West Seattle, Washington
08 Tuesday
Two of these 5 incidents happened early this morning. First, in the Westcrest Park area, multiple police units answered a call of a disturbance, followed minutes later by a report that five gunshots were heard. No report of anyone having actually been shot, but police pulled over a car at 8th/Trenton (map) and reported finding a shotgun in possession of one of the passengers. Second incident just happened – police raced to an assault report in the 2800 block of Alki (map), with a suspect reportedly running away, but found an “uncooperative victim,” and the call was canceled (but in case you saw/heard all those officers, that’s what it was about). Now, to three reports received earlier, from purported solicitors using a ruse to get into a man’s apartment and steal from him, to a bike theft and stereo theft – read on:Read More
(Monday photo by Kevin McClintic)
Thanks to City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen and his staffer Brian Hawksford (both West Seattleites, incidentally) for sharing a report they received on the Seattle Police “crosswalk sting” at California/Dawson yesterday (here’s our original report). Turns out it was one of two conducted in the city yesterday afternoon – the other one was earlier, on lower Queen Anne. Neither spot had been “worked before,” according to the report they forwarded, which includes this excerpt:
From 3 PM to 4 PM, the squad worked the crosswalk at California & Dawson. Here we wrote 16 pedestrian right of way citations, plus 7 proof of insurance, 3 expired tabs, 1 seat belt, 1 no front plate, and 1 green arrow, for a total of 29 citations. Additionally, we issued a pedestrian right of way warning.
As noted in yesterday’s report, 92-year-old Rosemary MacCorkindale was killed crossing at that same spot last fall. Between the two locations worked yesterday, the forwarded report says, 221 crossings were made in all — 133 by officers and 88 by citizens — and 14.5% resulted in citations. SPD says the operation showed a “need” for such enforcement at both locations, so they’ll likely be back.
Bus riders who work downtown or who can get away at midday will want to know about this one – not just listening to politicians, but also a chance for you to ask questions — read on:Read More
Several people e-mailed and tweeted about a notable police presence at California/Myrtle (map) this afternoon. Here’s what we’ve found out: It was linked to the burglary case we reported here yesterday – a man breaking into an apartment at California/Raymond Tuesday morning, bolting when the apartment’s occupant screamed. Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen says evidence from that scene has led them to identify a suspect; they were hoping to arrest him at the California/Myrtle location today and they have a warrant, but he wasn’t there – Lt. Paulsen says, however, they’re confident they’ll arrest him soon, adding that this is someone with whom area officers are familiar because he’s been arrested multiple times before. Lt. Paulsen also reiterates that evidence in this case has further verified this suspect is NOT tied to the South Park stabbings (no new info in that case so far – here’s the suspect sketch again).
That’s the hundreds-strong, standing-room-only crowd that jammed into South Park Community Center tonight to hear from Seattle Police leadership and Mayor Nickels, less than two days after a terrifying attack that left one woman dead and another seriously hurt: A man broke into their western South Park home – not far from West Seattle’s eastern edge (map) – and stabbed them while they slept, early Sunday morning. Flowers have been placed outside the home where it happened – we went by just before the meeting:
The same police who patrol West Seattle also handle South Park, so it was a familiar face, Southwest Precinct Captain Joe Kessler, who outlined how his team has responded and will continue to search for the killer:
Most importantly, as we showed you a little earlier tonight, police have just released a sketch of the man they are looking for, believed to have been a stranger to the victims. The description remains – per the SPDBlotter report – “a black male, 20s to early 30s, 5 feet 11 inches to 6 feet tall, thin muscular build, a thin moustache, and ‘nappy’ hair.” The victims have not been publicly identified — authorities say, “to protect their privacy” — but friends and neighbors have said they were a couple and, according to this Times story, about to be married. Police did allude to the victims being members of “a sexual minority” and as such say they have not ruled out the possibility this could have been a hate crime, though they do not have any evidence of that. Read on for more of what was said at the meeting:Read More
Thanks to everyone who sent notes via e-mail, Twitter and Facebook asking about a big police presence about an hour and a half ago in the Schmitz Park area. Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Smith explained what it was about: He says officers pulled over a vehicle “for the purpose of IDing a suspect of an assault investigation.” However, the suspect bolted. Police meantime discovered the suspect also was “wanted for violation of a protection order,” according to Lt. Smith. With the help of K-9 tracking, officers found the suspect, who “will be booked for violation of protection order and obstruction of a police officer.”
(cameraphone photo added 5:11 pm)
Southwest Precinct police are responding to a robbery call at Westwood Village – believed to be the Alaska USA Credit Union branch in QFC. We’re on our way to check it out. 4:55 PM UPDATE: We’re on the scene. That is indeed the bank that was hit. No injuries that we know of. A K-9 officer is at the scene and while the bank branch is closed now, the store’s still open, for now. 5:27 PM UPDATE: Just talked to a manager at the bank. It will stay closed till about 7, then the manager says it will reopen for a little while in case people need to handle transactions as the week comes to a close – it’ll be open regular hours tomorrow.
Sasha e-mailed to ask about an incident this afternoon at 35th/Othello, involving a scuffle between officers and a suspect. We just talked to Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Smith here at West Seattle Summer Fest – he says police responded to a call about someone acting erratically, and when officers approached the suspect, he “charged them.” A struggle ensued but the officers are OK. The suspect is being checked out at a hospital and could face charges of assaulting officers. 4:24 PM UPDATE: Another note came in, asking about a sizable police presence around 1:30 along 35th some distance south, apparently near Thistle – turns out it was related to the same incident, according to Lt. Smith.
That was the scene one sunny afternoon last August, as the Southwest Precinct‘s annual Picnic at the Precinct took over SW Webster west of Delridge for an afternoon of fun, free food and community mingling. The city’s Delridge District Service Coordinator Ron Angeles has just circulated this note inviting community groups to participate:
The Southwest Police Precinct is having their annual “Picnic at the Precinct” community BBQ on Saturday, August 15th. Community groups are now being recruited to have a free information table at the event. It’s a great way for organizations to reach a huge cross-section of the West Seattle community. To reserve a table, please contact Pete Spalding at bayouwonder@comcast.net
And even if you’re not interested in tabling – mark your calendar for the afternoon of August 15th! (Speaking of crimefighting-related block parties: Registration continues for the annual Night Out – if you register in advance, you get to close your non-arterial street to traffic that night, August 4 – here’s where to go to sign up and get more info – deadline 7/31.)
Can’t think of the last time we had occasion to link to a commentary by Ken Schram (with whom we worked at KOMO back in the days he hosted Town Meeting), but Kay sent word of this one, so we’re sharing: Schram is giving one of his not-necessarily-coveted “Schrammies” to the judge in last week’s sentencing (WSB courtroom coverage here) of the teenagers convicted in connection with last year’s attack on Southwest Precinct Officer Jason McKissack. Read his commentary here.
ORIGINAL 1:57 PM REPORT: We’re at the King County Courthouse, in the courtroom of Superior Court Judge Chris Washington, who is scheduled shortly to sentence the three teenagers found guilty in connection with last year’s High Point attack that seriously injured Southwest Precinct Officer Jason McKissack one year ago (here’s the report on the verdict a month ago; here’s one of our reports from last year). A 17-year-old boy was found guilty of assault; a 17-year-old boy and 18-year-old girl were found guilty of obstruction of a law-enforcement officer. Five police officers are here in the courtroom so far to observe, in uniform; your editor here is one of two reporters present so far. We’ll publish the sentences (and any other information from this hearing) as soon as they are announced.
2:08 PM UPDATE: Officer McKissack, who is still on leave, is here as well – almost one year exactly after the attack (6/17/08). The three defendants have all arrived — all three in blue jeans, the two boys in white T-shirts, the girl in a gray sweatshirt – with six lawyers at the table with them (some of whom would be prosecutors, of course).
2:45 PM UPDATE: The first two sentences have been announced: For the girl, no detention; 75 hours of community service; 1 year of probation. She spoke briefly to the court, saying she didn’t believe she deserved detention time – but no words of apology. For the older boy (guilty of obstruction), no additional detention (he had already served 59 days, according to his lawyer), 150 hours of community service, 12 months of probation. He told the judge he knew what happened was wrong and what happened to the officer was wrong, but he wanted to say that he was not an evil person. Meantime, the officer’s wife and another relative have both addressed the court, with emotion in one case, emotion and fury in another.
3:29 PM UPDATE: The 17-year-old boy found guilty of third-degree assault has just been sentenced: No additional jail time (he apparently served 30 days electronic monitoring), 1 year probation, 150 hours of community service. This after a lengthy legal argument over the state’s request for an exceptional sentence. There is one more step in this case – a restitution hearing requested by prosecutors.
3:44 PM UPDATE: After a little more than an hour and a half, the hearing just concluded, as lawyers wrapped up paperwork and details. All three of the teenagers addressed the court, though none expressed remorse for what happened. Officer McKissack did not testify; in addition to his wife and another relative who spoke, one of the uniformed officers who were in attendance rose to address the judge before the sentencing ended. Here is our transcription of most of what he said:
We’re sending the wrong message – people have to be held accountable for their actions … I’ve been on the streets for 13 years … We’re getting into more fights, we’re getting assaulted more. At our precinct alone, we’ve had suspects bite officers twice in the past month, and I believe one was a juvenile. … We’re sending the wrong message. People have to understand – now, if you just hit, kick spit on officers, you’re not going to get any significant time … We’re not out there to be punching bags … (But people are) very comfortable, as if they know that minor assault on officers is not going to be held acountable. An assault on an officer is an assault on society. (But) an officer should not have to be stabbed, or have bones broken, for someone to be held accountable … This makes it hard for us out there. For those who [unlike testimony indicated, regarding these three] may truly be bad kids, the word is going to get out … and we have to go out and deal with them
A few more details to come, including the legal sparring between the prosecution and the defense – and ultimately, the judge sided with the defense, suggesting that if it wanted the case sentenced like second-degree assault, why wasn’t it charged as second-degree assault? – and what the officer’s family members told the judge … and the defendants. (By the way, the only other journalist in court with us was from the Seattle Times, and she may have some additional reaction, as she followed the police contingent out of the courtroom while the proceedings were down to the final details, which we stayed for – we’ll add the link to their story when we see it.) ADDED 10:48 PM: More details from the hearing — read on:Read More
“DUMP THE PUMP DAY”: Area transit agencies say today’s the day to take a bus, ride a bike, walk, carpool, anything but drive alone. Side note: Just looked up our D-the-P Day item from last year. It notes that gas at a certain station was about $4.33, while on the same date in 2007, it was more like what it is now, just under $3. (P.S. We just might see you today on the King County Water Taxi.)
SOUNDWAY “VACATION” TO DESIGN COMMISSION: Why the Water Taxi, you ask? We’re expecting to head downtown for a Seattle Design Commission review at 11 this morning at City Hall – seems terribly appropriate this one’s happening on “Dump the Pump Day,” because it involves greenbelt once targeted for roadbuilding that never happened, the “Soundway” property in the West Duwamish Greenbelt. For this to officially be preserved as greenbelt, its once-planned streets/alleys have to be officially “vacated,” and the SDC has to off on those. (Here’s the agenda.)
ALSO AT CITY HALL: The next big campaign forum is at 5 pm tonight, presented by the City Neighborhood Council. City Council candidates are in the spotlight this time.
SOUTH SEATTLE COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS MAKE HISTORY: Tonight’s SSCC graduation at Brockey Center, 7:30 pm, includes the first 4-year graduates from its Hospitality Management program.
(61st/Admiral photo from 7/4/2008)
Less than three weeks — already! — till the Fourth of July, and by now you’ve likely heard, no Elliott Bay fireworks. So as not to assume, we doublechecked, while talking today with Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen, to be sure that meant no Alki traffic restrictions like last year. He confirmed, that’s indeed the case – no roadblocks planned – but he promised that a special holiday “patrol” will keep close watch on the spots where people will be gathering, even without the Elliott Bay show.
(Friday night WSB photo, taken on 63rd just south of 63rd)
Last night, we happened to be driving in Alki when police passed us, rushing to the scene of a report that someone had “brandished” a weapon; here’s what we reported at the time. This morning, in addition to commenters providing more detail following our first report, we now have full details from police via SPDBlotter, which identifies the suspect as a 25-year-old man and tells the story:
On 06/05/09, at approximately 7:00 p.m., a suspect was at 60th AV SW and Alki Av SW with a female friend, when he got into a confrontation with a group of juveniles (young teenagers — middle school students). The suspect hurled profanities at the teens and pulled up his shirt to display a holstered handgun, frightening the juveniles and many onlookers. Officers arrived on scene and quickly located the suspect at Alki & 63rd SW. Officers recovered a .357 magnum revolver from the suspect’s waistband. He appeared to be under the influence of alcohol, and was also carrying a flask of whiskey. The suspect, produced a US Army ID, identifying him as an active duty sergeant, and a CCW permit issued by the state of Ohio.
After interviewing victims and witnesses, it was determined that the display of the handgun did not appear reasonable in response to any real or perceived threats from the juveniles. The suspect was arrested without incident and transported the Southwest Precinct. The suspect’s immediate commanding officer was contacted and made aware of the situation. The suspect was booked into King County Jail for unlawful carrying/display of a weapon. The revolver and Ohio CCW card were placed into evidence.
Washington does honor Ohio concealed-weapons permits, by the way, according to data we found online. As for the suspect’s status, while we don’t have his name, the jail register does show one man booked into jail last night on this type of charge, and he’s still in custody right now in lieu of $950 bail.
Checked with the Southwest Precinct today after receiving a few notes asking about a significant police presence at the 35th/Henderson (map) Gasco station around 9 last night – triggering an “aid response” Fire Department call – and happening just about the same time as the power outage, which certainly dominated attention for a few hours. Lt. Ron Smith tells WSB that officers responded to a call about an apparently mentally disturbed man “who was attempting to carjack a car from (the) gas station. When they arrived, the suspect was out of control, and unable/unwilling to follow commands from the officers. A struggle ensued, and the suspect was Tased and brought under control. One of the officers suffered an minor injury with exposure to suspect’s blood.” Lt. Smith says the suspect was booked into King County Jail.
Earlier this week, we linked to the official Seattle Police release of crime statistics from the first 4 months of this year. Since then, we’ve learned the Southwest Precinct compiles even more specific – and fresher – reports each month, and Lt. Steve Paulsen has just shared the West Seattle-area “property crimes” report for May. The map above, showing where residential burglaries happened last month, is just one part of it. The entire document is a PowerPoint you can see here in its entirety (we converted it to a PDF) – or, just read the highlights: Last month in West Seattle, there were 100 car prowls, almost the same as April (101), but significantly up compared to 74 in May 2008; as for auto thefts, last month there were 32, up from 29 in April and 28 in May 2008. (Notably, though, June through May, the auto-theft totals are down from the same period a year earlier: 503 for June ’07 through May ’08, 417 for June ’08 through May ’09.) Residential burglaries are down: 50 during May, compared to 68 in April, and 56 in May 2008. Lots of numbers but if you prefer to see all the charts and maps for yourself – it’s all here.
Seattle Police have gone public with the city’s crime stats for the first four months of this year. The overview is the same as what we’ve heard in West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meetings and other venues all year – violent crimes down, nonviolent crimes up, to summarize. Here’s the Southwest Precinct report; an excerpt from its intro:
… Southwest Precinct is posting an increase in Major Crimes for the first four months of 2009 when compared with the same period in 2008. Unlike the other precincts, however, the overall crime rise is being driven more by increases in Property Crimes than by Violent Crimes. Among Property Crimes, both burglaries and larceny/thefts are up, compared to a year ago. Southwest Precinct is also the only precinct posting an increase in vehicle thefts.
The burglary increase, compared to the same period of 2008, is dramatic – 231 in the Southwest Precinct area (which includes South Park as well as West Seattle) last year, jumping to 344 this year – up almost 50 percent. The vehicle-theft increase mentioned above is not as dramatic — 121 this year, 115 last. Here’s the page with links to all precincts’ reports, if you’re interested in comparing – the population and acreage of the precincts varies, of course, so you can’t really compare 1-to-1.
The verdict’s in at the trial of three teenagers who attacked Southwest Precinct Officer Jason McKissack in High Point last June: Guilty, according to this seattletimes.com report, which also says they face no more than a month in jail when they’re sentenced in June. McKissack is still on leave, recovering from injuries including getting kicked in the head (we summarized the police report in this WSB story last June).
We’re at the first West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting since the Alki shooting and other high-profile incidents (like the hate-graffiti vandalism wave, in which, as we first reported earlier today, there’s been an arrest) – there’s a sizable SPD presence here, including Captain Joe Kessler, who leads the Southwest Precinct (as well as the entire Community Police Team, SWP operations Lt. Steve Paulsen, Sgt. Jeff Durden, and city attorney Tom Carr). We will post updates as they happen. 7:34 PM UPDATE: Carr spoke first, focusing on explaining the “community prosecution” program; during Q/A afterward, that discussion also has veered into a discussion of some of the problem property owners in the Delridge area, absentee landlords who some residents here say are turning a deaf ear to complaints about unruly, criminal tenants, in units for which they say the landlords collect government-subsidy money. 7:39 PM UPDATE: Lt. Paulsen is giving the crime trends update: auto theft, car prowls, assaults down, residential burglaries up, Highland Park is a particular hot spot right now for burglaries – and many, Lt. Paulsen says, are happening on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Lt. Paulsen says a juvenile suspect has been arrested in connection with the recent Alki shooting (no further details yet).
(WSB photo from May 5)
Breaking news: A commenter on our earlier report says a suspect is in custody in the hate-graffiti vandalism around West Seattle (first report May 4), and we have confirmation from a reliable source. Leaving a message for the Seattle Police media unit to see what details they can share. P.S. Just took a second look at the comment that brought us first news of the arrest – it’s from a writer who identified himself in an earlier comment as one of the victims:
Just an update:
The police have caught the person who has been writing anti-gay slurs all over West Seattle. Kudos to the Seattle Police Department! Great Job!
I hope he spends some time behind bars so he has time to think about what he’s been doing and the grief that he’s been causing people.
6:27 PM UPDATE: Seattle Police have released a bit more information about today’s arrest, which is also now posted on the SPDBlotter site. The suspect is described as a 31-year-old man, booked for investigation of property damage, still under investigation for possible “malicious harassment” — as in, hate crime. Detective Jeff Kappel in the media unit told WSB that since this is an “active investigation,” he isn’t releasing more details such as where and how the man was taken into custody, which the SPDBlotter item says happened just after 1 this afternoon.
That’s one of the photos White Center Now‘s Ricardo Guarnero (of Cafe Rozella fame) posted today – following up on sightings of a raccoon and two alley-dwelling ducks. A WSB’er in fact e-mailed us today about a horse-and-officer sighting (not far from Westcrest, where, as Ricardo points out on WCN, SPD’s horses are based) so we thought you might want to see the pix.
Spotted these officers pulled over briefly during a Harbor Ave ride, near Salty’s, this afternoon. When we talked with Southwest Precinct Capt. Joe Kessler a week ago about Alki police-presence plans, he mentioned the possibility of bike patrols again this year, so we’ll be checking on whether this might have portended that. ADDED 7:32 PM: A tipster tells us SPD has a mountain-bike training class this week, with officers from other departments as well as new SPD bicycle officers and parking-enforcement officers involved.
A few notes came in late Sunday night asking about an earlier incident involving police and a possible armed suspect at Hamilton Viewpoint (map). Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Smith explains that just after 7 pm, officers answered “a call of a female pointing a gun” but upon arrival discovered the woman, in her 30s, was “practicing self-defense with a fake yellow handgun and a rubber knife.” He adds, “After the female explained to officers what she was doing and officers inspected the weapons in question, she was allowed to leave.”
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