by Erica C. Barnett

(This article was originally published on Feb. 22, 2024, on PubliCola and has been reprinted under an agreement.)

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Recently elected Burien City Councilmember Linda Akey was caught on tape confronting a group of unsheltered people outside her condo building in downtown Burien the week of Feb. 12, 2024. The group, who had set up tents on the sidewalk under the building’s awning, are among dozens now sleeping on sidewalks around Burien after the council imposed a daytime encampment ban that requires people to pick up sleeping bags, tents, backpacks, and other “indicia of public camping” by 6:00 a.m. every morning.

In the video, Akey can be seen telling people that they are “trespassing” and threatening to call the police on them if they don’t move their tents at least five feet away from her building and onto the public portion of the sidewalk. Every tent shown in the video appears to be well over five feet from the building.

“I have authority. I have authority. I live here and you do not belong here,” Akey says. “You’ve gotta move all the tents out of here. We will call the police.”

In an email, Akey said she was “not acting in any capacity as a government official” in the video, “but as a homeowner. I want to work toward positive solutions. I recognize I may look angry and I apologize for raising my voice.”

“Get away from here, move away from here. If you don’t want my attitude, then leave, take your tent. Residents live up here. … I live here and you do not belong here.”

“On the night in question, I approached individuals camped on the sidewalk, informing them of condo policies and city ordinances,” Akey continued. “While I empathize with their challenges, ensuring everyone’s safety is a top priority.”

In the video, as some of the people on the sidewalk begin to heckle Akey — “take your drunk ass home,” one says — Akey continues: “I’m trying to help you. I’m trying to help you, okay? And everybody out by 6 a.m., okay? I want all tents gone by 6 a.m. If you need to start at 5 a.m. to do that, then you do that. You can laugh at me all you want, but the law says 6 a.m.”

At this point in the tape, a person tells Akey, who has walked behind a tent in the foreground, to “get away from my tent.” She responds, “Oh, no — get out from under where I live. … Get away from here, move away from here. If you don’t want my attitude, then leave, take your tent. Residents live up here.” The video shows Akey pointing up at her building. “I live here. I live here. All these people live here. All these residents. All these residents. All these residents. … I live here and you do not belong here.”

Prior to the adoption of the new law, people living unsheltered in Burien were allowed to stay in public spaces other than parks.

The law says that people can’t be swept from a location unless shelter is available, but does not specify where this “available” shelter has to be. It also allows police to arrest or sweep people who can’t go into available shelter because of “voluntary” actions like active addiction and behavioral health conditions that lead to — as the law puts — “unruly” behavior.

Burien has no year-round shelters for the general population, and the council and city manager repeatedly stalled efforts to open a King County-funded tiny house village somewhere in the city before finally accepting the offer late last year.

When the city began enforcing the new “camping” ban last fall, it scattered the residents of a large encampment on Ambaum Boulevard Southwest throughout the city — including back into downtown Burien, where an encampment sweep in March of last year set off a series of events that led to the encampment ban. Akey lives less than a block from the original encampment.

Near the end of the video, a partially obscured Akey can be seen in an argument with one person, who claims she put her hands on them. “Let’s do it. Right now,” Akey says. “You want to live underneath other people? You guys don’t have to live here. You can live somewhere else. You can accept services. You can turn off the camera.”

In another video that appears to have been taken after the first, the man accompanying Akey (who appears, based on social media photos, to be her husband) tells the group, “you’ve been offered [housing] multiple times,” and claims that “there are programs for everybody.” Several encampment residents respond that this isn’t true — one calls the experience of looking for housing “a loop you never escape from” — while Akey repeats “I want to get you housing, I want to get you help” and asks them what she can do (“Do you mind if we get a shower?” one says, laughing) before repeating, “This is not the place for you to live.”

In her email, Akey said her “primary concern is the well-being of all involved. I believe a multi-faceted approach involving residents, social services, and relevant authorities is crucial to address homelessness and addiction.”

“One promising strategy is [criminal legal system] diversion programs, which often become more readily available when existing laws are enforced fairly and consistently,” Akey said. “By enforcing existing laws, we can ensure a safer environment for everyone in our community while also providing pathways to support and rehabilitation for those experiencing homelessness and addiction.”

The LEAD program has a contract to offer people accused of several specific misdemeanors, such as drug possession and theft, to bypass the criminal legal system and enroll in case management. The program is not designed as an off-ramp from arrest and prosecution for sleeping outdoors.

Prior to her election, Akey was a frequent public commenter at Burien City Council meetings. In September, when the council passed the encampment ban, she testified that allowing people to sleep outside is a way of “enabling” people. “I know some people reject help; however … sometimes rock bottom helps a person decide their life is unmanageable and that they need help.”

Three homeless Burien residents have sued the city of Burien over its camping ban, arguing that the law criminalizes homelessness.

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Erica C. Barnett is a feminist, an urbanist, and an obsessive observer of politics, transportation, and the quotidian inner workings of City Hall.

📸 Featured Image: Recently elected Burien City Councilmember Linda Akey was caught on tape confronting a group of unsheltered people outside her condo building in downtown Burien the week of Feb. 12, 2024. Screenshot from “Burien Councilmember Confronts Homeless Residents Outside her Condo” courtesy of PubliCola.

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