Image description: a sketch of a Link light rail train at an elevated station with text reading: Move Redmond 12:00 to 4PM May 10th Redmond 2 Line Opening Celebration - trails 2 transit presented by Sound Transit at Downtown Redmond Station..

Police and Public Safety

King County Delays Closure of Youth Jail Until at Least 2028

King County will not achieve its stated goal of closing its youth jail by 2025, Executive Dow Constantine announced last week. The new timeline is 2028 at the earliest, and some Seattle leaders remain hesitant.
Protestors gather behind a police barricade at the East Precinct building, chanting “Hands up, don’t shoot,” on Sunday, May 31.

Seattle Pays Out $10 Million Settlement to Protesters in Excessive Force Case

The historic case of 50 Black Lives Matter protesters came to a close on Wednesday with the announcement of a $10 million settlement. The...

What to Look For in a New Seattle Police Contract

The Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG) collective bargaining agreement has languished for three full years since its expiration at the end of 2020. That...
Two police SUVs are parked behind metal barricades blocking traffic from Market Street.

Op-Ed: The Seattle Police Department Has an Efficiency Problem

SPD’s refusal to offload low-priority calls is undermining its ability to solve serious crimes. Over recent decades, the Seattle Police Department (SPD) has increasingly handled...

What a New Seattle Police Guild Contract Could Mean for Reform

With the dawning of the new year, will we finally be getting a new labor contract between the City of Seattle and the Seattle...
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...