When Initiative 594 passed in 2014, extending background checks to private gun sales, it showed the popularity for changing gun laws in Washington. The Mukilteo house party shooting in 2016 activated some elected officials to go further. The gunman sat in his car reading the firearm’s instruction manual before opening fire and killing three teenagers. The father of an injured teen, Paul Kramer, became the citizen sponsor of Initiative 1639, the voter approved firearms restriction package in November 2018.
Earlier that same year and with Democrats newly in control of Olympia, they made a push for restrictions on semiautomatic rifles but couldn’t pass any. Attorney General Bob Ferguson met with Paul Kramer at that time and pledged to request legislation yearly until it passed.
“That conversation was pivotal for me,” Ferguson said. “I always had strong opinions on the subject, but it sort of transformed me from someone who was interested in and cared about the issue, to just feeling like, ‘Hey, I’m not leaving public life ’til we get it done.’”
Rep. Strom Peterson, D-Edmonds who represents Mukilteo and has sponsored a rifle bill every year since the 2016 shooting, sponsored House Bill 1240, the assault-weapons legislation. He thanked students at the signing ceremony,
“Because of you marching in the streets, because of you refusing to go to class because your friends are dying across the country, Washington state is leading the way,” he said.
Governor Inslee signed House Bill 1240, that bans the sale, importation and distribution of assault-style semiautomatic weapons. He also signed Democratic-sponsored legislation to mandate safety training and a 10-day waiting period for all gun buyers, and a bill creating some liability for firearms manufacturers.
The new laws build upon three voter-approved initiatives, passed in 2014, 2016 and 2018, to tighten firearm regulations. They complement other recent firearms laws passed by the Legislature, such as a ban on high-capacity magazines.
Meanwhile, Seattle grapples with an increase in violent crimes and gun violence. According to annual crime statistics, the 2022 data revealed crime “hot spots” such as the Third Avenue and Pine Street corridor, the corner of 12th Avenue South and South Jackson Street, Aurora Avenue, the Northgate and South Park neighborhoods and Westwood Village, according to Detective Judinna Gulpan, a spokesperson for SPD.
Last year saw the highest violent crime rate in 15 years, with an increase of 729 incidents per 100,000 residents in 2021 compared to 736 per 100,000 residents last year.
The violent crimes reported increased about 4% from 2021 to 2022. Aggravated assault totals were the highest reported in the last 10 years. Homicides increased by 24% with the majority of victims dying from gun violence. Seventy-three percent of the city’s 55 homicide victims died from gun violence. Shootings and shots-fired events were at an all-time high, besting 2021, the previous all-time high.
Seattle saw a 19% increase in verified criminal shootings and shots-fired reports citywide compared to 2021, the report states. In 2022, there were 39 fatal shootings, 157 nonfatal shootings and 543 verified shots-fired reports, compared to 32, 142 and 446, respectively, in 2021; a 125% increase compared to 2019.
The city saw a 13% increase in overall shootings, both fatal and nonfatal, compared to 2021. Gun violence was more concentrated in the Chinatown International District, Brighton/Dunlap and Northgate. The percentage of nightlife-related shootings and shots fired nearly doubled between 2021 and 2022.
Over the past two-and-a-half years, the city of Seattle said over 400 police officers have left the department through retirement or resignation. The number of trained and deployable officers in 2022 is 954, the lowest mark in over 30 years. Seattle’s population was almost half of what it is today.
It’s a shame that law abiding legal gun owners are now less able to use self-defense and instead are having their second amendment rights infringed while the criminals, that don’t follow gun laws, continue doing harm.
