Bill in Washington clears tribal fishermen of convictions

Tuesday, January 14, 2014  

The Washington House Community Development, Housing and Tribal Affairs Committee heard testimony this afternoon on a bill that would clear tribal fishermen of certain convictions.

Dozens of tribal members were arrested, charged and convicted in the 1960s for exercising treaty rights that were later upheld in federal court. House Bill 2080 provides a process by which the convictions can be expunged, so long as certain conditions are met.

"We as a state have a very dark past, and we need to own up to our mistakes," said Rep. David Sawyer (D-Tacoma), one of the sponsors of the bill, told the Associated Press. "We made a mistake, and we should allow people to live their lives without these criminal charges on their record."

Hank Adams, an activist who was among those arrested, said the bill should be expanded to cover a wide range of charges that arose in a connection with the treaty rights struggle. He was a witness at today's hearing.

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Bill would clear convictions from '60s Native American fish-ins (AP 1/14)