The Seattle Police Department thanks the Council for voting to allow the Department to retain its previously approved budget.
Since the 2021 budget was passed, over 150 officers have left the department. The City has continued to see a surge in gun and other violence. In the face of these events, the SPD has continued to do the hard and necessary work of ensuring public safety and engaging community.
SPD officers and detectives have removed over 750 guns from Seattle’s streets so far this year – on track for the 5th straight year of taking over 1,000 guns off the street. SPD officers and detectives have arrested 14 suspects in homicides this year, and in August alone, made over 24 arrests for gun crimes. Officers have continued to provide life saving measures to the people of Seattle – be it at a scene of violence or a medical incident – including 8 administrations of naloxone this year, over 25 tourniquets applied to individuals experiencing massive blood loss, and over a hundred other life-saving measures. We need more of these amazing officers to meet these needs.
This retention of funding will allow SPD to attempt to mitigate some of these staffing losses, implement new technologies and projects to continue to meet the goals of the consent decree, and to attract and retain the best officers in the nation to serve the people of Seattle. Chief Diaz wants to thank Council Member Pedersen for his attempt to specifically fund additional retention and hiring initiatives, even though the amendment was not passed. The Department remains committed to doing all it can to ensure it has the necessary number of devoted officers to provide the level of public safety services the people of Seattle demand.