Police awarded $72,500 for evidence refrigeration; municipal court wins training grants

Matt Coles told the committee that on July 1 the Spokane Police Department received notification of a $72,500 grant from the Washington State Attorney General’s office (a subgrant from the Department of Justice) to purchase two refrigerators for storage of sexual‑assault evidence under the state's assault kit initiative. Coles said the funds cover the apparatus and tax and that he will confirm the department’s processing status for existing kits when staff who handle that work return from vacation.

Sarah Thompson, covering for Jackie Van Wormer, presented two mid‑year grant awards to municipal court from the Administrative Office of the Courts. One award of $7,000 will pay for NAPSA (National Association of Pretrial Service Agencies) membership/certification and help send up to three team members to the annual conference; a second award of $11,475 will fund participation in APPA (American Probation and Parole Association) academy training. Thompson said the court must use AOC funds by June 30 (AOC fiscal year) and emphasized that core correctional practice training can reduce recidivism by an estimated 30–40%.

Committee members asked for updates on the status of prior evidence‑processing work and for more detail about training implementation in probation; both Coles and Thompson said they would provide follow‑up information to the committee.