Why has Seattle had so many shootings?

Seattle Police said the number of shots fired in the city in 2017 is at a five-year high. Department officials briefed the City Council this week about gun violence.

Seattle Police Lieutenant Marc Garth-Green said he has a theory on why there’s been an increase in the number of shots fired.

“What we see is when we have an event happen then we suddenly see a spike in the number of shootings that are going on in that point in time,” he said.

Those kinds of events can include things like a fight at a club. That could lead to a ripple effect, like an earthquake that has aftershocks and leads to a series of other violent incidents.

Garth-Green also said this isn’t just a Seattle-centered problem, it’s a regional issue.

“I guess goals that I have is working with our regional partners,” he said. “Working together to try to figure out how we can interrupt that cycle of violence.”

City Council members said they might want to put more funding into programs that increase police presence in the community.

In general, violent crime statistics have stayed flat while the population continues to grow. Because of that, police officials argue the violent crime rate is lower than it was a few years ago.