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Amy Radil

Reporter

About

Amy Radil is a reporter at KUOW covering politics, government and law enforcement, along with the occasional arts story. She got her start at Minnesota Public Radio in Duluth, and freelanced for Marketplace and other programs from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Amy grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. She graduated from Williams College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Location: Seattle

Languages Spoken: English

Pronouns: she/her

Stories

  • caption: Tailwind Cafe is one of the participants in a new network offering reusable travel mugs. McKenna Morrigan, right, is with Seattle Public Utilities, which is helping implement the system to reduce use of disposable cups.

    Seattle's Holy Grail: reducing single-use cups

    Seattle Public Utilities is partnering with local businesses to encourage reusable beverage containers. The goal is to keep those cups in use, and out of the landfill.

  • caption: U.S. District Judge James Robart praised changes by the Seattle Police Department under federal oversight since 2012. His upcoming decision will clarify if and when he will release SPD from that oversight.

    Federal judge ‘extremely skeptical’ that SPD could soon exit consent decree

    A federal judge is still considering how much longer the Seattle Police Department should remain under his oversight. At a hearing Tuesday, Judge James Robart asked wide-ranging questions but did not rule on a joint motion by the U.S. Justice Department and the city of Seattle to find SPD largely in compliance with a consent decree in place since 2012.

  • caption: Kyrrah Nork said new laws have reduced the debt from his court-ordered fees from $18,000 to $590. "It’s enabled me to see a light at the end of the tunnel."

    New Washington state laws give debt relief to people exiting prison

    Starting this summer, people convicted of crimes in Washington will face fewer court-ordered fees. That’s thanks to the state’s third law in recent years aimed at easing the debt burden of “legal financial obligations,” or LFO’s, on people with criminal convictions.

  • caption: Sgt. Michael Burtis in the Marysville Municipal Jail. He estimated that up to 90% of people housed there have some kind of substance use disorder.

    Will WA’s new drug law help or hurt people struggling with addiction?

    Washington has a new law on drug possession. Governor Inslee signed it Tuesday, just hours after lawmakers returned for a special session. It contains increased penalties for drug use and possession, and more funding for addiction treatment. Mayors say the language grants them the autonomy they needed, while proponents of harm reduction worry that cities will stymie their efforts amidst a crisis of drug overdose deaths.

  • caption: U.S. District Judge James Robart praised changes by the Seattle Police Department under federal oversight since 2012. His upcoming decision will clarify if and when he will release SPD from that oversight.

    Former exec for Seattle nonprofits pleads guilty to blowing $3m on casinos, clothes, travel

    The former finance director of two Seattle nonprofits pleaded guilty Tuesday to two felony counts of federal wire fraud. Susana Tantico is charged with stealing more than $3 million from the Country Doctor Community Health Centers and later the violence prevention group Community Passageways, between 2011 and 2020. Charging documents said Tantico spent the money on personal expenses including gambling, clothing, and travel, and created false ledger entries to conceal her actions.

  • caption: Hawthorne Elementary fourth graders Anna, left, and Francie helped create and maintain a playground that replaced asphalt with new trees.

    These Seattle 4th graders planted trees to bring green to their barren playground

    The Seattle City Council is considering updates to its current tree regulations this month. One goal is to bring more trees to areas that lack them. Mayor Harrell’s proposal includes a “fee-in-lieu” program that would require people to pay into a tree-planting fund when they cut down trees on their property.