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Pullman police see accelerating complaints of alleged COVID-19 public health violations

Posted on August 20, 2020August 20, 2020 by Jacob Jones

Pullman police have identified more than 90 calls or complaints regarding alleged violations of COVID-19 public health mandates since April with reports of unauthorized social gatherings increasing in recent weeks.

As WSU students return for fall, Police Chief Gary Jenkins on Wednesday announced officers would enforce mask and social distancing mandates as misdemeanors or civil infractions. Cases involving students would also be forwarded to the university.

“We felt we needed to transition from an education warning only to include an enforcement element,” Jenkins said in a virtual town hall. “Right now, our focus really is on the party issue. That’s where we believe there’s going to be the greatest amount of potential exposure and impact.”

A police department search of calls going back to April 1 found 93 incidents related to alleged violations of state-mandated social distancing or mask requirements. Police reported they had issued no citations as of this morning. A few calls were later determined to involve groups who lived together in the same household.

The complaint search, conducted in response to a records request from Whitman County Watch, showed more than half of the calls (54), dated back to the time of the strictest orders in April. But after relatively few violation complaints in June and July, reports of unlawful social gatherings have again accelerated since the beginning of August.

Dark red dots mark August public health violation related calls or complaints on College Hill. Lighter colored dots represent older cases going back to yellow dots for April. (Jacob Jones)

Pullman police have reportedly responded to 14 complaints of loud or crowded gatherings this month. Twelve of those incidents occurred on College Hill. Three of those calls came in just yesterday.

“We have seen an increase in the past few weeks in parties and gatherings,” Jenkins said Wednesday.

Two other complaints earlier this month alleged local businesses had failed to enforce social distancing requirements or planned unauthorized events. At least 10 other complaints since April involved customers or businesses allegedly failing to comply with mask or social distancing mandates.

Four additional complaints of unauthorized construction projects dated back to April when stay-home orders prohibited non-essential work.

Most business or workplace violations should be reported to the state here, not local law enforcement. Labor & Industries recently fined eight Eastern Washington fitness centers for violating health standards.

About 56 of the total calls were generally described as “social gatherings.” In total, police listed 16 public health violation calls so far in August, six calls in July, just four call in June, 13 calls in May and 54 calls in April.

About 11 incidents appeared to involve groups gathering in public or outdoor spaces like parks or playing sports together. Many of those complaints came in back in April during the stay-home order.

Public health officials last month warned they might have to implement tighter local restrictions on social or business activities if infection rates continued to increase going into the fall. WSU and Pullman Public Schools have both since moved the majority of instruction online.

The Whitman County Health Department announced five new COVID-19 cases today, bringing the running total to 138. Officials continue to describe the local risk level as “high” and emphasize the importance of following social distancing guidelines. See our spreadsheet tracking reported case dates, ages and genders here.

“Our whole goal is compliance,” Jenkins said. “[But] we will take enforcement actions if necessary.”

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