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Gov. Christine Gregoire names new Corrections Department head

For Immediate Release: January 24, 2005

Gov. Christine Gregoire today announced she is appointing Harold W. Clarke as Secretary of the Washington Department of Corrections. Clarke currently is director of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services.

�One of my goals as Governor is to find the best and brightest people to serve in my administration,� Gregoire said in a news conference. �Harold is the ideal person to head up our correctional system,� she said, noting that he is a very well respected national leader. �He is well known for his high professional and ethical standards and his ability to take on difficult issues and find a way to achieve consensus.�

Clarke replaces Joseph Lehman who has retired. As head of the Corrections Department, he will be in charge of 15 corrections centers and 16 work-release facilities that house more than 17,000 inmates. The Department of Corrections has 8,000 employees.

Gregoire also announced that, in conjunction with Clarke�s appointment, she is commissioning independent reviews of four major aspects of the Department of Corrections� operations � its organizational structure, its information system, the impact of the 1999 Offender Accountability Act and the risk exposure for the department.

�These reviews are not to look for mistakes or second-guess,� she said. �They are to give the new Secretary, when he starts work five weeks from today, a picture of some of the areas where the department faces its greatest challenges, and information that he can use to meet those challenges.�

In addition, Gregoire announced the appointment of Seattle attorney Richard E. Mitchell as legal counsel to the Governor�s Office and Kurt B. Fritts as Director of External Affairs.

Mitchell is an associate at the Seattle office of Dorsey and Whitney where he has specialized in real estate, construction, securities and complex commercial contract disputes. He is also an adjunct faculty member at the Seattle University College of Law where he teaches construction law.

Mitchell, she said, �is very capable, very articulate and very people oriented. He will provide an excellent business and corporate perspective to my staff.�

Fritts spent much of the past eight years working for Senate Democrats on policy work and on campaign efforts. He is very well-traveled around the state, including time spent living in Yakima, Pullman, Woodland, Bainbridge Island, Olympia, Seattle and Tacoma. His position includes directing community outreach and boards and commissions and staffing the elections reform task force.

�He brings to my office a great deal of knowledge of the state and the issues of concern to Washington residents and organizations,� Gregoire said.