Another Lib City Slashes Police Budget with Violent Crime on the Rise
Democratic Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan is set to sign a bill that would slash police funding amid a citywide crime spike.
The bill will cut police training and overtime funds by 18 percent after the city council voted overwhelmingly in favor of the budget reductions, according to Fox News.
Activists within local government unsuccessfully sought a 50 percent cut in law enforcement funding. The council did approve the transfer of 911 dispatchers, parking officers and mental health workers out of the Seattle Police Department.
The new budget would pour around $100 million into projects for minorities and allow for the hiring of 100 new officers, according to Fox.
The mayor’s move comes as both murders and burglaries are on the rise in the city.
Seattle has reported a total of 41 homicides so far in 2020 compared to 28 in 2019.
Law enforcement has recorded 8,418 burglaries so far this year, with 7,634 reported in 2019. Arson and motor vehicle theft have also surged.
“I believe we are laying the groundwork to make systemic and lasting changes to policing,” Durkan said in a statement last week.
“We have rightly put forward a plan that seeks to ensure SPD has enough officers to meet 911 response and investigative needs throughout the city, while acknowledging and addressing the disproportionate impacts policing has had on communities of color, particularly Black communities.”
Seattle is not the only city to cut police funding amid an increase in crime.
Los Angeles reached its highest homicide rate in over a decade after slashing $150 million from its police department in July.
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