arrest.
Body camera video shows officers stepping in to deliver the food themselves, a move the department in southern New Jersey later shared on its Facebook page.
“I thought something happened. Oh my God, I got so scared,” said the customer when she answered the door.
The DoorDash customer, seen on police body cam video, was instantly relieved and appreciative upon learning why officers were at her door.
“Arrested your driver, but, yeah, we delivered your food,” one of the officers said.
It turns out a Washington Township police officer stopped the DoorDash driver during routine patrols in front of a high school over the weekend.
“He made a stop on it for a violation,” said Washington Township Police Chief Patrick Gurcsik.
But then, Chief Gurcsik said the officer learned the driver had warrants out for his arrest in another county.
“He made the officers aware that he had two DoorDash meals in the car that he was in the middle of delivering,” Gurcsik said.
The officers went from cuffing the driver to ringing a doorbell to finish his delivery.
“I never heard of anything like that in the South Jersey area. It’s sort of a first for us here in Washington Township, definitely,” Gurcsik said.
Police finish DoorDash delivery after arresting driver in New Jersey
It’s happened in other places, too, including in New Mexico last summer, when a motorcycle cop delivered someone’s Chick-fil-A order after arresting the driver.
“Hello, sir, got your DoorDash. Oh, thank you,” the officer said. “He’s a good kid, give him five stars. He just didn’t take care of a simple insurance ticket.”
And officers over in Arizona made a similar arrest during a traffic stop and were seen on body camera finishing the delivery.
“Your GrubHub, still delivered your pizza,” the officer said.
“We definitely serve the community in more ways than one,” Gurcsik said.
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Washington
Holdout Democrats leave WA House support for income tax in doubt
Washington
Bill strengthening Washington child sex abuse material laws focuses on consciousness, AI
SEATTLE — A bill aimed at tightening Washington’s laws on child sex abuse material is headed to Gov. Bob Ferguson’s desk after clearing the Legislature unanimously.
King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion said 2ESSB 5105 passed the House unanimously Tuesday night after the Senate unanimously approved it on Jan. 28, 2026.
SEE ALSO | Washington exempts clergy from reporting abuse learned in confession after settlement
Manion called the measure one of her public safety legislative priorities.
“People who peddle in the misery of sexually abused children must be held accountable,” Manion said. “I am grateful for the work of Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Laura Harmon – both in prosecuting these cases and advocating for these legal fixes – and Senators Tina Orwall and Manka Dhingra for championing this legislation.”
Manion’s office said the current state law has gaps that can prevent prosecutors from holding offenders accountable in some cases.
Under current law, prosecutors cannot charge defendants for creating images of child sex abuse unless the child victim was conscious or knew they were being recorded.
The office also said that possessing sexually explicit fabricated (AI) images of non-identifiable minors is not considered child sex abuse material under Washington law.
The bill would update RCW 9.68A.040 to remove the requirement that a child be aware of an abusive recording. It would also update the definition of child sex abuse material to include fabricated (AI) images of non-identifiable minors.
The legislation would also increase the statute of limitations to 10 years for depiction crimes. Manion’s office said the current statute of limitations is three years, and argued that because the images can remain online indefinitely, victims can be re-traumatized for decades.
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