No COVID-19 Enforcement Expected in Yakima County
While the governor or Oregon says she's working with local and state police to enforce COVID-19 restrictions in her state the governor of Washington State hasn't said he's working with police but he is asking people to report violators.
Yakima Police Capt. Jay Seely says there's no plan to enforce the mandate in the city because they simply don't have enough officers to respond to complaints while handling other types of calls. Seely says that doesn't mean the department is ignoring concerns, it just means that they must prioritize calls. Seely says police will assist health officials if requested.
The Yakima County Sheriff's Office also has no plans to issue tickets or threaten people with jail time if they don't abide by the COVID-19 restrictions during the next two weeks.
Oregon officials say they'll be responding to complaints about people gathering in large groups. Oregon authorities say they'll respond to the calls like they do for loud parties issuing citations for violations which could also include time in jail.