WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Gunfire investigation

Frightened October 29, 2023 (11:20 pm)

Yes, I heard these while inside. A terrifyingly loud and automatic sound.It lasted 3 seconds or less, and soon after I heard loud engine noises from a ‘muscle’ car.Will be moving out soon. That’s four shootings or more within three blocks these past 5 months if we can.

Melo October 29, 2023 (11:59 pm)

Yes we finally decided to leave. We LOVE West Seattle, and the people, community, (original) vibe here so so much. We’re extremely sad to leave. But this past year seems to get increasingly worse and we have two young children. I’m not sure if this is just a phase, but I don’t feel safe taking out the trash if I remember later in the evening, and I stopped carrying a purse when I take the kids out for a stroll. I’m cautious and constantly observing my surroundings when I’m in an alley, or passing an ATM, or on California, or if a car is tailing too close. I grew up in a much bigger city than Seattle, and have also lived in other bigger cities, and it just feel like the major uptick of random shootings, purse snatching, injuring little old ladies, car jacking after bumping your car, etc is not a way to live. Part of my heart will always be in West Seattle <3
- Odd son October 30, 2023 (2:01 am)
  
  Take me with you.
- Tired WS Mom October 30, 2023 (3:44 am)
  
  I want out of this town so bad, I have two kids as well and am incredibly concerned for our wellbeing. I don’t feel safe going to QFC after 7pm. I don’t feel safe driving around. Seattle has become the wild Wild West and not a single politician or police officer seems to care for our children’s safety and future
- Fauntleroy Resident October 30, 2023 (7:25 am)
  
  Same for us as well, we also have two young children and have lived in other large American cities. The environment here is just not even close to acceptable, especially considering the cost of living, and the extreme politics that led to this are not likely to change any time soon. Hopefully enough people disagree with me so we’ll be able to sell our house…
  - Admiral Resident October 30, 2023 (6:25 pm)
    
    If you were to leave, where would you go that is better based on data?
- A local October 30, 2023 (10:26 am)
  
  Seattlites act like this city is so dangerous and violent. I guess its because they dont know what its like to grow up in an actually violent place where gunfire is every night (including automatic) and muggings, purse snatchings and other similar crimes are a normal part of life, you just know where to avoid and where to walk when walking alone.I find Seattle extremely safe compared to what it was like where I grew up. But I guess if the only metric you have is a safe city, any slight uptick in crime is as alarming.
  - WS Res October 30, 2023 (11:05 am)
    
    It’s the “NextDoor effect.” Real-time reports of everything that goes bump in the night, and low-level crime that wouldn’t normally make newspapers, makes people feel more informed but it also makes them feel more unsafe. They don’t make the comparison “I used to not know about everything that went on in my neighborhood, and now I do, so I am experiencing increased awareness.” They conclude “I used to not hear about all this crime and now I do, so I am experiencing increased crime.”
    - Neighbor October 30, 2023 (11:27 am)
      
      While I agree theoretically with this, I also never experienced hearing gunshots anywhere I lived until moving to High Point, West Seattle. I also never saw methamphetamine pipes on the stairs behind my home until now.I also never saw people dropping stolen vehicles every week in my neighborhood. And kids removing license plates from cars 5ft from my garage. Or drug deals being done every other night in the High Point library parking lot.
    - WSDUDEMAN October 30, 2023 (3:37 pm)
      
      Right? It’s not as though Next Door opened people’s eyes to what was ALWAYS happening. The point is this was NOT always happening with the intensity and frequency it is now. People who pretend otherwise are just dismissive of our slide into lawlessness.I don’t need Next Door to let me know I had 3 gun battles 4 doors down over a matter of months. I don’t need Next Door to see the dude smoking fentanyl in his car in my front or my house. I don’t need Next Door to let me know my neighbors car was stolen and ours were prowled. I don’t need Next Door to be accosted by addicts in the junction. I don’t need Next Door to know that armed car jacking aren’t just ‘part of living in a city’. I don’t need Next Door to pick up the glass crack pipes at my local park. Apathetic attitudes make all of this worse. Stand up for your neighbors and neighborhood. It’s not a tough guy contest because you moved here from a city with more crime. Good for you. We just don’t want that here in West Seattle.
    - G November 1, 2023 (8:42 am)
      
      It’s not a nextdoor effect my neighbors house was hit with bullets a few months back (2 shootings a couple months apart leading to Roxbury homicide). I called the cops on this exact incident for these shots. Nextdoor implies reading not being next to it.
  - WW Resident October 30, 2023 (11:18 am)
    
    @ALocal, well don’t you just have the “street cred” to let people know what’s what. I too grew up in “dangerous” neighborhoods in the projects of Bay Area California. And the one thing I told myself when I grew up was that I didn’t want to live in that environment ever again. Now you can be the frog in the boiling pot lecturing people about how safe Seattle is, but there is no doubt that things like armed robberies, car jackings, street robberies, car thefts, shootings, have gone up exponentially.
  - A concerned local October 30, 2023 (5:45 pm)
    
    “A local” This response is so tone deaf. Someone had bullets reported inside their house. That’s not the first report of these type of drive by shootings resulting in something similar in West Seattle. Where do you recommend these people walk? Not in the kitchen Burying your head in the sand and acting like this is normal is the reason crime is spiraling out of control.This isn’t just the Nextdoor effect, my lived experience of hearing more gunfire, seeing boarded up buildings from burglary, along with city crime stats are clearly indicating crime is on the rise. I have never been a single issue voter before, but actionable policies on public safety was the number one and only priority I had when selecting candidates on my ballot.
  - Byron James October 30, 2023 (10:16 pm)
    
    With two months to go in the year Seattle is four homicides away from setting a new record.Seattle has had a record number of shootings and shots fired incidents. Seattle is in the top ten nationwide for auto theft. These are things that can be counted. People aren’t imagining an uptick in crime, it’s real.
  - Melo October 30, 2023 (11:14 pm)
    
    I think it used to be safe, I never worried a few years ago. We’ve had some random guy sit in our car for an hour, which we only noticed when we checked our cameras. We’ve had eleven shots ringing right outside our house at night, super loud, and we’re in Fairmount Park which is probably one of the quieter spots. I’ve heard gunshots at least two more times, father away from my immediate doorstep, and confirmed when I check the blog. There are too many areas and places and things I avoid now. I don’t think that’s normal, especially in a laidback peninsula, and with the prices paid to live here, and with the type of people who live here (awesome people). I don’t know what’s going on. I’ve lived for years in Chicago (not in the greatest neighborhoods) and never heard a gunshot, and I’ve also spent years in Cairo (massive, chaotic city) and never heard a gunshot. It’s absurd to me that now I can confidently tell the difference between a gunshot and other loud bangs, after living in West Seattle!

Jojo October 30, 2023 (12:06 am)

Yes, it has gotten so bad over here in highpoint. We heard the shots, literally behind our house. Then, we hear that car with the loud muffler. We heard a car like that with the last shots a couple of weeks ago.

B. October 30, 2023 (3:29 am)

You took all of the words from me… those shots sounded like they were right outside my window too! Terrifying. As for the shots 2 weeks ago, I heard those at around 10:30pm. It’s scary to think of how common this has become lately and it doesn’t matter the time of day.

Anonymous October 30, 2023 (12:24 am)

I heard the gunshots when I was at home I’m only 17 going to high school they were really close to the my house I hope no one is hurt

Anon October 30, 2023 (1:11 am)

Heard a lot of gun shots in north admiral area at approx 1230am, south of my location and I am at California Ave SW & SW Massachusetts St. Prob 10+ gun shots, unsure of even approx location so did not call to report to this to SPD. Was definitely a distinctive sound of multiple gun shots & not fireworks or a vehicle backfiring. Immediately tuned into scanner app and one person on SW Dawson did call it in for approx location, officer was dispatched. Sounded as if it was moving so most likely from a moving vehicle I assume.

WSB October 30, 2023 (1:32 am)

PLEASE call 911 if you think you hear gunfire. When dispatched, only one person had reported it (they were on Walnut, which is a lot closer to you than Dawson). One of the first questions officers ask dispatch is “How many calls have we gotten on this?” The more calls they get, the more they know, even if you’re not sure what direction it came from or whether it was absolutely for sure. Meantime, I haven’t heard anything about evidence being found, but will ask later this morning. – TR
- Anon October 30, 2023 (3:50 am)
  
  @WSB I will be sure to call in next time. My correction it was Walnut Ave SW that was who called in the shots to 911 dispatch & I did hear the officer ask how many callers they had & dispatched replied just one, which to me was surprising from the number of shots I heard occur. From my location at California Ave SW & SW Massachusetts it was not super close but within earshot & sounded north of me. I was surprised at how many shots there were, so hope officers found evidence nearby the caller’s location. I would of definitely thought many others within closer proximity would have called 911 as well. Shortly before the shots there was a box UHaul truck that drove north on California Ave SW at a high rate of speed caught on my surveillance camera, I would be curious if it was potentially a stolen Uhaul & related to the shots fired that occurred not long thereafter.
- S.E.L October 30, 2023 (4:14 pm)
  
  Dear WSB: Do you have any updates on the October 29th drive by shooting on 32nd Ave SW?
  - WSB October 30, 2023 (8:14 pm)
    
    No, what SPD told me when I asked was even less than we’d already reported: “Police responded to the 5900 block of 32 Ave SW to reports of shots heard around 9:30 p.m. yesterday. Officers arrived and located evidence of the shooting and ballistic damage to a residence in the area. There were no reports of injury at the time of the incident. The circumstances that led up to the shooting are unknown. GVRU will be leading the investigation. If anyone has information, please call the SPD Violent Crimes Tip Line.” (GVRU stands for Gun Violence Reduction Unit)
KC October 30, 2023 (3:22 am)

I live on Harbor Ave SW across from Marination/just south of the California Way SW and Harbor Ave SW and at almost exactly that time (0030 hours) heard the same thing. The sound was accompanied by a beautiful aerial fireworks show of probably 20-30 shells over a one to two minute period coming from/directly above the Don Armeni Boat Ramp. This may have been different than what you heard but it was certainly about the same time and proximity. KC.
CarDriver October 30, 2023 (6:52 am)

ANON. PLEASE PLEASE ALWAYS call 911 as WSB say’s EVERY call with a report is more information for responding officers. Even if you’re not sure you will NOT get in trouble for calling. No doubt here that the bad guys are counting on nobody paying attention and calling 911.
Nadmiral October 30, 2023 (10:06 pm)

I’m the one who called 911 in from Walnut Ave. in North Admiral about gunshots. There were close to 20. Definitely gunshots. But I couldn’t tell the origin.

Graham October 30, 2023 (6:13 am)

Yes, heard the same sounds at the same time in North Admiral followed by police sirens. Cannot say exactly where it came from, since sound tends to bounce around here.

Wes C Adl October 30, 2023 (6:20 am)

We are sincerely saddened by all the serious violence in West Seattle since we moved away in April. Prayers of safety and comfort to all still on the peninsula, since it only seems to be getting worse.

R-n-B October 30, 2023 (7:20 am)

I get local Ring alerts and see these kinds of posts from WSB but that’s all I’ve been accessing for these types of incidents. Is this happening with this type of increased frequency in other areas of Seattle as well? I ask because I’m seeing comments from people that say they’re leaving West Seattle but is this a case of isolated reporting for a much broader issue? If this is happening in other areas as well then it’s going to be a matter of jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. If this isn’t happening elsewhere then what or who is responsible for it happening here? And why is it ramping up so close to a local election?

Mom of 3 October 30, 2023 (10:51 am)

We need to stop the trend of voting for bleeding heart council members that make big promises. We need council members and judges that will hold lawbreakers (street and professionals alike) accountable. And, for goodness sake, please appreciate the law enforcement that are here, trying to do work the best they can with their hands tied, and make it an environment that officers will want to come to. They need help.

WSB October 30, 2023 (12:51 pm)

I have heard back from SPD. No evidence of gunfire was found in the Walnut report mentioned by a commenter. No additional information in the High Point incident the story above is about.

Nadmiral October 30, 2023 (10:09 pm)

I’m the one who called about multiple gunshots, and I live on Walnut. I told them I could not tell where they came from.(one reader commented that the sound bounces a lot here.) so I don’t know how they would expect to find.’evidence.’ On Walnut because it didn’t happen On Walnut. I heard it from Walnut.

Ted October 30, 2023 (3:23 pm)

Sorry to have this continue to happen in west seattle

Pauline October 30, 2023 (7:21 pm)

Lived in high point for a long time (before it was gentrified/change into a mix income community) and it’s been awhile since I’ve heard gunshots in the area. Majority of gunshots coming from delridge way. I say car theft was bit more, but it dwindle down as we already have Tow trucks come through 24/7 lol

Neighborino October 30, 2023 (8:19 pm)

More gunshots from delridge area behind/East of the golf course.A police officer went to the golf course to ask where they came from.

Neighbor November 1, 2023 (12:20 am)

Shots again from 2900 block of SW Raymond St. Halloween Night.

Andrew November 1, 2023 (11:12 am)

We have the “Fast & Furious” crew with their loud mufflers running through High Point almost every night now. They woke me up last night and scared my kids on more than one occasion. One even has flames throwing out the back with backfires. Whoah, so cool. : /I’m not going anywhere. And yet, it will stop. They will crash or be arrested at some point. I can’t tell if they live here or just like the challenge of flying down narrow streets in between cars and over speed bumps. If anyone has ideas on how to interrupt this pattern, please let me know. 206.290.4040