The Pacific County Public Safety Building behind the courthouse in South Bend houses the sheriff’s office and jail.

SOUTH BEND — A recent death inside the Pacific County Jail has raised questions about why there has been no formal inquiry into the jail death of Crystal R. Greenler on Dec. 13, 2022.

The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office completed a criminal investigation on Jan. 10, 2023, and handed the findings to the Pacific County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) and Pacific County Prosecutor’s Office — 10 days into Sheriff Daniel Garcia’s term. Earlier this year, jailer Patricia Rojas pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count in a plea bargain to settle a related case against her.

A bill passed by the state legislature in 2021 and signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee on April 26, 2021 requires that an “unexpected fatality review panel” investigate all unexpected deaths in custody, including inside jails. Such deaths may indicate a failure by authorities to adequately safeguard individuals in their care and sometimes result in substantial public financial liability.

The law outlines the panel as needing “individuals with appropriate expertise” and having no previous involvement in the case. The review panel is expected to review the death and determine if a policy change recommendation can be made to prevent another incident.

According to the law, the panel is supposed to convene and release its findings within 120 days of the in-custody death. As of Oct. 21, it has been 678 days since Greenler’s passing, and the sheriff has not yet selected and convened the panel.

According to the law, an extension can be granted by the chief executive or legislative governing body of the city, town or county that oversees the facility.

PCSO Cmdr. Michael Parker, who oversees the jail, filed for the extension with Garcia to be put on a county commissioner meeting agenda in March or April 2023 — within the 120 days.

“I sent a memo to the sheriff requesting the outline, and I believe that got put on the agenda for the board of county commissioners, and it should be in [their] commissioner notes,” Parker stated.

The Observer submitted a public records request on Oct. 16 requesting a copy of the extension — and received a response that day that stated, “BOCC has searched their records. They found no documents pertaining to this request.”

The meeting agendas and notes for March, April and May 2023 do not include an item concerning an extension. Pacific County Commissioner Lisa Olsen has also stated that, to her knowledge, they did not sign off on one.

Another request was sent to the sheriff’s office on Oct. 16, verbatim to the request sent to the commissioner’s office. A response was received on Oct. 18, establishing a timeline and stating that the request would take approximately 10 business days to fulfill — around Nov. 1.

Although the law would appear set in stone, the legislature left out an enforcement mechanism when they drafted and passed the bill. There is currently no course of action for non-compliance with the law, not even a sanction.

The Observer contacted the Washington State Attorney General’s Office seeking clarification on how an unenforceable law can be created. The agency declined to “offer” any interpretation of the law and said that it is not its job.

“Our office does not provide interpretations of the law outside of client advice or AG opinions,” Communications Director Brionna Aho said. “My understanding is the county commission has some oversight of the sheriff’s office, and the county prosecutor provides the agency’s legal advice and representation. One or both of those may be a resource for this question.”

As for Greenler, the county reached a settlement on Oct. 14 with her family for a reported $2.9 million to resolve a wrongful death lawsuit. The settlement is now in an allocation process because her former husband is seeking a portion — the majority is expected to go to her surviving children.