Seattle City Budget Defunds Police Departments, Cuts 80 Officer Positions as Crime Skyrockets
This week, the Seattle City Council passed a $7.4 billion budget which boasts an emphasis on “public safety,” but cuts funding to the Seattle Police Department by eliminating 80 of the 200 officer positions that the city previously committed to hiring. The budget also allocates $4 million towards public school mental health counselors, $500 million for affordable housing to be dispersed over two years, but cuts Seattle Police Department funding once again.
Seattle was a hub for massive Black Lives Matter protests of 2020 and 2021, which not only caused millions of dollars in damages, but also largely called for the defunding of police departments in the city. After extensive public pressure, the city counsel committed to defending the police department by 50%.
“SPD’s budget has been slashed by more than $50 million since the city council began to ‘transform’ the department in 2017. From 2020-2021, Seattle PD was defunded by $35 million, and an additional $6 million in 2022.”
Rebel News
As a result of COVID-19 lockdown policies, as well as skyrocketing crime and fewer resources to tackle the growing homeless population, many businesses have left Seattle, causing a massive revenue shortfall for the city.
According to data provided by the Seattle Police Department, violent crime increased by 20% from 2020 to 2021, property crime increased by 9%, and overall crime by 10%. Additionally, homicides in the city hit a record high in 2020, and are nearing similar levels this year as in 2021. Shootings in Seattle, fatal, non-fatal, and those that damage property have all risen significantly in 2022.
“To maintain optimal public safety levels in the city, there needs to be 1,400 deployable police officers. As of November 27, the Seattle Police Department only has 881 deployable officers, according to the Seattle Police Officers Guild’s Public Safety Index.”
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Worse still, Seattle Police Department employment has fallen to a 30 year low as officers retire and resign by the hundreds. The mass exodus is the result of a culmination of issues facing officers in urban areas nationwide. This includes public under-appreciation of police departments, the overworking of officers still on the force who are spread thin, the continuous effort to defund stations, and an overall feeling of discouragement as judicial processes that are soft on violent crime.
Every liberal city that has destroyed their police department and after claims that city officials “care about” public safety have seen an increase in crime. Allowing anarchy to ensue does nothing to protect law abiding citizens.
