Lawsuits reveal city is missing June 2020 text messages from Seattle mayor, SPD leaders, fire chief May 10, 2021 at 12:04 pm
Police Chief Carmen Best, center, speaks at at a news conference, Monday, July 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Lawsuits filed against the City of Seattle related to protests that took place last June revealed that the city is missing text messages from Mayor Jenny Durkan, then-SPD Chief Carmen Best, Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins, and several other SPD leaders.
One of the lawsuits brought on behalf of Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County had sought to use texts among city leadership to paint a picture of behind-the-scenes communication that led to the frequent use of tear gas during protests early last summer. Another filed by Capitol Hill residents and businesses had looked to decipher the series of events leading up to SPD abandoning the East Precinct last June, and the eventual creation of the CHOP.
May 3, 2021 at 9:22 am
Police block a road during protests near the Seattle Police East Precinct on July 26, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by David Ryder/Getty Images)
The Washington Legislature passed a handful of bills related to policing this session, but according to the Seattle Police Department, not all of them will affect the city’s existing policy.
Policing bills state lawmakers passed this session include:
HB 1054: Imposes restrictions on the use of tear gas, bans chokeholds and neck restraints, bans vehicular pursuits excepting specific scenarios, bans no-knock search and arrest warrants, prohibits the use of military equipment, and convenes a work group on the training and deployment of K9s.
Coalition calls on state AG to investigate 183 police officers with compromised credibility
The Washington Black Lives Matter Alliance (WBLMA) issued a letter to state Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Thursday, calling on him to open an investigation into 183 police officers who they say have “compromised credibility.”
This came in the wake of a report released Thursday morning by Crosscut’s Melissa Santos, which detailed the Washington police officers who have been placed on what’s known as the Brady list, or “essentially a collection of cops who come with a warning label.”
Officers on that list are identified based on incidents involving “dishonesty, lapses in judgment, bias or sloppy police work,” the report details.