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BREAKING: Seattle Mayor U-Turn, Plans to Send Police in to Dismantle CHAZ-CHOP
SEATTLE – Seattle’s Democrat Mayor Jenny Durkan has just announced plans to send police teams back into the capital’s East Precinct “Autonomous Zone” to dismantle the Black Lives Matter ‘CHAZ-CHOP’ occupation of seven blocks of the city. She did not present an exact timeline yet, but said this would happen in “the near future.”
To move has come following a double shooting which has already resulted in one fatality. Police arrived at he makeshift entrance o CHAZ-CHOP on June 20th to assist any victims and conduct a possible murder investigation, but were attacked and repelled by the occupying anarchist mob – preventing a proper homicide investigation form taking place.
Occupiers have indicated that they plan to resist any attempts by the city to retake its property, raising concerns about a potential armed standoff between anarchists and police.
Durkan made the announcement with Seattle’s embattled Police Chief, Carmen Best. Like Durkan, Best has been accused of supporting the Black Lives Matter political movement, coming under heavy national criticism after she was seen coddling CHAZ-CHOP occupiers following she abandoned the city’s Capitol Hill district – effectively giving away her police precinct to the mob of ‘social justice’ protesters nearly three weeks ago.
Watch this video report from local NBC affiliate:
King 5 NBC News affiliate report:
At a news conference Monday, Durkan said the city was working with community leaders to bring CHOP to an end after two weeks of occupation. The mayor said the violence was distracting from changes sought by thousands of peaceful protesters seeking to address racial inequity and police brutality.
City officials have not outlined the plan for dismantling the CHOP zone, but said there could be an overnight disperse order that would be enforced by community partners and not police.
A 19-year-old man identified as Horace Anderson died after a shooting early Saturday in the CHOP zone. A 33-year-old man remains in critical condition at Harborview Medical Center.
A 17-year-old boy was shot in the arm near Cal Anderson Park around 10 p.m. Sunday. He declined to speak with detectives. The teen was treated at the hospital and released.
“It’s not only wrong, but it’s undermining and distracting from the message we’re hearing in the streets,” Durkan said in response to the shootings. “We cannot let acts of violence define this call for change.”
Durkan said Seattle police need the East Precinct and will be returning soon. Officers left the East Precinct in Capitol Hill on June 11 after protesters occupied the area and demanded police reform. Chief Best said it was not her decision for officers to leave the Capitol Hill station.
City officials did not announce a timeline for the reopening the precinct, but said police will return to the building with the public’s safety in mind.
With the East Precinct being closed, SPD said police response times were up to three times longer than before.
The mayor said she will present the 2020 budget to Seattle City Council this week. The newly changed budget proposal will include allocations for investing in Black and marginalized communities, mentorship programs, and summer learning for Black youth and providing additional resources for community engagement and policing.
The city will also look at rethinking policing, which includes culture and funding.
“It won’t be undone in a day or in any one city, but we must try,” Durkan said. “We must do better here. In Seattle and across the country.”
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