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Police and Public Safety

Three bike-wielding cops form a barricade around a sweep with a large contingent of officers behind

Seattle’s Pioneering Bike Cop Experiment

An excerpt from my new book, Heartbreak City, shows how Seattle kicked off a nationwide bike policing trend. A distant frontier city that had only...
i-90 traffic under the Mercer Island lid at the HOV off-ramp to the island.

Mercer Island Debates Surveillance Cameras

Critics have raised concerns about a lack of privacy, data security, or demonstrated effectiveness in reducing crime. Mercer Island has a new initiative under consideration:...
A half dozen police and a medic team talk to a person in a wheel chair across from Pioneer Square Station. A police cruiser and ambulance are parked along Third Avenue.

Harrell’s Dual-Responder Proposal Would Fail to Civilianize Crisis Response

Seattle's road to a non-police alternative to address its behavioral health crisis has been a long, convoluted one. This month the new Community Assisted Response...
Mayor Harrell at a podium with people behind him. He is talking about funding programs for the homeless.

Harrell’s 2024 Budget Leaves Big Questions on Safety and Looming Shortfall

Durable solutions to police accountability, public safety, drug treatment, and homelessness all remain elusive and vaguely defined. On Tuesday, Mayor Bruce Harrell released his 2024...
Three officers standing around a squad car

Op-Ed: New Drug Bill Relies on Trusting a Contemptuous Seattle Police Force

The war on drugs is back, and Seattle is about to entrust SPD to carry it out with minimal guardrails. This Tuesday, Seattle City Council...
Portrait photo of Jaahnavi-Kandula

Jaahnavi Kandula’s Killing Reveals Seattle’s Many Failings on Public Safety

What is a 23-year-old woman's life worth? To Daniel Auderer, Vice President of the Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG), apparently the answer is $11,000...
The memorials along the East Precinct police station--now christened the Capitol Hill Community Center--keep growing. (Photo by Doug Trumm)

Op-Ed: Walking Away from the Empty Promise of Seattle’s Consent Decree

Seattle is still struggling for justice and constitutional policing 12 years into federal monitoring via the consent decree. More than 12 years ago, 34 Seattle...
A sign reads Night Out street closed with people gathered behind it socializing.

National Night Out Brings Neighbors (Briefly) Out on the Street

38 million people are expected to participate this year in cities nationwide. This Tuesday people might notice something special going on where they live. As...