Tag Archives: Lisa Herbold

News

City’s Recession-Era Budget Includes Modest Cuts to Police, Promises of Future Investments in Community Safety

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by Erica C. Barnett

The Seattle City Council adopted a 2021 budget today that reduces the Seattle Police Department’s budget while funding investments in alternatives to policing; repurposes most of Mayor Jenny Durkan’s proposed $100 million “equitable investment fund” to Council priorities; and replaces the encampment-removing Navigation Team with a new program intended to help outreach workers move unsheltered people into shelter and permanent housing. 

Continue reading City’s Recession-Era Budget Includes Modest Cuts to Police, Promises of Future Investments in Community Safety →
News

Seattle City Council Overrides Mayor’s 2020 Budget Veto, Leaving In Place Cuts to SPD and Navigation Team

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by Erica C. Barnett

On Tuesday evening, The Seattle City Council voted 7-2 to override Mayor Jenny Durkan’s veto of the 2020 midyear “rebalancing” budget package they adopted in August, setting the stage for a showdown with the mayor in the upcoming 2021 budget discussions, which kick off formally next Tuesday. 

Continue reading Seattle City Council Overrides Mayor’s 2020 Budget Veto, Leaving In Place Cuts to SPD and Navigation Team →
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BLMSKC Files For Seattle Ethics and Elections Investigation Into Seattle City Council

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by Carolyn Bick

Black Lives Matter Seattle – King County (BLMSKC) has filed for a Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission (SEEC) investigation into the Seattle City Council (SCC), according to a press release and letters received by the Emerald.

In a letter released on the morning of Sept. 14, BLMSKC called on the SEEC to “immediately, transparently, and aggressively investigate” the SCC for 12 different counts of what the press release containing the letter calls “potential incidents” involving both the entire SCC or specifically named members. The letter specifically states that it “makes no accusations” but that the issues outlined within the letter “are gravely concerning to Black Lives Matter Seattle King County.”

Continue reading BLMSKC Files For Seattle Ethics and Elections Investigation Into Seattle City Council →
News

Veto-Proof Majority of Seattle City Council Pledges Support for #DefundSPD Effort

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by JSeattle

(This article was originally published on The Capitol Hill Seattle Blog and has been reprinted under an agreement)

Seven of the nine Seattle City Council members say they will support the effort to reduce the Seattle Police budget by 50%, the key component of demands from activists and community groups after weeks of Black Lives Matter protests, marches, and rallies in the Pacific Northwest.

The important threshold would represent a veto-proof majority on any council action as the representatives shape major changes to the city’s budget in the face of predictions of a significant downturn in revenue due to the COVID-19 crisis — a rebalancing process planned to be finalized and voted on in the next two weeks. Continue reading Veto-Proof Majority of Seattle City Council Pledges Support for #DefundSPD Effort →

News

After Sweeping Protest Zone, Durkan Says City Will “Memorialize” Protests, “Reimagine Policing” In Seattle

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by Erica C. Barnett

About 10 hours after Seattle police officers moved in to remove barriers, tents, artwork, and people from the Capitol Hill Organized Protest area Wednesday morning, Mayor Jenny Durkan, police chief Carmen Best, and other department heads called a press conference to explain their actions. Continue reading After Sweeping Protest Zone, Durkan Says City Will “Memorialize” Protests, “Reimagine Policing” In Seattle →

News

Seattle Council Bans Use of Chokeholds and “Less-Lethal” Weapons by Police

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Erica C. Barnett

The Seattle City Council voted unanimously today to ban the Seattle Police Department from owning or using so-called “less lethal” weapons such as blast balls, tear gas, and pepper spray for any purpose, and, in separate legislation, to ban the use of “chokeholds,” a term that includes various methods of restraining a person by cutting off their air supply or blood flow to their brain. Continue reading Seattle Council Bans Use of Chokeholds and “Less-Lethal” Weapons by Police →

News

“You Can’t Fix What’s Fundamentally Broken.” Seattle City Council Considers Defunding Police Department

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by Erica C. Barnett

As the Seattle Police Department announced it was removing all “sensitive items” from the East Precinct building on Capitol Hill in anticipation of another long night of protests, the Seattle City Council adopted a number of strongly worded resolutions demanding action earlier Monday afternoon.

Among other actions, the council unanimously signed two letters calling, respectively, for the demilitarization of SPD and for Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes to withdraw the city’s lawsuit against inquest reforms adopted by King County in 2019. Continue reading “You Can’t Fix What’s Fundamentally Broken.” Seattle City Council Considers Defunding Police Department →

News

Morales, New City Council Members Sworn In, Offering New Visions for Seattle and the South End

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by Chetanya Robinson

A new Seattle City Council was sworn in Monday, bringing four new faces behind the dais, three members returning for new terms, and with them, perhaps, a more progressive direction for Seattle politics. Continue reading Morales, New City Council Members Sworn In, Offering New Visions for Seattle and the South End →

Civics

Herbold: Mandatory Housing Affordability DEIS Has Room For Improvement

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by Kamna Shastri 

On July 31, Seattle Councilmembers passed legislation approving a zoning change in Seattle’s Chinatown International District. The modification in the zoning code is the first step in kick-starting the city’s Mandatory Housing Affordability program in the neighborhood, a program that has been highly contested in the CID community. Continue reading Herbold: Mandatory Housing Affordability DEIS Has Room For Improvement →