Michelle R. Smith, Author at Valley News

A woman wearing a shirt honoring Juneteenth and other milestones of history raises her first with union workers and other supporters at the start of a march Friday, June 19, 2020, near the Port of Seattle as part of a coordinated eight-hour work stoppage at more than two dozen West Coast Ports that was organized by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. Workers took part in rallies honoring Juneteenth and to protest against police violence and racism. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

News

Juneteenth takes on new meaning amid push for racial justice

by Mike Householder Associated Press, Jonathan Mattise Associated Press, and Michelle R. Smith Associated PressJune 19, 2020

DETROIT — Protesters marched over the Brooklyn Bridge, chanted “We want justice now!” near St. Louis’ Gateway Arch, prayed in Atlanta and paused for a moment of silence at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington, as Americans marked…

Tina Nguyen, left, a nurse at at the International Community Health Services clinic in Seattle's International District, takes a nose swab sample from Mindy Balk, an ICHS employee, during walk- and drive-up testing for COVID-19, Friday, May 15, 2020. As testing supplies for coronavirus have become more abundant, the clinic has been able to offer testing to anyone in the community by appointment if they are experiencing symptoms. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

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States, including Vermont, accused of fudging or bungling COVID-19 testing data

by Michelle R. Smith Associated Press, Colleen Long Associated Press, and Jeff Amy Associated PressMay 19, 2020

FILE - In this Nov. 4, 2004 file photo, WJAR-TV reporter Jim Taricani, right, speaks with reporters outside U.S. District Court in Providence, R.I. Taricani, an award-winning TV reporter who exposed corruption and served a federal sentence for refusing to disclose a source, has died. He was 69. His friend, Dyana Koelsch, says in a statement that Taricani died at home on Friday, June 21, 2019. (AP Photo/Victoria Arocho)

Jim Taricani, exposed corruption in R.I., dies at 69

by Michelle R. Smith Associated PressJune 22, 2019

FILE - This undated file image provided by the U.S. Navy shows Rear Adm. Jeffrey Harley, president of the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, R.I. On Monday, June 10, 2019, the Navy said Harley has been reassigned pending the outcome of an inspector general investigation. The administrative reassignment comes days after The Associated Press reported on the investigation amid allegations that he spent excessively, abused his hiring authority and otherwise behaved inappropriately. (U.S. Navy via AP, File)

Naval War College head reassigned pending probe

by Jennifer McDermott Associated Press, and Michelle R. Smith Associated PressJune 10, 2019

In this Jan. 10, 2019, photo, Will Kohler, an IRS tax examiner, holds a protest sign as union members and other federal employees rally to call for an end to the partial government shutdown outside the IRS site, in Covington, Ky. Kohler applied for unemployment after getting furloughed but said his application is in limbo because the Treasury Department office that needs to verify his claim is closed as a result of the shutdown. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Federal workers caught in the middle apply for unemployment

by Michelle R. Smith Associated PressJanuary 17, 2019

In this July 12, 2018 photo, boats sit docked in the Newport Shipyard in Newport, R.I. American boat makers are getting pummeled on multiple fronts by tariffs and stand to be among the industries hardest-hit in an escalating trade war. (AP Photo/Michelle R. Smith)

American Boat Makers Feel the Crunch From Trump Tariffs

by Michelle R. Smith Associated PressAugust 4, 2018

In this Friday Dec. 1, 2017, photo, 93-year-old Mary Derr sits with her robot cat she calls "Buddy" in her home she shares with her daughter Jeanne Elliott in South Kingstown, R.I. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

Robotic Cat Could One Day Help Seniors

by Michelle R. Smith Associated PressDecember 24, 2017

FILE - In this Sept. 27, 2016, file photo, Nathan Carman arrives in a small boat at the US Coast Guard station in Boston after spending a week at sea in a life raft before being rescued by a passing freighter. Insurance company lawyers on Monday, Sept. 25, 2017, blasted Carman, whose mother was lost at sea, saying he made suspicious alterations to his boat before what they called its "most curious sinking." There is a hearing on the insurance claim in Federal Court Friday, Dec. 8, 2017 in Providence, RI. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)

Vt. Man Must Give Gun Info in Rhode Island Suit

by Michelle R. Smith Associated PressDecember 10, 2017

R.I. Doctor Admits Kickbacks for Fentanyl

by Michelle R. Smith Associated PressOctober 29, 2017

FILE - In this April 6, 2017 file photo, Rhea McCauley, a niece of the late civil rights activist Rosa Parks, poses in front of the rebuilt house of Rosa Parks in Berlin. McCauley donated the house, originally located in Detroit, to American artist Ryan Mendoza who dismantled and and rebuilt it in the German capital. Brown University said in October it is looking to temporarily relocate the house from Berlin to Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiberl, File)

Feds Say Right Whales Should Remain on Endangered List

by Michelle R. Smith Associated PressOctober 22, 2017