City Councilman McIver Arrested, Accused of Assault

Seattle City Council member Richard McIver was arrested and booked into King County Jail at 2:30 this morning for alleged domestic violence, assaulting his wife. He is, at this writing, being held without bail, facing a hearing in Seattle Municipal Court.

Marlaina Kiner-McIver, his wife of 33 years told KOMO TV he awoke her early this morning and told her she was "inadequate" as a wife, and apparently pushed her around. She called police to their Lakewood neighborhood in southeast Seattle which, she now says, she regrets. 

(Update: You can watch the story here. She says "My husband was verbally abusive and I called 911 and I regret everthing I did...He was telling me how inadequate I was as a wife. I was sleeping when he came in and I think he had been drinking.")

McIver has been a council member for ten years, and chairs the finance and budget committee. He is up for re-election in 2009.

In his budget announcement last year, McIver called public safety "the City's primary responsibility. The Council understands that public safety means more police and crime prevention but also more money for human services. In order to be safe, Seattleites need food, shelter, employment, and an adequately staffed police force."