Tag Archives: Public Safety

Voices

OPINION | Debunking the Defunding Myth

by Gennette Cordova

The summer protests of 2020, fueled by police violence like the murder of George Floyd, brought amplified calls for the defunding of police departments across the country, at a volume that had not been heard prior and has not been heard since. The overwhelming backlash to those demands was swift and, in many cases, intentionally misleading. From country clubs to coffee shops, on the news and at family gatherings, out of the mouths of electeds and regular folks commenting online, a pronounced characteristic of post-2020 America is the scapegoating of imaginary police defunding for societal failures.

The truth of the matter is that there was never any change to our city’s police budget that kept them from paying officers or hindered their ability to prevent or solve crime.

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News

Community Leaders Rally for Unity in Response to South End Home Invasions Targeting Elderly Asians

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by Phil Manzano

Representatives from community organizations called for greater community involvement and solidarity in the wake of more than a dozen home invasions and attacks on elderly Asians in the South End.

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News

Community Resilience: Safe Passage Returns to Rainier Beach Safeway After Shooting

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by Phil Manzano

The blue pop-up awnings, bluer than Friday’s sunny skies, were back at the Rainier Beach Safeway parking lot — people gathered, music was playing, and food was on the way.

And under the tents were members of Safe Passage, anti-gun-violence group Moms Demand Action, Alliance for Gun Responsibility, and others who have been safely “keeping space” on Friday nights for three years until gunfire erupted on July 28, injuring five people.

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News

Seattle’s Increasing Use of Traffic Cameras Raises Debate Over Long-Term Solutions for Pedestrian Safety

by Lauryn Bray

As Seattle leans more heavily on traffic enforcement cameras to prevent collisions, some critics say their increasing use distracts from the need for infrastructural changes to regulate how traffic flows on major streets through the city.

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News

Public Hearing on Seattle Police Union Contract Considered a ‘Sham’ by Some, Progress by Others

by Luna Reyna

Tuesday evening, the Seattle City Council Public Safety and Human Services Committee held the only public hearing where community members could give input on the upcoming Seattle Police Management Association (SPMA) contract before closed-door negotiations.

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News

Local Community Efforts Aim to Deter Gun Violence

by Ronnie Estoque

Tascha Johnson was a graduate student at the University of Washington in 2018 when she was first introduced to CHOOSE 180, an organization focused on keeping youth out of the juvenile criminal legal system and breaking the school-to-prison pipeline. Sean Goode, executive director of CHOOSE 180 at the time, was a guest speaker in one of Johnson’s social work classes.

“When I heard him talking about the juvenile diversion program that they offer, and, you know, the impact on the community and working with systems to make changes within those systems, that really resonated with me, because I have family that has also been impacted by the juvenile legal system that then followed them into the legal system as they got older,” Johnson explained.

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News

Fentanyl Task Force Agrees on Need for Evidence-Based Court Alternatives — With One Notable Exception

by Erica C. Barnett

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

A task force convened by Mayor Bruce Harrell to come up with proposals to address illegal drug use in public spaces has been meeting for several weeks to discuss how Seattle’s court system can address a potential influx of cases from the City Attorney Ann Davison’s office. This summer, the council is expected to pass a new law empowering Davison’s office to prosecute people who use drugs in public by aligning Seattle’s municipal code with a new state law making public drug use or simple possession a gross misdemeanor, rather than a felony.

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Voices

OPINION | After-School Programs Are Vital for Children but Still Out of Reach for Most Parents

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by Gennette Cordova

As a child growing up in Seattle in the ʼ90s, I had the great fortune of receiving a wide range of non-familial nurturing, from the Miller Jet coaches to the Leschi Elementary School teachers. At Garfield Community Center, where I spent years enrolled in the after-school program and the summer camp, I always knew I had eyes on me. Eyes of adults who both cared about my well-being and would be quick to let my mom know if I was out of line.

When I became an adult who was responsible for children, I learned that after-school programs in our city aren’t readily available to many families. This is something that’s hard for me to understand, particularly in one of the wealthiest cities in the nation. 

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News

A Year After Taking Over, Tacoma Police Chief Talks Violent Crime, Morale and Officers Awaiting Trial

by Kari Plog

(This article was originally published on KNKX Public Radio and has been reprinted under an agreement.)

It’s been more than a year since Chief Avery Moore moved from Dallas and took over the Tacoma Police Department. Since then, he has hired more officers and launched a phased plan to address violent crime.

But concerns from the public remain, among them the stalled internal investigation into three Tacoma officers charged with killing Manuel Ellis.

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Features

Is It the Era of Ann? : A Retrospective of Ann Davison’s First Year in Office

Despite the shift in rhetoric, the City Attorney’s Office may not have changed as much under Ann Davison as you’d think.

by Guy Oron

(This article was originally published on Real Change and has been reprinted under an agreement.)

When Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison took office, she pledged to bring “quiet, behind-the-scenes” leadership and integrity to the law department. Her election was hotly contested, narrowly beating out abolitionist public defender Nicole Thomas-Kennedy in what many perceived to be a conservative “backlash” election. 

After the election, the one-time Republican lieutenant governor candidate became an early backer of Mayor Bruce Harrell’s “Operation New Day” to tackle visible homelessness and poverty, meeting with business owners in Little Saigon and Westlake and pledging to increase prosecutions in order to “disrupt the cycle of addiction, theft, drug sales, and human suffering.”

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