The 'soft cop' argument in Seattle: Today So Far

• Activists groups behind police defunding in Seattle are speaking up about new budget proposals and they don't want any soft cops.
• Sea-Tac Airport adapts after weekend of long lines.
• Fourth man pleads guilty for 2018 racist assault at a Lynnwood bar.

This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for September 23, 2022.

No "soft cops." That's the message from the Solidarity Budget coalition to Seattle officials crafting the city's budget, which has a proposal to hire more park rangers to enforce city park rules.

You may recall the Solidarity Budget coalition from the 2020 effort to cut funding for Seattle police. They are continuing that effort by supporting a series of issues and policies, and opposing others. Currently, they are asking for more safe lots for people living in vehicles, and are demanding more safe bike lanes in Seattle. They oppose more funding for police, or park rangers in this case.

Another voice in this opposition is Decriminalize Seattle, which is arguing the real public safety problems in Seattle stem from its jail. It argues that while park rangers aren't armed, they "will also act to funnel people into jail or into other coercive settings." Read the the full story here.

In somewhat related news, Seattle is moving forward with a new 911 response unit. This new unit is apart from police and medical responders. It will be aimed at wellness checks or mental health crises. Seattle is currently looking to upgrade its 911 software to accommodate the new unit, which will form over this fall.

If you're aiming to travel through Sea-Tac Airport this weekend, it's best to be there extra early to make sure you get through the checkpoints. The airport was so busy last weekend that lines extended out the door and into the parking lot. People waited hours and some missed flights.

The extreme lines prompted the Port of Seattle to look into things. It reports that there has been a shift in traveler trends. Summer airport volumes usually end after Labor Day, but that didn't happen this year. The airport had already sent home extra staff brought in for the summer season, however, the travelers kept coming. On top of that, construction put a couple checkpoints out of service. Sea-Tac says it has changed course and has brought back additional staff. Read more here.

An Idaho man has pleaded guilty to a hate crime charge stemming from a 2018 assault at a Lynnwood Bar. Jason Stanley, 46, was part of a group that attacked a Black DJ at the bar on Dec. 8, 2018. Four men have now pleaded guilty to the violent hate crime (they have also pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI after they were arrested). Read more here.

This story has lingered since 2018, but it actually goes back much further in time. I've reported this. Others have reported this. Yet I still find a lot of folks unaware of why those four men, three of whom were from out of state, were in Western Washington on that day (early reports state as many as eight were present at the bar).

December 8 is a holiday for many white supremacist groups, and it is often celebrated on Whidbey Island (physically on the island, not necessarily by the actual islanders). It was there in 1984 that Robert J. Mathews was killed while facing off with FBI agents. Mathews was major player a white supremacist group that roamed the Northwest in the 1980s. We're not talking about online trolls looking to get folks riled up. This was more antigovernment gangster/terrorist stuff. They plotted murder, set off bombs, committed armed robbery, and got in shoot outs with law enforcement — the sort of things that put police on your trail. It all led to a stand off at a house on Whidbey Island. Mathews was inside the house as it burned down with police outside on December 8, a day that is now known as "Martyrs Day" to certain groups. Such groups have been known to make pilgrimages to the island in December, which is what brought the assailants to the area on that day in 2018.

This is a corner of Washington history that doesn't often get spoken about. And this hate crime is now a chapter in it.

AS SEEN ON KUOW

This week, the Seattle City Council unanimously voted to create a long sought-after Seattle Film Commission to support local film projects. The measure has the potential to make a major impact on filmmaking in Seattle. (City of Seattle)

ALSO ON OUR MINDS

House GOP unveils its legislative roadmap if they win back the House in November

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy released the legislative roadmap Republicans will follow should they win the majority in this year's midterms. The "Commitment to America" includes four broad pillars focusing on the economy, safety, individual freedom and government accountability. Big on ideas ("expand U.S. manufacturing") but short on policy specifics, the agenda is in keeping with tradition established in 1994 with Rep. Newt Gingrich's "Contract with America."

SUBSCRIBE TO TODAY SO FAR