Gun violence impacting rising number of King County youth

King County sees more teens involved in deadly gun violence

So far this year, the number of young people killed by gunfire is more than double the total last year.

KING COUNTY, Wash. - The first five months of 2024 in King County revealed an alarming trend in youth violence. Through June 1, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed 310 juvenile felony offenses, with cases involving victims and weapons. In some of those cases, guns were used in deadly shootings.

So far this year, the number of young people killed by gunfire is more than double the 2023 total. As of July 18, 2024, data from King County Medical Examiner’s Office showed 13 people ages 17-years-old and younger were victims of homicide. The office confirmed the manner of death for each victim was by firearm.

The most recent cases of young people losing their lives to gun violence are 17-year-old Noah Bagby and 16-year-old Xavier Landry. Both were shot and killed in Auburn this month just days apart.

During Seattle City Council’s Public Safety Committee meeting on Tuesday, Seattle Police’s interim chief Sue Rahr said she is not surprised so many juveniles are carrying guns and is working with prosecutors to learn more about state laws on the matter.

"We have so much gunfire in the community, it’s just astounding," said Rahr.

The interim chief said Seattle hasn’t seen this level of gunfire before. The issue, however, is also felt throughout King County. Many of the suspects behind the trigger are not even old enough to vote.

"We’ve charged more homicide cases with juvenile victims so far in 2024 than we have in some previous years for the entire year," said Casey McNerthney, spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office.

McNerthney said the prosecutor’s office is seeing a rise in cases involving kids’ access to ghost guns and modified guns, known as "switches."

"A lot of these are stolen guns, a lot of them are on the streets. And that’s what makes it so hard. It’s also how you can get guns between jurisdictions. So, if Seattle or King County were to pass laws, it may not stop it because of the ease that illegally possessed guns can come from other counties or other states," said McNerthney.

Local prosecutors said this problem cannot be left to prosecutors and law enforcement to resolve. They are calling on state lawmakers to create legislation in the next session to curb the trend of youth gun violence.

The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) also supports a change in laws for the future of public safety.

"The issue of juvenile crime, I think, is going to be a really substantial issue for this year, for the next couple of years because as we see the juvenile involvement in violent crime go up, we’re going to need to respond to this much more proactively than we are so far," said Steve Strachan, executive director of WASPC.

Strachan said WASPC is speaking with state lawmakers on ideas about legislation that could address these issues.

"We have legislators on both sides of the aisle that clearly see that. They want to ensure that juveniles know about their rights, I think everybody agrees on that. But I fully expect that will be changed on the next session because I think everyone starts to understand that it’s a huge issue," said Strachan.