Seattle unable to prosecute drug arrests due to city lawmakers' delay
Seattle unable to prosecute drug arrests due to city lawmakers' delay
The new law makes drug use and possession a misdemeanor. However, Seattle city leaders have not put the law into the city books, and because of that, they cannot prosecute drug charges.
SEATTLE - A new statewide drug law is set to go into effect this week, but enforcing it will not be so easy for Seattle.
The new law makes drug use and possession a misdemeanor.
However, Seattle city leaders have not put the law into the city books, and because of that, they cannot prosecute drug charges.
King County officials say they will not be able to help.
"What state law says is that if you're a city, those cities are responsible for your own misdemeanors. You can’t push it onto the county, and the Attorney General’s office has backed that up twice in opinions," said Casey McNerthney.
Come Tuesday, Seattle Police can make drug possession and drug use arrests, but no one will prosecute the cases.
Most communities across Washington adopted the new laws signed by Governor Jay Inslee to make open drug use and possession a gross misdemeanor. Seattle City Council rejected it during a vote in June.
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"They, I think, neglected to pass a law which we thought should have been adopted, passing the state law. My job is to inspire them to act with a sense of urgency. Listen, but make bold decisions. And to listen to the people. The people want action from the city of Seattle. They are a strong partner of our city government," said City of Seattle mayor Bruce Harrell.
City Councilmember Sara Nelson supported the city attorney's proposal to adopt the new state laws that would replace the temporary Blake Decision.
"There are a lot of politics around this, but the real tragedy is that people are dying," said Nelson. "We need to speed up downtown recovery, we need people to feel safer taking transit to work, we need people to feel safer frequenting local businesses. And so, everything rides on taking a more aggressive, a more robust approach to this fentanyl crisis that’s killing people and slowing our economy."
Mayor Bruce Harrell formed a task force to create a new proposal, still adopting the new state laws, but adding intervention and treatment services. The mayor presented his plan to city council in July, still waiting for their vote.
"We met the impacted communities, talked to law enforcement, talked to everyone we thought really cared about this issue. And we hope they have a sense of urgency on passing it. We think it’s a good law," said Harrell.
Officials with the mayor’s office say it’s up to the city council to determine when the new law will go into effect.
Until then, drug laws will remain status quo in Seattle.
The mayor's proposal also provides clarity on police enforcement. The current city ordinance allows officers to arrest people who are using or possess drugs in public. However, the city attorney can’t prosecute drug charges like most other communities in the state under the new laws.
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"The conversation needs to be fully circled back to: ‘Do we have the ability to then book these people into jail?’ Currently, as it stands in the King County jail, we do not," said Mike Solan, President of the Seattle Police Officers Guild. "It’s a major problem. And our inability to book people into jail, I think, has exacerbated this public safety crisis in terms of fentanyl."
Officials in King County say it is possible for Seattle to contract with them to fix this problem, but that would come with a cost.
"A contracted approach would be cumbersome, impractical and cause confusion," said King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion.
Peer Seattle offers outreach to members of the LGBTQ+ community impacted by addiction, mental health and HIV. Christopher Archiopoli, the organization's director, says incarceration isn’t the answer to the drug crisis.
"What it does is it criminalizes being unhoused. It criminalized being unsheltered. This law is going to disproportionately impact that community. It’s not going to impact people that maybe have an addiction issue that have houses, that have a place to use safely. What it’s going to do is take people who are already struggling, who are already suffering, who are already marginalized and looked down upon by the community and make their lives even harder," said Archiopoli.
In a statement, the mayor's office wrote in part:
"Mayor Harrell is committed to urgent action to advance sustainable improvements to public health and public safety. While the Council considers this proposal, we will continue to design and implement new and innovative treatment options and reduce access to dangerous, illegal drugs by holding dealers and traffickers accountable."