LYNNWOOD—A Snohomish County Superior Court Judge has denied Lynnwood City Council Vice President Josh Binda’s request for a protection order against Lynnwood Times’ owner and award-winning journalist Mario Lotmore, marking a huge victory for first amendment rights and freedom of the press for all journalists.
In her decision on January 28, the presiding Judge wrote that Binda did not allege sufficient facts to warrant entry of the order per state law requirements.
“[T]heir acts appear to align with behavior that may serve ‘lawful purpose’ given respondent works for the Lynnwood Times and entry of this order may affect first amendment issues,” the Judge further explained.
In his filing, Binda left the evidence segment blank, instead choosing to attach a Lynnwood Times article as evidence. That article reported the facts to support that Binda may not be a resident of Lynnwood—a requirement to hold office by state law and the Lynnwood Municipal Code—and further reported that Binda may have committed election fraud by voting in a district he did not reside in.
Binda denied that this is the case on the record which he called “a false narrative.”
Binda alleged, in his official protection order filing, that he was being “stalked” by Lynnwood Times Owner Mario Lotmore given the Lynnwood Times’ relentless coverage of the council member’s questionable conduct over the years.
Binda also requested the court to order Mario Lotmore to pay him $15,000 in financial relief stating the coverage of him in the Lynnwood Times impeded his “ability to maintain stable employment.” This was also denied by the judge.
The Lynnwood Times investigation uncovered that Vice President Binda, 25, owes just over $18,000 in the following: unpaid traffic citations ($1,400 to the City of Lynnwood alone), PDC fines ($1,363), and several legal judgments against him (just over $14,000). Records also show that within the last five years, Binda had a total of 18 court cases, several related to wage garnishments that involved the City of Lynnwood.
Conflicting residential addresses: Court-sworn vs. Lynnwood Mayor
To level set readers, there are currently three addresses being used by Council Vice President Binda—a Lynnwood address he was evicted from, a Lynnwood address associated with his voter registration, and an Everett address where he is allegedly living with his father. Understanding the different addresses is paramount to understanding the conflicting addresses Council Vice President Binda provided the court and to Lynnwood Mayor Christine Frizzell.
During the Lynnwood Times’ 6-week investigation, it was discovered that Binda was evicted and trespassed from his Lynnwood Heather Ridge apartment in November 2023, located on 68 Ave West in Lynnwood, referred to as the “evicted address.” The evidence from the investigation appears to indicate that Binda since January of 2024, has lived at an Everett apartment with his father which is referred to as the “Everett address.” The third address, located on 52nd Ave W in Lynnwood is the voter registration address associated with Binda, referred to as the “voter registration address.”
Prior to December 18, 2024, the “evicted address” was the address for Binda’s voter registration but with a P.O. Box for his mailing address to received ballots. On December 18, 2024, Binda updated this address to his new “voter registration address” on 52nd Ave W in Lynnwood. As of Tuesday, February 4, Binda’s voter status at the “voter registration address” is still inactive after the Snohomish County Auditor’s Office failed to receive confirmation from Binda that he truly is living at that address after multiple attempts.
According to the Protection Order the judge denied on Tuesday of last week, Binda provided his “evicted address” as his place of residency on the court document signed by him on Monday, January 27, 2025, and submitted the following day to the court. According to court documents associated with that case, Binda is also trespassed from that property.
During an 8 a.m. phone call on Monday, January 27, with Lynnwood Mayor Frizzell along with Council President Nick Coelho, Binda provided his “voter registration address” as his place of residency, which is in direct conflict to the address he provided the court the very next day certifying under perjury to be his place of residency.
What’s more, when Binda filed the Protection Order against Lotmore, he used the same South Everett address—the “Everett address.”— the Lynnwood Times uncovered to be where Binda is allegedly living, as the mailing address to receive court documents.
Binda also chose to file the Protection Order at an Everett court 13 miles away despite the South District Court in Lynnwood being just less than 3 miles away from where he told the Mayor Christine Frizzell he lives and literally across the street from the address he told the court he lives.
Council Vice President Binda has not responded to a request by the Lynnwood Times for him to explain to readers why he presented the mayor a different address as his place of residency than what is on signed court documents. Also, Council Vice President Binda has yet to respond to our inquiry as to why he certified to the court that he is living at his evicted Lynnwood apartment—the “evicted address.”
Latest Developments in Binda’s Proof of Residency
The Lynnwood Times disclosed the conflicting addresses to all Lynnwood City Council members and the Mayor on the evening of Monday, February 3, 2025. The City of Lynnwood informed the Lynnwood Times that “City Administration is currently determining the next steps.”
“The City does not play a role in the election. We are not responsible for verifying a candidate’s residency when they register to run for a local office and/or after they are elected,” wrote Nathan MacDonald, Manager of Communication and Public Affairs for the City of Lynnwood.
Lynnwood Mayor Christine Frizzell at first stated that the City verified that Binda is a Lynnwood resident, during a City Council meeting on Monday, January 27. Upon requesting supporting evidence to her claim of verification, MacDonald elaborated that the mayor’s comments were “not the end of the conversation” and that the City would continue to research the City’s role “when an elected official moves either within our out of their jurisdiction.”
The City confirmed with the Lynnwood Times during that exchange that the address provided to the Mayor by Councilman Binda was the “voter registration address” on 52nd Ave W in Lynnwood, which as of February 4, is still unverified as a legitimate residence of Council Vice President Binda according to the Secretary of State’s Office and the Snohomish County Auditor’s Office.
The January 27 meeting was also the very same meeting where Council Vice President Binda announced that he had filed the protection order against Lotmore stating:
“I have officially filed for a protection order against Mario Lotmore, the owner of the Lynnwood Times, for the safety of myself, and my family,” said Binda. “I’m doing this because I don’t want any other public servant, or community member, to be treated the way that I’ve been treated at the hand of his dangerous and gross misinformation, as well as fake journalism. I especially don’t want any other young person who is bold enough to run for office, and take part in our democracy, to be treated the way that I’ve been treated for the past four years by Mario Lotmore and the Lynnwood Times.”
Lynnwood resident Dio Boucsieguez, who led a committee effort to recall Council Vice President Binda back when it surfaced that he misused campaign funds and used his position as Councilman for personal gain, criticized Mayor Frizzell for the City’s slow process verifying the Councilman’s residency.
“Why is the mayor dragging her feet on taking action against Councilmember Binda, who obviously doesn’t live in the City of Lynnwood? A three-month long investigation is unnecessary. The facts are apparent,” wrote Boucsieguez. “Mayor Frizzell’s administration MUST take leadership and act with urgency. Every week that Binda remains on the council, the mayor allows him to take Lynnwood residents’ hard-earned money fraudulently. This must stop.”
MacDonald confirmed with the Lynnwood Times that the authority to take legal action against Binda for allegedly illegally holding public office must be brought forward and approved by the city council.
“The Mayor cannot bring forward lawsuits without the Council’s approval,” MacDonald wrote to the Lynnwood Times. “The City would take direction from the Council if they want to pursue legal options for a council member.”
Council President Coelho, informed the Lynnwood Times that he will be reviewing all the information he has been presented regarding Binda’s residency and his responsibilities as Council President to understand “where they may intersect.” He shared that because the agenda meeting hasn’t occurred, he cannot commit to Binda’s residency as an item for the council’s upcoming meeting scheduled for Monday, February 10.
An article from MRSC, maps out Loss of Residency and the possible courses of action that a Council or the public can take. Below is an excerpt detailing actions if Council Vice President Binda does not voluntarily resign:
“If an official no longer resides in their jurisdiction (and/or district or ward), they may resign voluntarily. If the official does not resign voluntarily, RCW 7.56.010 provides for an action of quo warranto (literally, “what warrant”) that can be filed in the county superior court against any person who “unlawfully” holds public office. This civil action can be filed by any person who has an interest in the office. Since ordinary citizens usually do not have standing to file, the county prosecuting attorney is directed to do so (see RCW 7.56.020) and a person can seek a writ of mandamus, asking the court to order the county prosecuting attorney to take action (Kilduff v. San Juan County (2019)). If the court finds that the official no longer resides in the jurisdiction, it can issue an order that the position is vacant.”
Binda has yet to respond to a Lynnwood Times inquiry if he will resign from the Lynnwood City Council.
Binda potential resume embellishments
In addition to Council Vice President Binda allegedly misleading City of Lynnwood government (and its residents) into where he’s living, his resume — and the biography used on the City Council website as well as the Washington Voter’s Pamphlet — appears to be embellished according to a Lynnwood Times fact check.
Binda claimed to be currently “attending the university of Washington where he is majoring Business Management and minoring in Political Science” on the City’s website for years 2023, 2024, and as of February 4, 2025. However, according to Victor Balta, Media Contact for the University of Washington, a review of the student database (which Balta confirmed shows alumni as well as of the end of December 2024) shows no student having attended the University of Washington under Binda’s name.
Binda claimed to be a practicing Real Estate Agent for John L. Scott however the Lynnwood Times confirmed that his real estate license is inactive and therefore he cannot practice in the State of Washington. There is no record of Binda ever selling a home.
Binda claimed that he worked as an integration engineer for Jeff Bezos’ rocket company Blue Origin. A 2023 court document for wage garnishment confirmed that his last day of employment with Blue Origin was on July 15, 2022. Two independent sources familiar with Blue Origin’s Integration Engineer job title shared that the position does not require a college degree only a high school diploma or equivalent. The Lynnwood Times is currently awaiting confirmation from Blue Origin concerning Binda’s employment and in what capacity.
The Journal 425 – who named Binda their 30 under 30 in 2022 – and King 5 both have previously reported that Binda has “made his living as real estate agent and as an engineer for Blue Origin.”
Binda claimed that he attended Sno-Isle Tech where he attained his aerospace engineering certification and that he was the student body president both years he was there.
Diane Bradford, Communications Director for the Mukilteo School District, did confirm with the Lynnwood Times that Binda attended Kamiak High School, where he graduated from in 2017 and took classes at Sno-Isle TECH. However, Bradford was unable to confirm what certification he was awarded by Sno-Isle nor was she able to divulge his involvement with the student body at Sno-Isle TECH as their database does not indicate that information, according to her.
Separate from Bradford’s response, the Mukilteo School District did confirm, a year earlier, that no one by the name of Josh Binda was ever student body president nor in student government at Kamiak High School. The Lynnwood Times is still awaiting confirmation of Binda’s involvement with Sno-Isle TECH’s Associated Student Body.
Author: Kienan Briscoe
