SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. – A Spokane County Superior Court judge ruled against Spokane Valley City Councilmember Al Merkel on Thursday, finding that Merkel violated the city council’s social media policy and the Washington Public Records Act (PRA). According to a press release from the City of Spokane Valley, the ruling is consistent with the findings of the city attorney, a hearing examiner and a “third-party legal investigator.”
The Spokane Valley City Council unanimously voted for the city to sue Merkel at a February 2025 meeting. The lawsuit claimed that Merkel used private social media pages to discuss city business and failed to “reasonably search for and produce those social media records,” constituting a violation of the PRA.
Judge Rachelle Anderson found that “much of Councilmember Merkel’s social media content related to city business violates the Council social media policy and is indeed public records subject to the Washington Public Records Act,” according to the City of Spokane Valley…