Brickbat: Purged

Thousands of messages were deleted from the phones of then-Seattle mayor Jenny Durkan and other city officials during protests in that city in 2020 following the death of George Floyd. Now, city officials have agreed to pay $2.3 million to settle a lawsuit brought by two whistleblowers who helped reveal those missing texts. City records officers Stacy Irwin and Kimberly Ferreiro said they were asked to perform illegal acts, subjected to abuse when they complained about how public records were being treated and ultimately forced to resign. In addition to the $2.3 million, the city spent nearly $800,000 fighting the case before deciding to settle.