West Seattle, Washington
29 Friday
7 PM: SPD and SFD are headed to a possible shooting reported in The Junction. The report came from a caller at the Junction 47 building at California/Alaska but they’re trying to confirm where the possible victim is. Updates to come.
7:03 PM: Police are still checking but so far there’s NO confirmation of any shooting, with or without a victim.
7:08 PM: Police have concluded that it was a false report by a person in crisis. The SFD response has been canceled.
We stopped by the Southwest Precinct after the first hour of today’s Drug Take-Back Day dropoffs – one box was filled and a second well on the way. Left to right above are Betsy Cruz from the DEA, SPD Officer Taylor Vergara, and Crime Prevention Coordinator Jennifer Danner. All you have to do is walk into the meeting room right off the precinct’s public parking lot (2300 SW Webster, just west of Delridge) and drop your unwanted, no-longer-needed, and/or expired medication. They have some swag too, while supplies last. As featured in our calendar and preview list, this continues until 2 pm.
P.S. If you missed it, as commenter “Auntie” notes, there are multiple West Seattle year-round dropoff spots too – you can look them up by zip code here.
9:54 PM: Thanks for the tips and photos (the one above is from Madeline). That car turned up on the beach at Cormorant Cove Park (3700 block of Beach Drive) early today. It had been towed by the time we got there for a look but our photographer says tire tracks suggest it arrived on the beach via the path from the sidewalk. We’re checking with SPD to see if they have more information on what happened; the initial report is logged at 6 am as “suspicious circumstances.”
1:29 PM: Cynthia sent that photo, saying that’s what she saw just before 6 am, and she promptly called 911. SFD initially sent a “water rescue response” but canceled the units after determining the car was empty. Still waiting to hear from SPD, particularly regarding whether the car was stolen.
1:45 PM: And now we know. SPD tells WSB the car had been stolen, from Renton.
There have been more “possible gunfire” reports tonight than usual, in various areas. We haven’t heard of any being confirmed so far (pending a check of report summaries in the morning). But the most-recent reports have definitely been debunked. 911 sent officers to investigate multiple reports in Admiral and heard it themselves, subsequently telling dispatch that they discovered someone had been setting off fireworks outside the Benbow Room in connection with a birthday celebration.
That memorial for 20-year-old murder victim Ka’Don Brown is set up near the spot where he was found dead of gunshot wounds last Saturday morning in the southwest corner of the Chief Sealth International High School campus. Toward the start of the Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Council meeting this past Thursday night, the precinct’s Operations Lt. Dorothy Kim said she had no update yet from homicide detectives on how the investigation into West Seattle’s first murder of the year was going. She did have some stats: Confirmed gunfire incidents in the precinct area (West Seattle/South Park) are down from this time last year – 23 so far in 2023, including this murder, and two injuries. By this time last year, she said, there had been 30. Shots-fired incidents are also down citywide – 207 to date in 2022, 165 this year.
Other crime trends: Major categories are down except for auto thefts, which Lt. Kim noted is a “citywide problem,” in part because of the social-media-fueled Hyundai and Kia theft wave. Aside from some of those thefts, which are more of a joyride/dare situation, “most vehicles are stolen to commit another crime,” she explained. “Chop shops are not super-common here.)
Obviously the recently cleared encampment area near the 1st Avenue South Bridge is an exception to that, she acknowledged. She said that area is the subject of a directive for any attempt at re-occupying to be addressed/cleared quickly.
Also at the SWPCPC meeting, held both in person and online:
CRIME PREVENTION ADVICE: The precinct’s longtime crime-prevention coordinator Jennifer Danner offered some advice for the upcoming warm-weather months. Car prowls, for one, tend to increase, so don’t leave anything in your car, she urged: “Unfortunately our cars aren’t a safe place to store things any more” – even just a sweatshirt or grocery bag, as prowlers might think it’s covering/hiding something, and they’ll break in just to check. Summer is also prime time for “non-force” burglaries, she noted, so remember that leaving doors/windows open leaves you vulnerable.
She also mentioned upcoming precinct events, including the steering-wheel-lock giveaways for Hyundai and Kia owners (one was held Saturday, and another is coming up Thursday, 2-4 pm) and next Saturday’s Drug Take-Back Day (10 am-2 pm). “We take ALL medications, no questions asked – we don’t even look at it, you can just put it in the bag and walk away.”
Her final words: “Remember, we’re data-driven, and we want the stats to be accurate, so (if something happens), REPORT IT. If it’s happening now or just happened, 911 is the best route.
NEEDLE DISPOSAL: Michael Eggers from the Clean City Division of Seattle Public Utilities offered a primer on this city service. His division deals with illegal dumping, graffiti, and more, including “sharps.” If you find a needle/syringe on public property, report it via Find It Fix It, and it should get picked up within 24 hours. (Other debris could take up to a week.) Walking attendees through how the reporting system works, he recommended providing your email address if you’re interested in updates, though you can report completely anonymously, he said. The city also maintains 23 sharps-disposal boxes; the nly one in West Seattle is at the restroom building in Roxhill Park. Citywide, those boxes were used for disposal of 456,000 sharps last year, Eggers said. (Read more about the sharps-disposal program here.)
But since the city won’t pick up needles/syringes on private property, what should you do if you find one? He gave a quick demonstration – wear gloves, use a utensil (such as tongs) to pick up the item – keeping it as far from your body as possible – grab the syringe by the barrel (midsection), have a hard-plastic container ready to drop it in, pointed side down, and then afterward, use bleach to disinfect the utensil/tool you used.
COMMUNITY CONCERNS: One attendee wanted to know how to get advice on dealing with neighborhood concerns; Danner said she’s the person to contact and can for example set up a Block Watch meeting … Danner also offered to help with the RPZ enforcement concerns that Fauntleroy Community Association president Mike Dey brought, following up on the most-recent FCA board meeting – they’re concerned about the discontinuance of visible permit tags, and enforcement challenges without them. Lt. Kim noted that the new system that Parking Enforcement Officers are supposed to use differs from what police officers are equipped with. Danner offered to organize a multidepartmental meeting with SPD and SDOT to discuss the problem.
COMMUNITY SERVICE OFFICERS: Two CSOs were in attendance at the SWPCPC meeting. They’re not assigned to or from precincts, though – they are currently deployed from downtown.
NEXT MEETING: Watch for word of a May meeting.
9:10 AM: Thanks for the tip. Police, including homicide detectives, are in Westwood near Chief Sealth International High School. We’re told a person was found dead – so far described by police only as male – apparently shot, as shell casings have been marked in the street (27th SW, which runs along the campus’s west edge).
More information as we get it.
9:45 AM: SPD has sent a public-information officer (though we are the only media on scene) so we hope to learn more soon. We’ve been reminded that there was a report of possible gunfire in the area late last night – we heard the dispatch before 11 pm but did not hear anything further regarding whether evidence of gunfire was found at the time. (See this comment posted last night on our story from the previous night about gunfire near Westwood Village, a short distance south of here.)
10:16 AM: We’ve counted a dozen casing markers in the street.
Meantime, our crew says Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz has just arrived at the scene.
CSI too:
10:50 AM: SPD spokesperson Officer Shawn Weismiller spoke with us at the scene a short time ago. The victim, who he described as a Black man in his 20s, was found in the CSIHS southwest driveway this morning, according to both Officer Weismiller and recorded dispatch audio. Though it’s up to the Medical Examiner’s Office to confirm the cause of death, the discovery of shell casings and unspecified “other evidence” makes this “presumably” a shooting death, he said. As for the reports of gunfire in the area last night, he said investigators would review those reports and whether responding officers checked this specific area. Meantime, we’ve added more photos above, as the investigation continues.
12:45 PM: We just went back to the scene to check – 27th SW has reopened and the last investigators were leaving. The SPD Blotter post published about this a short time ago adds two more details – that the victim is believed to be in his early 20s, and that his body was found by a person walking their dog. The police tipline for any information: 206-233-5000.
ADDED MONDAY: The Medical Examiner’s Office identifies the victim as 20-year-old Ka’Don Brown, cause of death “multiple gunshot wounds.” No other new information so far.
11:20 PM: Multiple readers have mentioned social-media posts about this missing local woman, and we heard tonight directly from a family member who confirmed she was still being sought. But the family member told us earlier this evening that they were waiting for police clearance to say more. Now, that’s just happened:
From SPD:
Seattle Police detectives are asking for the public’s help in locating Leticia Martinez-Cosman, who was last seen Friday evening on March 31st at T-Mobile Park during the Seattle Mariners game.
Martinez-Cosman has not contacted her family since. Martinez-Cosman is a 58-year-old female with green eyes and brown hair. Martinez-Cosman is approximately 5’9” inches tall and weighs approximately 135 pounds.
Martinez-Cosman was last seen with the male depicted in the photo below. Seattle Police detectives have identified and interviewed him.
If anyone has any information about this case, or the whereabouts of Martinez-Cosman, please call the SPD Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000.
1:57 PM: SPD is promising new information this afternoon, as noted in comments below.
9:48 PM: Police investigating reports of possible gunfire heard on (corrected) Pigeon Point have confirmed it – officers have just told dispatch they’ve found casings at 19th and Dakota, and on 19th west of that intersection. They also told dispatch that neighbors are reporting a vehicle might have been involved, and the plate given to police by one witness checks to a copper-colored 2003 Nissan. No injuries or property damage reported so far. They’re now canvassing the area to see if the gunfire might have been caught on any home security cameras.
10:04 PM: Police told dispatch they’ve found a total of four casings.
FRIDAY MORNING UPDATE: She’s been found safe, her father tells us.
Earlier:Read More
Questions for local police? Bring them to the next Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Council meeting, now set for 6 pm Thursday, April 6th. Chair Melody Sarkies says that along with local police, two guests are scheduled: The precinct’s Crime Prevention Coordinator Jennifer Danner will talk about home safety/security measures and “personal wellbeing”; Michael Eggers from the city’s Clean City Initiative will bring “information about safe techniques to collect needles found on private and public property and various collection-box locations.” You can attend in person at the precinct – 2300 SW Webster – or online (link to come – it’ll be in our calendar listing when available).
11:50 AM: Multiple texts came in minutes ago from parents saying Madison Middle School was being evacuated and that police were in the area. We’ve gone there to find out what happened; Southwest Precinct commander Capt. Martin Rivera is there and tells us they are investigating a ‘bomb threat’ that is believed to have come from “another school.” They’re searching the building and everyone remains evacuated at the moment, but so far nothing’s been found.
12:08 PM: Seattle Public Schools tells us this note has just been sent to families:
Dear Madison families,
Out of an abundance of caution Madison Middle School was evacuated at approximately 11:15 a.m. due to a threat toward the school that was called into the Seattle Police Department (SPD).
Students and staff are safe. They are currently waiting outside while SPD inspects our building for safety.
SPD and the SPS Safety and Security team are investigating. I will be sending families an update later today about this issue.
If you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Principal Gary
Madison Middle School
1 PM: Thanks for all the updates via comments and texts. Everyone’s been allowed back into the school.
3:42 PM: SPD has released a bit more information: “It was later discovered the call was made by a child who got possession of his parents’ phone.” We are asking on followup whether the child was questioned, detained, arrested, or none of the above.
3:59 PM: Police will only say that they “investigated the incident and determined the threat was unfounded.”
7:32 PM: After multiple 911 calls about suspected gunfire, police are in the area of 29th/Morgan and have told dispatch they found “multiple holes” in the windows of a home. No word of injuries so far. Updates to come.
7:35 PM: Officers tell dispatch they’ve also found “a couple rounds in front of the residence.”
7:54 PM: No additional information at the scene aside from that this does not appear to have been random.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Stephen Brown is the newest candidate for the District 1 City Council seat. He’s also new to the district, having just moved to West Seattle six months ago.
Brown is the fifth candidate to sit down with us for our initial series of Candidate Chats, video-recorded conversations intended to give you an early look at the candidates who have officially announced campaigns for the council seat Lisa Herbold is leaving after two terms. He is founder of Eltana Bagels, with an eclectic resumé before that, including a staff position with the short-lived Seattle Monorail Project. We talked with Brown at West Seattle Coworking in The Junction last Wednesday; here’s our unedited half-hour conversation:
If you can’t, or don’t want to, take the time to watch/listen, here’s our summary of key points:
Many questions about what sounded to some like possible gunshots in north West Seattle before 7 o’clock this morning, so here’s what we were able to find out. First, here’s audio from Andrew:
We listened back to audio of officers and dispatch. First, there was a mention of people who told police they saw fireworks. Then one officer checking Fairmount Ravine reported finding something burning in the middle of the street. He told dispatch he was putting out the small fire; SFD was not dispatched. That was the last we heard, so we also checked with the SPD communications team to be certain there hadn’t since been a report of gunfire evidence found. Indeed, they verified, “it appears it was fireworks being ignited.”
Though the Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Council isn’t meeting this month, if you have questions for local police, you have two opportunities on Tuesday night. Precinct leaders are expected at both the Admiral Neighborhood Association and Fauntleroy Community Association‘s monthly meetings, 7 pm Tuesday (March 14th). Admiral meets in-person only, at Admiral Church (4320 SW Hill); Fauntleroy meets in person with online/call-in options, at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse (9131 California SW). There’s a potential third option when Alki Community Council meets at 7 pm Thursday (March 16th) at Alki UCC (6115 SW Hinds) and online, as they too often have an SPD guest, but their agenda isn’t out yet.
For those asking about the big emergency response: SPD and SFD responded just before 9 am to an apartment building in the 4800 block of California SW. The “scenes of violence” dispatch was for a person with a suspected self-inflicted gunshot wound and police confirm to us at the scene that this is believed to have been a case of suicide.
If you or someone you know is having thoughts of self-harm, you can call the 988 hotline to talk with someone 24/7.
11:11 AM: Police were at Roxhill Park this morning, investigating after a person was found dead in the field area on the park’s north side. We went to the scene after a tip around 8 am. Still not much information available; the police we found there were waiting for the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, which will determine how the person died and who they were, but there was no indication of an active homicide investigation, as they were already starting to take down the tape. SPD and SFD were originally dispatched just after 7 am; in archived audio, the SFD dispatcher told responders that the body had “been there a while, with nobody around.” We’ll update with anything more we find out.
1:51 PM: Police say the dead person was “a man, possibly in his 40s-50s.” If you have any information about what happened, call their tipline at 206-233-5000.
ADDED THURSDAY EVENING: As discussed in comments, SPD added a note today to their post from yesterday, saying this appears to have been an overdose death. However, the Medical Examiner’s daily list of releases did not include that, nor the victim’s IDi
Instead of this month’s Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Council meeting, which was to be held this Thursday, SWPCPC chair Melody Sarkies has invited would-be attendees to join the Before the Badge online discussion set for tomorrow (Monday, March 6th). Here’s the description of what that’s all about:
Are you interested in:
-Meeting new Seattle Police Recruits and learning about who they are, why they entered policing, and their thoughts and ideas about how to improve public safety in Seattle?
-Helping new SPD recruits learn about Seattle precincts and neighborhoods?
-Sharing your real-time public safety concerns with the new SPD recruits so they can better understand quality-of-life-related public safety issues communities face?
-Understanding how community members can work creatively and in concrete ways with new SPD recruits to improve public safety in Seattle?
The Seattle Police Department’s Micro-Community Policing Plans Seattle University Research Team will be conducting a special series of “Before the Badge” Community-Police Dialogues. These dialogues will be conducted virtually via Zoom on designated dates by precinct. The dialogues offer the opportunity for community members to meet with and engage in conversation with new Seattle Police Recruits who are completing the SPD “Before the Badge” training which is a 45-Day training that newly hired SPD recruits take prior to Law Enforcement Academy Training Program. Southwest Precinct dialogues will be taking place on Monday, March 6 and April 10, 2023.
To sign up to participate in one or more dialogues, go here.
Though there’s no Crime Prevention Council meeting this month, local neighborhood groups often host SW Precinct lieutenants at their meetings for community Q&A – this month that includes the Admiral Neighborhood Association meeting on March 14th.
Thanks for the tip. That was the scene we found this past hour in a yard at 24th/Thistle. The police response drew attention as this is just east of Chief Sealth International High School. Police told us at the scene that the pickup was stolen; a resident told us that the driver abandoned it and got into a waiting semitruck cab that then left the scene. No injuries reported.
7:35 PM SUNDAY: For the second time in eight nights, a business has been robbed in the strip mall on the northeast corner of 35th and Roxbury. Police are at A Pizza Mart, which reported being held up about half an hour ago. The lone robber is described so far as a white man in his early 20s, tall and thin, wearing a “white track suit,” armed with a gun, He is reported to have gotten away in a black Toyota Prius, last seen headed northbound on 35th SW. No other details yet, according to the sergeant with whom we spoke at the scene. The previous robbery happened at neighboring Global Smoke & Vape last weekend. If you have any information on tonight’s robbery, the SPD incident # is 23-054944.
ADDED MONDAY AFTERNOON: From the police-report summary: “At 1856 hours, an employee was working at the counter of a carryout food establishment when he observed the suspect enter the store. The employee believed the suspect was a customer and began speaking to him. The suspect produced a handgun, pointed it at the employee, and demanded money from the register. The employee complied. The suspect exited the store and fled the scene. Another employee followed the suspect and observed him entering the passenger side of a vehicle before it left the area.”
9:14 PM: Avoid Delridge between Myrtle and Graham – police are blocking it off after a crash involving a suspected stolen car. According to police-radio communication we’d been monitoring, the car matched the description of one taken in an armed carjacking elsewhere in the city, It came to police attention in West Seattle tonight when someone reported suspicious behavior involving its occupants outside a convenience store on 35th SW. (Officers told dispatch the store clerk locked the doors so the people who seemed suspicious couldn’t get inside.)
9:31 PM: Commenter Kathryn confirms the car crashed into a building – the dispatch address indicates it’s an apartment building near Delridge/Willow.
9:50 PM: Kathryn sent that photo taken by neighbor Aimee, who she says reports that “the car is wedged between the apartments and the rock ledge.” Police have detained the three people who were inside the car when it crashed. They’re all “juvenile males,” according to what officers just told dispatch.
9:56 PM: Delridge is reopening.
11:47 PM: Thanks to the texter who sent that photo of the wrecked car being pulled out. Radio communication suggests at least one of the teenagers was arrested; we’ll update this story with whatever followup info we get from police later.
ADDED 3:21 PM THURSDAY: SPD has finally provided that followup info, and posted to SPD Blotter. First, confirmation that the crash followed a pursuit:
… SPD officers later located the vehicle, which had previously been stolen at gunpoint during a carjacking and attempted to detain it but the suspect drove away. After receiving authorization to pursue, police followed the suspect vehicle briefly until it collided with a fence, which caused it to fall down an embankment, and strike an exterior wall of an apartment building.
Here’s the SPD photo of how it got wedged:
Meantime, police also say the registered owner of the car told them he was carjacked by an “armed man” Tuesday night on Beacon Hill, They don’t know if the three people involved in that – the carjacker and two people who joined him in driving away the 2010 Toyota Corolla – were the same three found after the Delridge crash. But police say they recovered a “realistic-looking BB gun in the car” after the crash. Here’s their photo:
The 15-year-old driver was arrested and booked into the Youth Services Center; the other two found in the car last night, 13- and 14-year-old boys, were released to their families.
From police summaries, two more Monday gunfire reports:
CAT OWNER SHOOTS AT DOG: Just after 3:30 pm Monday, a 911 caller reported that he had just shot at a dog that was charging at him and his cat (who, according to archived police-radio audio, was being walked on a leash) in the 4600 block of SW Maple Way. The dog had reportedly gotten out of its fenced yard. The report summary continues, “The caller said he was in fear for his safety and his cat’s safety, so he fired one round into the grass to get the dog to back off. The dog retreated, which allowed the caller to create space and return home safely.” The owner captured and corraled his dog (a German Shepherd, according to archived audio) and told police that the dog had gotten out of the yard because the wind blew the gate open. No injuries reported, human, canine, or feline.
SHOOTING INTO THE RIVER: Just before 1:30 pm Monday, two people working on a barge in the 7100 block of 1st Avenue South – on the Duwamish River along the 1st Ave. S. Bridge – heard gunfire. They told police they then saw someone “standing in an encampment shooting a handgun in their general direction with rounds impacting the Duwamish (River).” Then that person and someone else got into a vehicle. That’s where arriving police found him, also finding “evidence of a shooting in and around the vehicle associated with the suspect (and) other firearm-related items of evidence … inside the vehicle.” The vehicle was impounded and the 55-year-old suspect was arrested, booked into King County Jail for investigation of unlawful firearm discharge plus a court-order violation. According to the jail register, his bail is set at $3,000.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Encampment and police updates comprised most of last night’s Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Council meeting, plus community Q&A.
The group, chaired by Melody Sarkies, meets monthly as an open opportunity to talk with and hear from police and featured guests. Last night, Tom Van Bronkhorst, a city official who has long been involved with homelessness response, was the guest.
As we reported late last night, he announced toward the end of the meeting that the Harbor Avenue RV encampment is set for another sweep in late February. But he was there mostly to discuss the far-bigger encampment at 2nd/Michigan, near the 1st Avenue South Bridge, following up on the revelation at the last SWPCPC meeting that a sweep had been planned and then called off. Officially, he’s on the Seattle Parks payroll, but he participates in the Unified Care Team meetings at which priorities and planned cleanups are discussed.
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