Mayor vetoes RV ban. No added cops in balancing package
Earlier this week, Mayor Katie Wilson vetoed the portion of Dan Strauss’ recently passed RV bill package requiring permits for people living in the vehicles. To go into effect, she needed at least one council member to flip. That turned out to be perennial wildcard Rob Saka. Mayor Wilson signed Strauss’ other four ordinances, including measures to increase outreach and expand safe lots. In addition, she issued an executive order establishing an interdepartmental workgroup that would recommend a way forward for Seattleites living in vehicles. The budget committee released its balancing package on Tuesday. Several proposed add-ons to the already-bloated Seattle police budget didn’t make the cut, including Kettle’s request for $12 million to fund over 150 new sworn officers. The amendments did, however, restore nine more parking cop positions that the mayor had cut. These had been continuously vacant since 2020.
Former SPOG Prez Mike Solan eats it in Pierce County race
On election night, former Seattle police guild President Mike Solan was handily defeated in his bid to become a small-time politician in Pierce County, a place he’s called home for barely four years (he only updated his voter registration in 2026). Democrat Brenda Lykins, a former nurse practitioner, trounced Solan, a Republican, by a 25-point margin. Pierce County Sheriff Keith Swank, a former SPD captain, fared much better, unfortunately. Though he wasn’t up for reelection this year, a charter amendment that would make the county sheriff an appointed office was on the ballot. It failed by a 2-to-1 margin. Swank is also a combatant in an ongoing legal battle over legislation that could remove him from office if the state revokes his officer certification. He’s facing 13 active decertification complaints over his outlandish and bigoted statements. A Thurston County judge declared the law unconstitutional, but Attorney General Nick Brown plans to appeal.
‘You don’t wanna go down this route:’ Seattle cop threatened to stop answering calls
If you want to make a Seattle cop mad, just ask him to do his job. That’s what a Safeway employee did last year, and Officer Michael Griffin threatened not to show up at all next time.
SPD is getting the same kind of robot ‘dog’ as ICE
In breaking dystopian hellscape news, the Seattle police are getting a robot “dog.” The “dog” will be used for bomb inspection and disposal, and it will be funded through a port security grant. The exact price tag isn’t listed, but the robots, manufactured by Boston Dynamics, have a base cost of around $110,000, and when they’re fully kitted out with add-ons by RADeCO, they can run north of $300,000. Apparently, this tech is already covered by an existing Surveillance Impact Report, so it does not require a material change update. That means no public input is necessary to acquire it. SPD shares the same vendor as ICE, which is also planning to buy hundreds of these modified robot “dogs.” Even workers at Boston Dynamics are against ICE using this technology.
SPD brutalizes suicidal man who called 988 for help
Earlier this year, Seattle police officers busted down the door of a suicidal man, and the Office of Police Accountability recently decided that this was all by the book. The man called 988 to request a civilian crisis intervention, but cops showed up at his apartment door instead. When he wouldn’t let them in, they kicked down his door, forcibly restrained him, threatened him, and searched his phone without a warrant. According to his written statement to the OPA, the man was “seeking assistance and de-escalation, but instead I experienced a forced entry, physical injury, loss of consciousness or memory, and restraints.” The OPA found that this brutal and warrantless response to a request for help was legally justified under the doctrine of “community caretaking” and did not sustain findings.
Renton gets rid of Flock but keeps Axon, Genetec ALPRs
Renton finally took down 24 Flock Safety ALPRs after letting its contract expire. The city had paused cameras briefly until it could meet the requirements of SB6002. Then, it decided not to reactivate them after a University of Washington report found that their data had been accessed by feds along with 17 other agencies. While Renton has finally done away with its Flock Cameras, it still has ALPRs on its vehicle fleet through former Flock partner Axon, as well as it parking enforcement fleet through Genetec. Flock Safety continues to rightfully crumble under increasingly negative brand recognition, but its competitors and former collaborators like Axon have been quietly replacing it across the country.
Thurston County Deputies Tase and Shoot at a Man
On Sunday, Thurston County Sheriff’s Deputies shot at a man after joining the Washington State Patrol in a high-speed pursuit on I-5. After deploying spike strips on the vehicle, deputies chased the man across the freeway. In the body camera footage, a deputy deploys the Taser through a fence as the man gets up from the ground. He falls again from the Taser. Then, moments later, the same deputy pulls out his firearm and shoots three times, holding a gun in one hand and a Taser in the other. Deputies tasered him again in a parking lot before arresting him. After being shot at while on the ground, the man was hospitalized for what police described as “minor injuries from Taser deployment.” The Office of Independent Investigations, the statewide body tasked with investigating police shootings, declined to take on this case, so the Region 3 Critical Incident Investigation Team is now in charge.
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