White Center Now: The blog about White Center

A reminder – the White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition meets in two nights, since it’s the fourth Thursday! 6-8 pm, DSHS building at 9650 15th SW (map). You can expect to hear from King County Sheriff’s Office and Seattle Police reps as well as the group’s volunteer leadership – be ready to hear about and talk about what’s up in your neighborhood.

Heard about this via Twitter (where you can follow WCN at @whitecenternow) and got the details in e-mail from Hang Around Bar and Grill (formerly The Wall, as reported here recently) owner Joe (who says he’s retired NYPD):

My place was burglarized on Sunday after closing by possible known suspects who entered by the front dorr with a key and exited through the back door, taking the POS system, took 15 bottles of closed liquor (top shelf), opened the safe knowing the combination and removed over $4000.00 in cash that was to be deposited on Monday.

The machines (games) were never touched and the DJ equipment still intact.They knew exactly where the DVR1 video camera recorder was and took that as well. Detectives are now handling this from the King County Sheriff. Street Cops are also doing their job on locating these criminals. We lost over $14,000.00 in equipment, merchandise and cash.

The rent $$$ was in that deposit as well. we are trying to recover but as you might know, we just opened and is struggling as it is. We wanted the neighbors to come in and play darts, pool, play music, Dance, drink and just have a great time on Friday as we would call it a recovery party. I figure i can try to get cash to recover from this somehow. I can provide food if need be. This really hurt us mentally, physically and emotionally. We all know in White Center who is the culprit. The police WILL take care of this forthwith! … ~Joe & Glennis

Southwest Precinct Community Police Team Officers Adonis Topacio and Jill Vanskike were both at the White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition meeting Thursday night to pass the baton, in a way. She’s taking over the CPT work in the precinct’s southeastern turf; he’s moving to the west. With them, but not pictured, was Lt. Norm James, who also is in a new role at the precinct, that of Operations Lieutenant, since Lt. Steve Paulsen is transitioning to the West Precinct downtown. As we’ve reported on partner site West Seattle Blog, Lt. James has been with the precinct for several years, so he knows the area and the issues. He also introduced John McGoodwin, who’s taking over as SW Precinct city attorney liaison since Beth Gappert has moved to Vice.

All those introductions took up most of the discussion involving the Seattle side of the Community Safety Coalition’s turf, aside from a few items that also came up last night when Officer Topacio was at the Highland Park Action Committee meeting – including graffiti in Highland Park (last night’s questions involved 12th SW between 8200 and 8400).

Officer Topacio was asked about an e-mail going around from a West Seattle burglary victim claiming police were trying to catch a gang of teen burglars that was striking multiple times each day; he pointed the inquirer to our WSB story debunking that part of the tale.

On the King County Sheriff’s Office side of the line, Deputy Jeff Hancock was late to the meeting – said he’d been in a foot chase with someone wanted by the state Department of Corrections; the suspect was caught after running into Brewsky’s in downtown White Center. The only other update he offered was that “person-to-person” robberies are way up over this time last year, and no one yet knows why.

The rest of the meeting focused on a presentation about the Strength of Place Village affordable-housing project, 30 units planned for 13th SW/SW 100th (right behind Big Al Brewing). Architects Roger Tucker and Vlad Oustimovitch, with Kate Stineback from project overseers Capitol Hill Housing, gave a presentation and answered questions. We first reported plans for the project on WSB more than two years ago; according to a handout circulated at last night’s meeting, they’re hoping to break ground on the 30-apartment project this June, wiht the first families moving in a year later.

White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition meets at 6 pm the fourth Thursday of the month, now at DSHS offices, 9650 15th SW.

In King County Superior Court on Monday, 8 years was the sentence for a White Center man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of his wheelchair-using girlfriend – who died after he hit her. The full story’s at seattlepi.com.

White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition chair Sean Healy sends a reminder of the group’s next meeting – coming up in less than a week. As his note points out, the group’s gone through some changes; no official Seattle Neighborhood Group staffers now, so it’s entirely volunteer-run – executive committee members Healy, Angela Rambo and Barbara Liberache are in charge. The meeting location is new, too – instead of St. James Place, you’ll find the coalition at DSHS offices, 9650 15th SW (map). Regular meeting time/location remains 6 pm, fourth Thursday of the month – that’s next Thursday 1/28, and everybody’s welcome.

Some have asked about this case, since it happened just south of White Center – two teenagers shot last night. Turns out to have been a case of murder/attempted suicide – with two 16-year-olds involved. Here’s a news release just sent by KCSO:

King County Deputies responded to a double shooting last night at an apartment complex located at 12445 Ambaum Blvd SW [map]. When deputies arrived at 9.30 PM they found a juvenile male and a juvenile female both suffering gunshot wounds. The female later died from her wounds and the male is being treated in hospital for what appears to be a serious but non life threatening gunshot wound. At this time detectives are continuing their enquiries. The preliminary investigation indicates the juvenile male shot the female and likely shot himself; however, detectives have not had the opportunity to interview him. He is under police guard at hospital while the investigation continues.

This also is being covered by our partners at the Seattle Times, who reported the victims’ ages.

They usually meet late in the month, but since that doesn’t work well around Thanksgiving/Christmas time, the White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition is meeting tonight at 6 pm, at a different location than usual – Wiley Center at Greenbridge, 9800 8th SW, Room 104 (map). The meeting announcement notes that the “room is on the southwest corner of the building; it faces the Greenbridge plaza open space.”

That video clip includes tonight’s KING5 update on the search for the hit-run driver who crashed into Jeff Kearney near the 16th SW Albertson’s store, and just took off, leaving him lying in the street. We first covered the crash that night; this followup story has all the info on how to share information with authorities.

Two violins were stolen from a patron at Cafe Rozella.  They are not super-valuable but have great sentimental value for the owner.  If you see someone “odd” carrying or trying to peddle them please call Mike at (206) 767-4222.  It has been reported to the Seattle Police which may also be contacted at Incident Number #09-406085 Patrol M. Waters 206-733-9800, so Pawn Shops should not accept them.   Help if you can.  Owner is distraught.  More details to come.

Thanks to tipster Mona for sending word that somebody had been hit while crossing 16th SW near the Albertson’s store; traffic is a mess there while King County Sheriff’s Deputies investigate what they tell us is an apparent hit-and-run crash. One man was hurt and is being taken to the hospital. No description so far of the suspected hit-and-run vehicle – investigators are trying to sort out what happened – but traffic is likely to be troublesome in that area for a while.

Crime/safety concerns? This is the meeting not to miss – one week from tonight. Here’s the draft agenda just made public today:

The White Center-South Delridge Community Safety Coalition Meeting
Thursday, October 22, 6-8 pm,
St. James Place, 9421 18th Avenue SW

6:00-6:10 Welcome, introductions
6:10-6:25 Police Reports – KCSO and SPD
6:25-6:50 Collaborative Actions (formerly Crime & Nuisance Hotspots)
7:00-7:40 Guest Trainer: Nancy Amidei, “Influencing legislative change: WE can make a difference!
7:40-7:50 Announcements
7:50-8:00 Open Forum

From Sgt. John Urquhart at King County Sheriff’s Office:

A 41 year-old woman shot her 55 year-old boyfriend at least twice with a handgun last night (October 1st). He was taken to Harborview Hospital with non life- threatening injuries.

The incident occurred about 10:30 PM in the 800 block of SW 117th in unincorporated King County, just to the north of Burien.

The pair live with the man’s brother and the woman’s 15 year-old son, both of whom were home at the time of the shooting.

The son called 9-1-1 and everyone except the suspect made their way out of the house as deputies arrived.

The woman refused to come out of the house or communicate with deputies. Eventually the Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team entered the residence and took the woman into custody just before 2:00 AM. No one was injured.

The suspect was booked into the King County Jail for Investigation of Assault 1st Degree. A small caliber handgun was recovered inside the house.

The King County Council‘s budget committee has just begun its first public meeting specifically to talk about next year’s budget, and one of those who will testify is Sheriff Sue Rahr. According to her spokesperson Sgt. John Urquhart, her talking points will include a contention that County Executive Kurt Triplett‘s budget proposal is not as rosy for her department as it sounds – she says it will cut patrol power in areas like White Center and Boulevard Park by as much as 75 percent. You can watch the testimony live right now through the Council’s online player. (Along with Rahr, King County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg and other criminal-justice leaders are presenting.) UPDATE: “The budget, as presented, is not what it seems. It does not shield public safety,” Sheriff Rahr has told the council in opening remarks that she described as “short and sweet.” She says the budget, for example, overcompensates for the Burien annexation of south North Highline and would leave her with one deputy per shift in White Center. ADDED 1:12 PM: Sgt. Urquhart has provided the full text of Sheriff Rahr’s remarks to the committee:

The budget, as presented, isn’t what it seems.

It does not “prioritize” public safety.

It does not “shield criminal justice”.

It does not only cut “criminal justice by 1%”.

The Sheriff’s Office unincorporated budget alone will be cut by almost 6%.

A $3.5 million dollar cut is attributed to the Burien annexation. The appropriate reduction due to workload for the annexed area is only seven deputies. However this budget proposes cutting an additional 27 deputies due to the annexation.

From which unincorporated neighborhoods should those additional 27 deputies be cut?

After the seven deputies are cut from the new annexation area, there will only be 38 left to serve all of White Center, Skyway, South Park, Boulevard Park, and Vashon Island. From that small pool I should cut 27 deputies, a 75% cut in police protection to the highest crime neighborhoods in King County? That’s would leave enough to maintain one deputy per shift to cover all of White Center and Boulevard Park, one deputy in Skyway, no deputies on Vashon island, and no storefront deputies.

If that’s not acceptable, which neighborhood in north and east King County should pay for this annexation with a reduction in their police service?

For the record, we were already forced to cut 86 positions in the last year and half, most of those deputy positions. This will put us up to 113 cuts in less than two years.

Enough about the cuts…let’s talk about what appear to be adds to my budget.

The budget proposal transfers 34 civilian security screeners from the Facilities Management Division to the Sheriff’s Office, along with $2.1 million to pay for them.

This transfer includes no money for supervision of these 34 screeners. They will be supervised by the two court security sergeants who already supervise 30 marshals and court deputies. This proposed budget would have the same two sergeants supervising 64 people in thirteen different locations. These are employees who provide a critical service for the safety of everyone entering a courthouse in King County.

In addition, this budget provides no monies to train the screeners, insufficient overtime funds, and over $100,000 in negative contras.

This $2.1 million “increase” to our budget masks the real cuts to public safety and makes it appear that the Sheriff’s Office isn’t being cut as much as it really is.

Bottom line, I will not take the screeners into the Sheriff’s Office and accept responsibility for a service that cannot be operated safely.

In summary, this budget cuts the Sheriff’s Office for unincorporated King County by $4.1 million, or nearly 6%. This is unsafe and it’s unacceptable, especially in light of several recent surveys that show overwhelmingly that public safety is the number one priority for the citizens of King County.”

We got a question about this not long after it happened but didn’t have official information till today. King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. John Urquhart confirms there was a stabbing downtown on Friday night. Here’s his account of what deputies found out:

The stabbing occurred in front of Brewsky’s on Friday, Sept. 11th about 11:00 PM, 9636 16th SW. We responded to a 9-1-1 call and found the victim covered in blood a short distance away for the bar. He was somewhat incoherent but conscious. However he was uncooperative as to details of the stabbing and even where it occurred. He would not tell us who stabbed him. We also spoke to several patrons of Brewsky’s. All were moderately to severely intoxicated with varying accounts of the event.

The victim is 39 years old from Kent, and the suspect is in his mid-30’s, a black male. This apparently was a mutual fight that led to a stabbing. No arrests and no suspect.

Reported this morning by seattletimes.com (WCN partner) – a settlement in the lawsuit over Deputy Steve Cox’s shooting death three years ago at the hands of a convicted criminal who was supposed to be under state supervision – more than $3 million. Read about it here.

(photo courtesy FBI, added Tuesday night)
Apparently almost no one but the bank staff (at Chase on SW 100th) knew, according to the reports just emerging today. Read about it – and see more photos – courtesy of our partners at the Seattle Times.

KING5 tells the story, surveillance video and all – see it here.

We’ve published the story at West Seattle Blog – read it here.

Here’s the official invitation, from Karen Greene at Seattle Neighborhood Group:

The White Center-South Delridge Community Safety Coalition Meeting
Thursday, August 27, 6-8 pm,
St. James Place,
9421 18th Avenue SW

Guest Presentations:

* Code Enforcement – from both Seattle DPD & King County

And: If you have a specific concern, you may email or call me and let me know before the meeting and I will pass on the information to SPD or KCSO or the appropriate city/county department. With advanced notice, law enforcement officers are able to find out more information about specific incidents and concerns and share that information at the meeting. Everyone is welcome to bring up concerns at the meeting, but if we know the concerns ahead of time, we may be able to find out more information for the community. Thanks!

Dinner will be provided. Please call Karen at 767-0760 if childcare or interpretation is needed.

You can also e-mail Karen, karen@sngi.org

First of three reports from last night’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meeting:

King County Sheriff’s Deputy Jeff Hancock briefed the group on crime in its coverage area over the preceding six weeks, late June through early August. While what he discussed comprised a somewhat-long list, as he summarized at the end, “A few years ago, this would have been a weekend recap – what in this case happened over (a month and a half).” He also took pains to point out that only one of the violent incidents was truly random. Note: Since the group oversees areas beyond White Center, his overview included those other areas too.

Toplines: 3 rapes, one involving a child (he indicated a suspect had been arrested). One armed robbery – “Five girls asked the victim, at Albertson’s, if they could have a ride. They held him up at knifepoint and took all his electronics and cash.” Six felony assaults, including a stabbing at a “homeless camp” and a “large fight disturbance at the Roxbury/15th bus stop.” Two shootings in which nobody was hit – described as gangs exchanging gunfire – one near the Bernie and Boys Market at 112th/1st (map), and Deputy Hancock says that one resulted in an arrest. The one “random normal person who was a victim,” as Deputy Hancock put it, incident was a mugging at South 96th/8th Ave So (map). The other violent incidents, he repeated, involved “people … in dangerous lifestyles – it’s not like you or I are going to the grocery store and people are shooting at us.”

A few more numbers: 36 4th-degree assaults, “mostly domestic violence,” though one involved an upset bar patron throwing a pot full of coffee. 3 commercial burglaries. 15 residential burglaries, 15 shoplifting cases, 12 shoplifting incidents, 12 vehicle thefts, 19 car prowls. He also recounted a story told at the last White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition meeting – about a frequently arrested homeless man who OD’d at 98th/15th and was brought back to life, recovering well enough that “we arrested him for the 10th time three days later.” 2 more updates from NHUAC, later today.