Sheriff tells Seattle courthouse employees to stay remote over safety concerns

Employees at Seattle’s King County Courthouse are postponing their return to work in-person due to safety concerns in the courthouse and the adjacent park at the sheriff’s orders after a man attempted to rape a county employee inside of the courthouse bathroom last week, reports The Seattle Times.

Courthouse employees plan a rally outside the courthouse on Friday at noon, according to Andrea R. Vitalich, a senior deputy attorney with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, who told The Seattle Times this incident was “the final straw” after years of unsafe conditions. According to the Seattle Police Department, on July 29 a 35-year-old man attacked a woman — a county employee — who encountered the stranger in a bathroom. He tried to attack her, but she screamed and fought back. A court employee responded to the ruckus and stopped the attacker, police said.