MATTAWA — In tentative settlements, the state has agreed to pay to settle civil rights lawsuits brought by Hispanic-owned day care centers in the Grant County town of Mattawa.
The two lawsuits alleged that the “white mayor of Mattawa,” Judy Esser, and members of the “all-white Mattawa Police Department” urged a state investigation into day care providers working in the community of 3,000, which in 2001 was about 95 percent Hispanic, and that the ensuing investigation included unlawful searches and seizures.
If approved by a federal judge, the nine plaintiffs in one case would receive $45,000 each, and the state would also revise its manual on handling home child care inspections and notify all 7,000 day care centers in the state of the changes. Columbia Legal Services, which represents the day care owners, would receive $350,000 in fees.
The tentative settlement in the other case totals about $1.7 million. But DSHS says the split between the 21 plaintiffs and their private Seattle attorneys hasn’t been determined.
“We think this is a reasonable solution,” Steve Williams, DSHS spokesman, told the Yakima Herald-Republic.
DSHS no longer oversees day care licensing; those duties have been transferred to the Department of Early Learning.
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