Your Daily Guide

What We Know About the Seattle Center Shooting

During a press conference on Monday morning, Mayor Katie Wilson and Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes said a 15-year-old teen was detained and booked in connection to the mass shooting. Police believe the shooting was due to two people exchanging gunfire outside of Seattle Center Armory, where two guns were recovered. Police believe a suspect was among those killed in the shooting and a third “unknown suspect” is still at large. Three of the four surviving people who were injured have been discharged from Seattle hospitals as of Monday morning. The injured toddler is in satisfactory condition and is still being cared for at Harborview. This marks a particularly violence weekend in Seattle with shootings taking place on Aurora Ave where three women were shot, Capitol Hill where two people were shot, and Seattle Center between Thursday and Sunday. [City of Seattle, Seattle Times]

• What we know about the victims: Seven people were caught in gunfire, with a potential eighth victim. Three people were killed: Junior Cee Niko Semo, 19, and Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44, both died at the scene, and Ashley Whitehead, 56, died after being transported to Harborview Medical Center. A 27-year-old man reported to the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle’s Montlake neighborhood with a gunshot wound. He was discharged in satisfactory condition and police said he was potentially an eighth victim of the shooting, but have not completed the investigation. [City Cast Seattle]
• Questions remain: The first news conference sharing updates on the shooting took place at almost 11 p.m. Sunday night. As a result, the public waited almost five hours for updates after being told to “please avoid the area.” At a press conference Monday morning, both Mayor Wilson and Chief Barnes emphasized the tension between sharing timely information and ensuring the information released was correct. Mayor Wilson’s office incorrectly stated two suspects were in custody early on Sunday night and then issued a correction. Chief Barnes said his team has not confirmed if they have video footage of the shooting, but Mayor Wilson said Seattle Center does have cameras and they are pulling the footage to comb through it. Mayor Wilson also said the city will bring in an expert in gun violence prevention, with a focus on youth violence, and Chief Barnes said “0.01% of the population is connected to 52% of our shootings, most of which are young people.” He said SPD will be working with violence prevention experts to understand underlying causes. [City Cast Seattle]
• Chief Barnes’ absence Sunday night: When asked if he had been out of town during the shooting, Chief Barnes confirmed he was at a conference for the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives in Dallas, saying: “I was not in town. I wish that I had a crystal ball and we could schedule gun violence, but we can’t.” Assistant Chief Tyrone Davis stepped in for Barnes on Sunday. He did the same following the Rainier Beach shooting in January. Erica C. Barnett reports Barnes’ family residence is in Chicago and he rents in Seattle. [City Cast Seattle]

💰 Funding on the line: As Washington sorts out its ongoing budget deficit, parents of children with developmental disabilities worry the Department of Social and Health Services will let contracts lapse for the Parent to Parent program. It pairs newer parents with more experienced ones to help guide them through getting resources, finding community and other support systems. It currently serves families in all 39 counties. [Washington State Standard]

🚙 Mechanic offers free tows after ICE arrests: When ICE agents make an arrest, it’s up to the person arrested or their family to make arrangements for the car left behind. This sometimes means impounded cars and accumulating payments. So, local mechanic Angel Tepale has started towing the vehicles to a small lot near his Seattle-area mechanic’s shop to hold the cars for free until family members can retrieve them. [KUOW]

🪪 100k blocked attempts to access data: In November of last year, Washington began blocking federal immigration agencies from accessing Washington driver information. Since then, Gov. Ferguson says they’ve blocked 108,170 federal attempts to access driver information. However, immigrant advocates say that data is getting out through other channels, and this undermines Washington’s sanctuary law. Researchers at UW found vehicle data is still used to make immigration arrests in non-criminal vehicle stops. [KUOW]