After four years of releasing shoplifters, vandals and other low-level offenders, the city of Seattle is finally starting to send people back to prison for low-level crimes.
The change, which went into effect earlier this month, reverses a pandemic-era restriction by King County that prevented Seattle police from prosecuting all but the most serious misdemeanors.
Emerald City officials argued the policy hinders prosecutors and police officers.
But now Seattle's worthless people can go to jail for flaunting the law.
The move is a victory for local law enforcement, which has long sought more tools to combat a crime wave that has been ongoing for four years since the pandemic. Even though crime is down in almost every other major city. Analysis by Seattle Times showed.
“Some people say, 'You can't arrest me for that.' Well, that was true, but now you can. We're hoping to bring some accountability back. .” quoted by the Times Deputy Chief Eric Burden said:
Booking restrictions began in 2020 when the King County Jail, which has a contract with Seattle, reduced its capacity for social distancing reasons.
The county then cited staffing issues with continued restrictions.
Meanwhile, Seattle city officials, including City Attorney Ann Davison, said the regulation is a millstone for the city's law enforcement and municipal courts, causing many crimes to go completely unpunished.
When the city began negotiating with another Des Moines jail to hold low-level felons, a group of public defenders sent a letter to the City Council complaining about the long commutes to the new jail. According to urbanists.
Finally, the county could use recruiting bonuses and new overtime incentives to attract more correctional officers, and the city and county were able to reach a new agreement, which went into effect Nov. 1, the Times said. The paper reports.
