West Seattle, Washington
30 Sunday
7:13 PM: If you are voting at the last minute and want to avoid crowds, go to the South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor) dropbox! In contrast, the Junction box (SW Alaska west of California) is megabusy:
Workers at both. Get there by 8!
SW Raymond is a little backed up but if you’re driving, you can park in the library lot and walk over. (added) As of this evening, West Seattle/South Park had hit 40 percent turnout
1:01 PM: A Seattle Fire “rope rescue” response has been sent to the Stewart Manor apartment building at 34th/Morgan, for a report of a “person hanging out of a window.” Police have been at the building for the past few hours, for what we’re told was a “domestic dispute,” but we’re not sure yet if the incidents are related.
1:03 PM: The person has reportedly been brought back inside the apartment by officers. (Content warning: Photo here sent by Gay, shows officer hanging onto person.) Medics are evaluating.
1:11 PM: Dispatch has been told that one officer was injured as well. (added) We talked to medics at the scene; they say the officer’s injuries were very minor. The person who was rescued will be taken to Harborview.
ADDED WEDNESDAY: Here’s the SPD summary of what happened:
At 1246 hours, an individual involved in an earlier incident was causing a disturbance and removed to a friend’s apartment. As soon as they got into the apartment the individual attempted to jump out of a plate glass window that was on the fourth floor of the building. Officers were notified and responded. As they entered, they noticed the subject hanging out of the window with his friend barely holding on to him. Officers responded to assist and grabbed him to prevent him from falling. They held on for over 10 minutes while waiting for Seattle Fire to arrive. Officers attempted to get him to comply but were unable to. Once SFD arrived they devised a plan to pull him back into the apartment. Shortly after, they were able to pull him back into the apartment but not before he shattered a plate glass window. Medics arrived and gave the individual in crisis a narcotic to calm him down. He was then able to be strapped to a gurney and transported to the hospital. Several officers were injured due to the falling glass, however; no officers needed hospitalization.
Thanks for the tips. Harbor Avenue SW is reopening after a situation involving police. SPD tells us they were dealing with a “person in crisis” who jumped out of an ambulance and ran into traffic. The person is back in custody now and will be taken to the hospital, and the road is reopening.
Seattle Police, with a K-9 team, are searching in South Delridge right now after a reported street robbery. The victim told police that a man robbed her at knifepoint, getting away with her purse. This is reported to have happened in the 8800 block of Delridge and the robber is reported to have left the scene northbound in an alley. That’s all we know so far.
If you have something to say about public safety beyond what the stats show, here’s your annual chance.
The announcement:
Seattle University is administering the 7th annual citywide Seattle Public Safety Survey, which is accessible at publicsafetysurvey.org from through November 30th and is available in Amharic, Arabic, Chinese, English, Korean, Oromo, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, Tigrinya, and Vietnamese. The purpose of the survey is to solicit feedback on public safety and security concerns from those who live and/or work in Seattle. A report on the survey results will be provided to the Seattle Police Department to help them better understand your neighborhood’s safety and security concerns. More information on the Seattle Public Safety Survey can be found here.
You can see past survey results here.
7:11 PM: Thanks for the tip. Police are at the 3295 SW Avalon apartment building. Here’s why, according to SPD spokesperson Det. Valerie Carson: They “were attempting to help the Department of Corrections contact a suspect who had violated his parole. Now he is barricaded in his apartment and says he has a firearm, so we’re trying to negotiate with him.”
7:27 PM: SWAT officers are part of the response, we’ve confirmed at the scene. The photo above shows a SWAT vehicle that’s parked at the 7-11 across the street. This is NOT affecting traffic in the area, though, our crew says.
10:19 PM: Not resolved yet, according to neighbors via comments below.
2:02 AM: No status update on this. We’re going off watch (always available via text 206-293-6302) and will check later this morning.
10:11 AM: No police visible outside the building; we’re waiting for info from SPD on how/when the standoff was resolved.
11:18 AM: Det. Carson tells WSB, “The suspect surrendered peacefully after several hours of negotiation, shortly before 11 pm. The gun in his possession was a BB gun pistol made to look like a realistic handgun. He went to the hospital for a mental health evaluation before being handed over to Department of Corrections officers for booking.”
3:54 PM: SPD’s summary has a few more details: “On 10-12-2021 at 1750 hours, DOC conducted a knock-and-talk at the residence of the girlfriend of a DOC warrant suspect, with SPD assisting. During DOC’s interview of a female at the apartment it became known that the suspect was in fact present in the apartment. The suspect barricaded in the bathroom and claimed to be armed with a gun. DOC & the SPD set containment, called for CRG, Hostage Negotiation Team (HNT), and SWAT resources, and began trying to establish a dialogue with the suspect. After an hours-long standoff, HNT was able to convince the suspect to surrender. At the time of this writing the suspect is under guard at the hospital for complaints unrelated to this event and will be booked into SCORE jail upon his release. His weapon was recovered at the scene and found to be a Co2 powered BB-gun full-size replica of a semi-auto handgun.”
After reader questions about two Saturday incidents, we were able to follow up with SPD today:
SWAT SERVES WARRANT: The SWAT team response near 3rd/Olson [map] on Saturday morning was a warrant service that traces back to a non-West Seattle cade, according to this SPD summary:
On 10-09-2021 at 5:30 am, during a temporary assignment with the Robbery Unit, an officer investigated a carjacking in the South Precinct. His thorough and tireless investigation ultimately identified a suspect (a violent, convicted felon) that was also possibly responsible for several other violent crimes in Seattle and King County. Officer secured warrants for the suspect and a residence in the Southwest Precinct. (Saturday) morning, SPD SWAT served those warrants and safely and effectively arrested the suspect. Multiple members of CRG assisted with the operation. Additional evidence, including ammunition and narcotics, was recovered. Incidentally, SW Patrol had an active project involving a vulnerable adult living in the residence. CRG and SW Patrol were able to resolve that matter peacefully following SWAT’s securing of the residence.
The suspect is a 32-year-old woman who remains in the King County Jail, bail set at $10,000 in connection with a previous assault case; we’ll be checking with the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on the status of this new case.
WINDOW-SMASHING & ASSAULT ARREST: This also happened on Saturday and involved multiple incidents in the late morning/early afternoon, according to the police-report narrative. SPD was first called about the suspect after an incident in the Whole Foods store (4700 block of Fauntleroy SW), reported as someone pulling a gun on someone else and threatening them. The person who pulled what he later called a “mace gun” called police to say he was the victim of an assault, giving the first name and description of the suspect, an acquaintance who he said had turned up in the store and punched him without provocation. A short time later, while an officer was following up on that incident, another nearby business – not identified in the report – called to report a man “throwing merchandise,” then “standing in street yelling,” appearing to be under the influence of something. The description in both incidents was similar. Officers found the suspect, a 42-year-old man, walking near 35th/Alaska, and in the meantime got a call from a third business, at 36th/Alaska, about someone pulling a knife after being confronted about breaking out the glass in that business’s front door. Police soon arrested the suspect and seized his knife. He was bleeding from a cut on his right hand and so was treated at a hospital before being booked into jail, where he remains. We’ll be following up on this case too.
The Southwest Precinct is changing commanders. Captain Kevin Grossman, who has been leading the West Seattle/South Park precinct since July of last year, tells WSB he is being transferred to lead the North Precinct as of November 1st. Captain Martin Rivera, who Grossman says has been a night-duty captain – a role that serves the entire city – will be taking over. Grossman says, “I had hoped to remain in West Seattle to see the reopening of the West Seattle Bridge, and to meet more folks as the pandemic recedes, but alas, that was not to be. In any case, I have certainly enjoyed my time in West Seattle. The strong, vibrant neighborhoods and the interested and supportive residents make this a great place to be.” He adds that newly appointed Operations Lieutenant Dorothy Kim – the second-in-command – will remain in that role, “which will also maintain the stability of the precinct.”
Published on SPD Blotter this afternoon, this report on how a car stolen on Capitol Hill wound up in the southeast West Seattle industrial zone on Saturday:
Police arrested the driver of a stolen vehicle Saturday afternoon in Southwest Seattle after he fled from officers, rammed patrol cars, and caused significant damage to a gas station convenience store.
At 3:39 p.m., a food delivery driver called 911 to report his vehicle had been stolen near 10th Avenue and East Pike Street. He had left his car running when he went into a restaurant to pick up an order, and when he came back out his Toyota sedan was gone. The victim told officers he could track the location of his car and provided updates on its location.
The suspect later became caught in traffic for a Mariners baseball game near Edgar Martinez Drive South and Occidental Avenue South. Police attempted to pull the vehicle over, but the driver sped away, entering lanes of oncoming traffic and endangering the many pedestrians and other motorists in the area.
Nearly an hour after the car was stolen, the victim reported it had stopped at a gas station in the 7800 block of Detroit Avenue SW [map]. The suspect had backed into a parking spot along a wall of the station’s convenience store. Arriving officers parked their patrol cars in front of the stolen car, boxing it in. When the officers stepped out of their cars and instructed the driver to exit the vehicle, he attempted to flee again, repeatedly driving the car forward and backward, alternately ramming the patrol cars and the building. Officers pulled the suspect out of the vehicle after a struggle and arrested him. Officers also interviewed and a female passenger in the vehicle and released her at the scene.
(SPD photo)
Police booked the 22-year-old driver into King County Jail for vehicle theft, eluding and property damage. Police also processed the suspect for DUI based on statements he made about recent narcotics use, and requested charges for violation of a protection order, as he was not supposed to be in contact with the female passenger. Lastly, officers notified the Department of Corrections they were booking the man, since he had a warrant for escaping community custody.
2:38 PM: Thanks for the tips. Police tell us they are dealing with a person in crisis, possibly armed, near 36th/Roxbury, and have blocked Roxbury in that area. They tell us nearby Summit Atlas middle/high school is in lockdown as a result. No injuries reported thus far but avoid the area.
3:27 PM: Not resolved yet. A dispatcher recapping the situation described it as having started when the person “brandished a rifle at a neighbor’s window” and was then seen by officers with “a pistol.” They are reported to be inside a house.
4:06 PM: As noted in comments, Summit Atlas has since let out for the day. Meantime, SWAT team officers have joined the response. The person who’s the focus of all this is reported to be a man in his 60s.
5:04 PM: Not resolved yet. Note for traffic purposes that Cambridge also is blocked west of 35th SW.
5:34 PM: Officers are continuing to use a PA system to ask the man to surrender.
5:58 PM: If you just heard an explosion in the area, that’s a “flash-bang” deployed by SWAT. … Shortly after that, another one.
7:13 PM: They’ve now advised the man via the PA that they have obtained a search warrant and if he doesn’t come out, they’re going in.
7:31 PM: Still trying to convince him to surrender, with another flashbang, in the standoff’s sixth hour.
8:01 PM: Now seventh hour. Police report the man has been firing a “pellet” gun among other erratic behavior.
9:01 PM: Eighth hour. SWAT officers are continuing to try different tactics, and continuing to tell him via PA that he’s under arrest and needs to surrender.
10:02 PM: Ninth hour. No change.
10:14 PM: SWAT officers reported to dispatch that they’ve moved in and are taking him into custody. They’re calling for SFD to come check him out for exposure to gas (which they used multiple times earlier) and for “Taser deployment.”
10:26 PM: Officers tell dispatch he’ll be taken to the hospital.
With two weeks until voting begins, the candidates are in the midst of a blitz of campaign forums. Candidates for Seattle city offices appeared in two more Thursday night – both specifically to address the topic of homelessness, On Wednesday, Seattle Mayor candidates debated the topic twice. We covered the first one, presented by the Resolution to End Homelessness; the second one, Wednesday night, kicked off a two-night series presented by The Seattle Times (here’s their coverage) and We’re All In. On Thursday night, the series included two half-hour forums. We watched both. Below are our notes on the first one, with Seattle City Attorney candidates Ann Davison and Nicole Thomas-Kennedy, moderated by Times reporter Sydney Brownstone. (We’ll have a separate report on the second one.) Note that everything below is our paraphrase/summary, not a direct quote unless it’s within quotation marks.
QUESTION: What role should the City Attorney play in addressing homelessness?
10:59 PM: For the second night in a row, police are investigating confirmed gunfire in West Seattle. Right now they have SW Charlestown blocked off in the 48th SW/49th SW vicinity, after finding shell casings following reports of gunshots. At least one person has reported bullet damage to their car. No injuries reported. The shots are believed to have been fired from a vehicle that sped away eastbound on Charlestown, but no description so far.
11:29 PM: Officers also have told dispatch that a house on 49th SW has bullet damage.
ADDED FRIDAY: Police say bullets hit one vehicle and two houses, and that they recovered more than a dozen shell casings. Meantime, an area property owner tells WSB:
There were 4 gunshots fired in the same location Tuesday, September 14th at 4am. Multiple neighbors heard the shots and called 911. SPD was dispatched but did not find anything. Neighbors report that they heard/saw a car speed away down Charlestown but did not get a description. I own a rental house in the area and found two bullet holes in the side of the house and one bullet was found in the bedroom. This shattered a window and broke a closet door. Luckily, the house is vacant at the moment – otherwise this may have been a bigger issue besides vandalism. Upon discovering the bullet and bullet holes we called SPD.
10:06 PM: Police investigating gunfire reports in north West Seattle have found evidence – at least nine shell casings. Dispatch noted 911 calls from areas including the 2600 block of 36th SW and the 2300 block of Harbor SW. One officer just radioed in that they’ve found at least nine shell casings “at the viewpoint.” (Whether that’s Admiral Way Viewpoint, Hamilton Viewpoint, or someplace else, they didn’t mention.) No injuries or property damage reported so far.
11:48 PM: Admiral Way Viewpoint, per a reader.
12:37 PM: Thanks for the tips about students sheltering in place at Chief Sealth International High School and adjacent Denny International Middle School; we saw one police car at the school and contacted the SPD media office. They told us, “We had reports of approximately a dozen students fighting at the football field. School went into modified lockdown. Officers responded to the area and could not locate any disturbance or anyone on the football field. Lockdown was lifted.” We also have a request out to the district for information. (4:13 pm note: Still no additional details, except the district has told us, twice, that no one was injured.)
1:12 PM: We do NOT know if it’s related but this came up in comment discussion below and is now confirmed – the scheduled Chief Sealth/West Seattle HS football game tonight, aka the Huling Bowl, has been canceled. WSHS principal Brian Vance sent this text message to families a short time ago (thanks to those who forwarded it to us):
I wanted to inform families that TONIGHT’S FOOTBALL GAME WITH CHIEF SEALTH HAS BEEN CANCELED. I do not, at this time, have all of the information regarding the cancellation and will share more as I get that information. I do know that it is not the result of anything on the WSHS side of things.
1:21 PM: CSIHS athletic director Ernest Policarpio also confirms the game is canceled but has no comment on why. He says they’re going to try to reschedule. (The game was scheduled to be played ta Nino Cantu Southwest Athletic Complex, which is across the street from Sealth but is both schools’ home field; WSHS was to be the home team.)
5:11 PM: Denny principal Jeff Clark has sent us the letter he and Sealth principal Ray Morales have sent to families:
Dear Chief Sealth and Denny Student and Families:
We are writing to let you know about an incident that occurred at Chief Sealth today. This morning, there was a physical altercation between a group of students. Staff responded immediately, separating the students involved. Out of an abundance of caution, the campus went into a Shelter-in-Place. The Seattle Police Department was called to help make sure there were no related incidents at the athletic complex.
A Shelter-in-Place is the process of keeping students and staff safe from incidents outside the building. Exterior doors are locked, and students remain in classrooms and go about normal activities.
Please be assured that the safety of every child is our number one priority. The Chief Sealth staff will continue to engage with our students proactively with an emphasis on restorative justice to repair any needed relationship harm.
We are proud of the way students at both Chief Sealth and Denny responded to the Shelter-in-Place. Throughout the process, students respectfully followed health and safety protocols.
This evening’s Chief Sealth Football game has been postponed and will be rescheduled for a future date.
Thank you for your ongoing support and partnership!
Sincerely,
Principal Ray Morales
Chief Sealth International High SchoolPrincipal Jeff Clark
Denny International Middle School
Gatewood Elementary dealt with an intruder early this morning, according to a message from principal Kyna Hogg to families. Thanks to the parents who forwarded us the principal’s email:
I want to share an update on an incident that occurred at our school today. This morning, we had an unknown adult enter our building before students arrived. Gatewood staff immediately notified both the Seattle Police Department and the SPS Safety and Security team. There were no students in the building at the time this occurred.
The individual stayed on campus (outside) during arrival with staff present the entire time, waiting for additional support to arrive. Students did not interact with this individual while outside.
Please know that we take safety in our building very seriously and the security and wellbeing of our students is our top concern. Our Safety and Security team is working with SPD to investigate and identify next steps. As always, please let me know if you have any questions.
We asked SPD about the incident. Here’s what Det. Valerie Carson tells us: “Officers were called around 7:45 am for a woman causing a disturbance at a school and then in the area around the school. Police determined the woman needed mental health services and had her taken by private ambulance to the hospital for evaluation.” This is the second time this year Gatewood has reported an intruder on campus, after an incident in June.
The city’s sharp rise in gunfire is in the spotlight today. First, a reader report on a West Seattle incident, from Anthony:
Just after 6:30 this morning, my wife and I were riding our bikes down Fairmount Ave and rounded the first corner just as the passenger in a stopped pickup truck fired three shots from a handgun (small caliber based on the sound) into the hillside at the first pullout on the right hand side. The truck, what looked like a mid-’90s white Chevy Silverado or GMC Sierra, took off down the hill towards Harbor Ave. Unfortunately I didn’t get a good look at the vehicle occupants or license plate. We immediately stopped, turned around, and went back to the top of Fairmount and called the police. Several officers responded quickly and I gave them the information I had.
This was just a few hours before Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz and two other city leaders held an online briefing/Q&A session for reporters to talk about the city’s ongoing wave of violence involving people using guns.
He said the incidents were happening at an “unrelenting pace.” Diaz said police are doing what they can, with dozens of gun-related arrests and 700 guns seized so far, but the overall numbers are daunting: Citywide, 380 incidents this year involving gunfire – that’s 100 more than this time last year, 150 more than this time in 2019. Of this year’s incidents, 104 involved injuries or deaths. The city has had 35 homicide victims so far this year – two of those “delayed” (from incidents in previous years), and three-quarters were shooting victims, the chief said. He repeated that the department is understaffed; there’s money to hire officers but hiring is not keeping up with the pace of attrition.
The City Council was represented at the event by Councilmember Alex Pedersen, who said he hopes his colleagues will support money for recruiting and hiring incentives; midyear budget decisions are coming up in two weeks. Also participating was Rex Brown, who leads the city Human Services Department’s Safe and Thriving Communities division; he talked about city investments in community-safety programs, saying they’re addressing “risk factors” at the “societal and community levels.” The chief, too, acknowledged it’s a many-faceted problem, saying that it’s not just an increase in gunfire involving youth violence but also mental-health issues, such as road rage. Regardless of staffing levels, he said, police need community support for the violence to stop: “Talk to your friends and family, (tell them) ‘guns are not the answer’.”
(SPD photo from last Tuesday, bullet-flattened tire)
Last Tuesday, we reported on what police described as a “road rage” confrontation that included gunfire at the 5-way intersection west of the low bridge. Police talked to everyone directly involved, including the people who fired their guns, who claimed they did it in self-defense. Though no one was arrested or cited at the time, detectives continue investigating to determine if charges should be recommended. While they’ve spoken with some witnesses, this happened during commute time at a busy intersection and police tell WSB the detective on the case would like to talk with others who saw what happened. If you can help, you are asked to call the SPD tip line, 206-233-5000.
Police say one person was pistol-whipped and another narrowly missed by gunfire in the 1900 block of Harbor Avenue SW early today. They went to the area after a report of gunfire around 1:20 am; they found a 22-year-old man with a cut to the head. He wouldn’t talk to officers about what had happened but they say witnesses saw him pistol-whipped in a fight with someone who then fired multiple shots as the victim tried to run away. One bullet went through a parked van where a woman was asleep, just missing her. The pistol-whipping victim was taken to the hospital. Police are asking anyone with information to call their tip line at 206-233-5000.
6:23 PM: No injuries this afternoon when someone in a car shot at someone in another car at or near the 5-way intersection just west of the low bridge. It’s taken a while to piece this together, but here’s what we have so far: The victim(s) called police and met them along Avalon; gunfire damage to their car was reported to include a flat tire. Then the suspect(s) called 911 and met up with officers in Riverside, near 17th/Marginal:
(WSB photo)
Meantime, officers went to the original scene at the Chelan/Marginal/Spokane/Delridge intersection and told dispatch they found three casings – from two different guns. We caught up with police at the Riverside scene, and they told us they’re investigating this as a case of “road rage” but they were still sorting it out and hadn’t arrested anyone yet.
7:46 PM: Just talked to SPD spokesperson Det. Valerie Carson. Here’s what she says police now have, after talking to people in both cars: This started on Highway 99 as a “merging issue” involving people in a Honda (car in the background of our photo above) and Subaru. As the two cars proceeded westward, they got close enough that some yelling ensued. Then after they both crossed the low bridge, they were stopped at the 5-way light, when two people in the Honda got out and came over to the Subaru, pounding on its windows, At one point, someone from the Honda allegedly punched someone from the Subaru; they claimed someone from the Subaru spat at them. The Subaru driver decided to drive away; both people from the Honda pulled guns and fired. They told police they did so in self-defense, feeling that the Subaru driver was going to run over them; the Subaru driver claimed they were already pulling away when the people from the Honda shot at them. Bullets hit a rear tire. No arrests as police continue to investigate; Det. Carson says they did confiscate the guns, and that both people in the Honda had valid concealed pistol licenses for them.
ADDED 11:49 AM: SPD Blotter has a post about this – same narrative as we added last night after talking with Det. Carson (spelling corrected), but with two photos added – first, the Subaru’s flat tire:
(SPD photo)
And the guns surrendered by the people in the Honda:
(SPD photo)
The post also notes that each car carried a woman and a man at the time of the incident.
After reporting “two .40 cal handgun shots recorded at (2700 block 59th Avenue SW)” around 3 am, Edd “went outside this morning and (found) two shell casings on the ground.” He sent us photos of both; you can see one above. He had called police at the time, didn’t see anyone respond, but after calling them again about the casings this morning, he says the officer who responded to collect them as evidence said he was the original responder. No injury calls to that area overnight.
Until 8 pm, Westwood Village invites you to the central parking lot (2600 SW Barton; south of Bed Bath & Beyond) for a belated Night Out party, as previewed here. SPD’s Mounted Patrol brought the mini-horse shown in our pic.
Thanks for the tip. A reader asked about “a body” found in The Junction this morning. We subsequently asked both SPD and SFD about it. The dispatch was just after 7 am, on SW Alaska just east of California. SFD says the 35-year-old man was “deceased on arrival.” SPD says there was “nothing to indicate suspicious circumstances/foul play” so far. Listening to the recording of the fire dispatch, he was found in front of the Starbucks shop, and CPR was used to try to revive him. It’ll be up to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office to identify the man and his cause of death.
11:55 PM: Police and fire are going to 61st/Admiral for a report of a 28-year-old man with a gunshot wound. No word yet on circumstances. The victim is being assessed at a home. Updates to come.
12:08 AM: They’re still trying to figure out exactly where this happened, officers are telling dispatch.
12:13 AM: The victim is being taken to Harborview. Initial assessment over emergency radio described him as “conscious and alert” with a bullet wound near an eye.
12:19 AM: Police say they were told “the shooter was on a motorcycle.”
12:25 AM: They’re blocking off Admiral between 61st and 62nd, as well as 62nd itself, while they investigate. They’ve reported finding two “victim vehicles” on 62nd, possibly indicating bullet damage. (Added: Or, per commenters, other damage.)
12:55 AM: No further updates so far. More info should be forthcoming from SPD once a report is filed later this morning.
1:01 AM: Streets are reopening. Meantime, for context, it’s been a little over a month since four people were shot at the beach, on fatally; a suspect was arrested and charged, and remains in jail, bail set at $2 million.
ADDED 1:44 PM: We just talked to SPD spokesperson Det. Valerie Carsen. She says there’s not much more information about this: After being shot, the victim crashed his car into a parked car near 62nd/Admiral and went to a nearby house to get help. He couldn’t/wouldn’t tell officers where or when it happened – aside from, as mentioned above, that the shooter might have been someone on a motorcycle. Officers did not locate shell casings or other evidence anywhere in the area so they couldn’t independently verify a crime scene. SFD spokesperson Kristin Tinsley tells us the victim was “in stable condition” when transported.
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