Among the unresolved messes that Mayor Durkan will be leaving for Mayor-elect Harrell this week is the City Council’s ordinance restricting SPD’s use of certain “less lethal” weapons for crowd control, which SPD has yet to implement.
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Durkan returns City Council’s ban on less-lethal weapons unsigned, with a litany of critiques
(story updated below) On August 27th, with the City Council in recess, Mayor Durkan quietly returned unsigned the Council’s ordinance restricting SPD’s use of so-called “less lethal weapons,” allowing it to pass into law unchallenged at least for the moment. But she did take the opportunity to attach a scathing letter detailing a litany of complaints about the legislation, calling it “of doubtful legality,” and claiming that the Council knows that “significant parts of the bill will never go into effect” because of its flaws.
Continue readingCouncil passes new ban on less-lethal weapons out of committee
This morning the City Council voted out of committee its latest iteration of a ban on SPD’s use of so-called “less lethal” weapons, with a couple of small amendments.
Continue readingHerbold holds first hearing on new version of “less lethal weapon” ban
This morning, Councilmember Lisa Herbold held a first hearing on her bill revising the Council’s ban on SPD’s use of so-called “less lethal” weapons.
Continue readingCouncil sends revised crowd-control weapons ordinance to DOJ and police monitor for review
Today the City Council’s Public Safety and Human Services Committee polished off a draft of a revised ordinance placing restrictions on SPD’s use of so-called “less lethal” weapons for crowd control, and sent it off to the Department of Justice and the court-appointed police monitor for comments. In so doing, the Council is signaling that it still feels the need to legislate in this domain while it also recognizes that the terms of the 2012 Consent Decree constrain its ability to do so.
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