Mayor Harrell, stop dragging your feet on Seattle police hiring

The sad fact is the people of Seattle continue not to receive the level of police service they deserve and have been promised in the City Charter. The Seattle Police Department continues to hire people at a less-than-expected pace while losing even more officers than planned.

On this, Seattleites can’t fault the Seattle City Council. Instead, all eyes should be on Mayor Bruce Harrell.

Despite its history of supporting the defund movement, the council eventually recognized the pressing need to hire more cops. Budgets in recent years included dedicated funds for police recruitment and marketing. Oddly, Harrell doesn’t appear to be in any rush to spend it.

The council set aside $1.8 million for recruitment and retention in 2022. The Harrell administration spent only $327,827. The remaining balance was returned to the city’s general fund to be used for other purposes.