After a brief hearing this morning, today U.S. District Court Judge John Coughenour issued a ruling upholding the city’s “Fair Chance Housing” ordinance banning landlords from inquiring about or using a potential tenant’s criminal history.
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Update on proposed misdemeanor defense legislation (updated)
A couple of notable updates have happened in the last few days related to Council member Herbold’s controversial proposal to add new defenses for misdemeanors for defendants who committed an act to meet an immediate basic need or are showing symptoms of a behavioral health disorder. (update below)
Continue readingHerbold proposes to create new defenses to misdemeanor crimes
Seattle’s political Twittersphere has been lit up over the last forty eight hours with frenzied discussion of a proposal by Council member Herbold to introduce legislation that would create new defenses for misdemeanor crimes in Seattle. The goal of the legislation is to reduce the number of people entering the criminal justice system for so-called “crimes of poverty.” Fanning the flames of the controversy is a white paper published by Scott Lindsay, former advisor to Ed Murray and former candidate for City Attorney, which claims that the legislation would eviscerate nearly all prosecutions for misdemeanors in Seattle by providing new …
Continue readingInterview with Council member Morales: on protests, police, oppression, and sweeps
Editor’s note: last Friday morning I was asked by the Council’s communications staff whether I wanted to speak with Council member Tammy Morales about her proposed legislation restricting the removal of homeless encampments, because in the aftermath of last Wednesday’s committee hearing she felt that there was more that needed to be said. I agreed to speak with her, and the interview was scheduled for midday today (Sunday). Obviously a lot has transpired between then and now, and after thanking her for still doing the interview in the midst of so much else happening, I gave her the option to …
Continue readingThe legislative logjam has broken
By nearly all measures, the first month of the new City Council was quiet. Sure, there were a couple of controversial but legally meaningless resolutions, and Council member Sawant has pushed through some carryover legislation from last year. But a lot of committee meetings got cancelled, and few new bills were introduced. It now appears that was the quiet before the storm — and the storm just made landfall.
Continue readingLatest SPD “stops and detentions” report shows jump in Terry stops, but gives little explanation
Last week the Seattle Police Department published its annual report on stops and detentions, with numbers for 2018. It begins by noting that Terry stops are up substantially over 2017 numbers — but then it provides another 25 pages of text, tables and charts that offer little help in understanding why. In fact, SPD itself admits in the report that they don’t know what the increase means: SPD conducted 18.5% more Terry stops in 2018 than in 2017. However, statistical trend analysis shows that this increase appears to be an anomaly. Our analysis next year will indicate whether a pattern …
Continue readingChange to hate-crime legislation advances out of committee
An update to the city’s hate-crime criminal statute moved out of committee this morning and will come up for final approval on Monday. It both expands the protected classes under the law, and makes it easier to prosecute hate crimes.
Continue readingThe “prolific offenders” report: a close read
Two weeks ago, a consortium of business district and neighborhood advocacy groups released a report entitled “System Failure: report on prolific offenders in Seattle’s criminal justice system.” The report, authored by Scott Lindsay, a former public safety advisor to Mayor Murray and 2017 candidate for City Attorney, identifies 100 individuals who “cycle through the criminal justice system with little impact on their behavior, repeatedly returning to Seattle’s streets to commit more crimes.” Heavy on findings but light on recommendations, the report paints a dire picture of the state of the criminal justice system in Seattle and King County, and the …
Continue readingGun safety bills advance out of committee; one of them is illegal
The two gun-safety bills that Mayor Durkan and Council member Gonzalez announced last month passed out of committee this morning with minor amendments, and will come up before the full City Council for final approval on July 9th. But even if they pass, as is likely, one is all but guaranteed to be overturned in court.
Continue readingDurkan, Gonzalez announce new gun-safety ordinance
This afternoon, Mayor Durkan and Council member Gonzalez announced a new piece of legislation: an ordinance requiring gun owners in Seattle to keep their firearms in locked containers.
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