A Washington ranching couple is appealing a court ruling that dismissed their challenge to the state’s enforcement process, continuing their fight for a jury trial in a multimillion-dollar dispute about digging and maintaining stockwater ponds.
Judge Melissa K. Chlarson on Aug. 19 denied Wade and Teresa King’s motion for partial summary judgment and dismissed their complaint against the state of Washington. The Kings, who operate King Ranch, had asked the court to declare that forcing their case through the Pollution Control Hearings Board violated their constitutional right to a jury trial and to stop the administrative proceeding.
Chlarson did not rule on the underlying jury trial question. Instead, she found the Kings improperly brought their lawsuit under the Uniform Declaratory Judgments Act because the Administrative Procedure Act governs challenges to state agency actions.
The judge also concluded the Kings had not exhausted their administrative remedies before turning to the Superior Court. As a result, she denied their motion and dismissed the complaint.
The dispute dates to 2023, when the Washington State Department of Ecology accused the Kings of disturbing regulated wetlands on their ranch and assessed a $267,540 penalty. The agency later ordered the family to complete a restoration project estimated to cost more than $3.7 million.
The Kings dispute Ecology’s wetlands determination, maintaining the stockwater ponds at issue have long been part of their ranching operation. Rather than first having a jury decide the dispute in court, the enforcement action is proceeding before the Pollution Control Hearings Board.
Pacific Legal Foundation, which represents the Kings, argues that the process improperly denies them the jury trial protections provided by the Washington Constitution.
“The Kings have been fighting for years to protect their property and their constitutional rights, and they are not giving up now,” said Oliver J. Dunford, senior attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation. “Washington should not be able to impose millions of dollars in penalties and compliance costs while denying the Kings their right to have their case heard in a court before a jury.”
Dunford said the organization would continue pursuing the case to give the Kings that opportunity.
Attorneys for the Kings have asked the appellate court to expedite its review and pause the administrative proceeding, arguing they should not be forced through a process they contend violates their right to a jury trial.
The Aug. 25 appeal keeps that question alive and shifts the dispute to Washington’s appellate courts. — Charles Wallace, WLJ contributing editor
