Seattle police surveillance cameras are in general unpopular with the public. New Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson went as far as asking for a moratorium on new police surveillance cameras and also had surveillance cameras turned off in the Stadium District after the world cup games wrapped up.
Now there may be a change.
Big event organizers in Seattle have now asked Seattle’s mayor in a letter to the cameras back on. No less than 11 big event organizers have sent a letter to Mayor Katie Wilson asking that cameras should be turned back on and expanded into the Seattle Center.
According to seattletimes.com,
‘Following the Seattle Center shooting and a shooting in Capitol Hill two days earlier, the city’s large event organizations argue the cameras should be turned back on and their use expanded.
“These recent tragic events should serve as a warning that gun violence and gun availability pose a clear and present threat in our city,” Monday’s letter said, urging Wilson to “reactivate the 22 CCTV cameras in the Stadium District and Pioneer Square that were connected to the Seattle Police Department’s Real-Time Crime Center.”
Right now, the city of Seattle Police Department has 60 surveillance cameras installed. They can be found on Aurora Ave, In the downtown area, and also in the Chinatown district.
More information is needed.
Mayor Wilson has asked for an audit of the system to be conducted by New York University. They will examine the way the cameras are being used and look at possible risks to privacy and civil rights.
A second audit is being conducted by the University of Pennsylvania, commissioned by the Seattle Office of Inspector General for Public Safety, “focused on evaluating crimes, outcomes of investigations, how police operate and community perceptions of the police camera program.”
The advent of the security cameras came from the 2024 Seattle city budget before Mayor Wilson’s election. The City Council had voted to expand that system into parts of Capitol Hill and Garfield High School.
It will be interesting to see how the mayor and the City Council balance public safety with Personal privacy.
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