In September, we finally got a break in the long string of broad-daylight porch robberies, and now maybe we got a small break in the long string of car prowls.
But it’s a good news / bad news situation: the good news is, police have arrested a long-operating, serial car prowl gang. The bad news: more astounding incompetence and neglect on the part of the Seattle Police Department.
The story, as reported by Dan Westneat of the Seattle Times, goes something like this: somebody broke the window of his car and grabbed a purse, including an iPhone out of it. His tech-savvy kids know that you can track the location of an iPhone, as long as it’s on, using Apple’s iCloud service and broke up the location of the phone, and thus the thieves, on the computer. They called the police to let them know, but…and come on, you saw this one coming, right? The police told them to kick rocks.
Even after they physically located the thieves themselves, following them from store to store, calling the police along the way to update on their progress, even as the thieves tauntingly wave the stolen iPhone at the family they have now spotted following them, the police simply never sent anyone to investigate. Their advice: file an insurance claim.
Fast forward a few weeks, now the thieves make their big mistake: they commit their crime in Sammamish rather than Seattle. Since the City of Sammamish’s police department apparently don’t have their heads up their own rear ends, they do respond to the call, recognize the van as one they have been seeking in an investigation, and arrest the three people inside, who, it turns out, were about to be featured on television as Washington’s Most Wanted the following week.
The kicker for Westneat’s story comes from one of the arrested car prowlers (or “alleged”, I guess I’m supposed to say):
When Sammamish detectives Dodd and Albright questioned the alleged car prowlers, they asked why they had hit so many cars, for so long, in so many places.
One shrugged: “Because we knew the police wouldn’t do anything.”
Sigh. Well, we’ve got a new Chief of Police, Kathleen O’Toole. She’s only been around since June. We’ll see if things change.
(Photo has nothing to do with the story, except emotionally.)
wow creepy crumbly critters! First I was offended by the blatant name calling of the police and then I was obut he robbers confession” the police wouldnt do anything!!”. I hope the string of events and comment by the perps i sent to this new chief.
Tracking down petty thieves generates no revenue for SPD, therefore they do not care.
In this instance, Wallyhood, I think you do a disservice to the police by the photo and your sweeping characterization of them as incompetent. Over many years and more times than I care to recall, I have had to call 911 for police assistance. They have unfailingly been competent, professional and surprisingly kind. It is our job to ensure that the people entering this highly dangerous and often traumatic profession are bright, intelligent and emotionally balanced. They are confronting people on a daily basis who challenge human decency, present real threats of harm and strain the best hearts.
I have no idea if the Seattle Police Department was following a “stand down” policy regarding low level prowls and break-ins, though it would not surprise me. Again, it is our job to find out – as Westneat has and is trying to do. My car was also broken into and things taken recently, and I had/have little expectation that my individual case will ever be solved or investigated. However, I filed my report in order to add to the knowledge base about what is happening in our neighborhood.
Most of us know about the “broken window” theory that small deteriorations can and will lead to bigger ones if they are not addressed. We do a pretty good job at tackling graffiti. Dealing with this low level of crime is important in some of the same ways. However, I hope people will also include in this conversation some thoughts about how to do this.
I’m growing more and more disenchanted with the police. More of them seem to be acting like the thugs they’re supposed to protect the rest of us from. And most of the rest are useless. I understand prioritizing the calls, but comon, how many murders, rapes and assaults do they really have to deal with in the north end? If they’re going to sit on their hands and let the criminals know they’ll do nothing, it’s only a matter of time before victims decide to take the law into their own hands. And who can blame them? What are we paying these people for if they can’t even be bothered to arrest criminals after a citizen does their dirty work for them?
Did you tweet it @SeattlePD ?
There always seems to be enough time to provide officers for events, road closings, speed traps (yes revenue producing) and other things that are quite simply not needed in terms of policing. Why can’t events have capable staff so that police can get back to what they should be doing. Yes I get that events need support, but you can train a monkey to wave people through at a red light.
If the police could remember to protect and serve, rather than persecute and harass, then maybe we could enjoy simple things again, like sending packages to our houses instead of our work.
This incident is indicative of a system that lacks leadership, and that has lost its way. We have things stolen and neighbors told us not to waste our time calling the police. In what society is it a waste of time calling the police? How did we get to this situation?
This has the stench of the chicken and egg scenario: the police are not effective, so we do not support them, so to pay their way, they focus on speeding tickets and events to raise funds. So who decides the future? Is it a strong leader who finds a way to do the job, get results and then get our support?
But having said all of this, heads should be rolling for the response to this case. In no way should a simple case like this be treated in this way, and now we have an entire family, and everyone they know against our police.
That is sad.
walkinroun – this issue is really not so much the officers on the ground, it’s more the department policies, staffing, whatever it takes to get a response. The department ends up looking like that – as ineffectual as that fat cop having a hard time with his doughnut – but the reasons are farther up the food chain. Likely a tough problem to solve, between the usual aversion to taxes and the somewhat unwieldy police dept with its bureaucracy and too-powerful union dealing with complexities of policing Seattle under DOJ court orders.
The photo was unnecessary. Kudos to Westneat!
The officers on the ground have always been more than helpful, courteous, polite whenever I’ve had occasion to interact with them. The real problem in SPD is at the top where self-centered political agendas take precedence over serving the public – it’s not just SPD, it’s the same in many City departments. But we as citizens should fix that with our votes, not by criticizing the guys on the job who nine times out of ten are really doing their best to serve the citizens. I agree — Kudos to Danny Westneat for exposing this. Let’s keep pushing the leadership to use our tax dollars to our benefit. And let’s keep giving the guys on the street our support and encouragement.
Just a reminder. The Friends of the Seattle P:ublic Library is holding a special holiday sale this Saturday, Nov. 15, at North Seattle Community College cafeteria, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
This special holiday sale will feature used books that are of gift-quality for all ages including some old/rare books and lots of nearly new DVDs — all starting at $3.
Additionally, the Friends Gift Shop will have a pop store at the event so you can do some additional early holiday shopping.
The cafeteria is located on the south end of campus (North 92nd Street).
PLEASE! NO SCANNERS.
To note, the Huskies are out of town this day so traffic should be easier for those traveling north on I-5.
I also wonder it the city attorney is at fault for not prosecuting low level crimes as well. It makes it frustrating for the police if their arrests do not lead to prosecutions.
Ummm, Susan Gilmore, what does your entry have to do with the subject? Will it be benefitting anyone associated with car prowls…?
The SPD dispatchers have a tough job. Based on my reading of the Westneat column, it sounds like the SPD dispatcher (s) made the wrong call.
Walkinroun said: “It is our job to ensure that the people entering this highly dangerous and often traumatic profession are bright, intelligent and emotionally balanced.”
I don’t get why you think it’s _our_ job to do that? That’s what the interview/polygraph/academy process is all about. Why would that be our responsibility?
Besides, I honestly don’t feel there is such a thing as someone who wants to be a cop AND is bright, intelligent and emotionally balanced.
Okay, enough with trash talking the cops. If you don’t like how SPD works, don’t call 911 if you have any sort of brush with crime, arm yourself and take care of your own crime issues. Granted, there are a few bad apples in every organization, but don’t paint all cops with one brush. I have several close friends in law enforcement and, surprise!, they are all bright, intelligent AND emotionally balanced. And none of them have a particular liking for doughnuts, Top Pot or otherwise.
Broadly, as citizens, I believe we have the right and responsibility to ensure that public servants such as police officers are provided excellent education and ongoing training, generous salaries and benefits, easy access to counseling and strong social support and overview. We do this by speaking out, by voting, by endorsing tax and funding proposals and initiatives that support good policing, by participating in city and neighborhood councils and committees, teaching our children and students about civics and encouraging respect for laws. I imagine there are a thousand other ways too.
Sorry walkinroun, I’m not sure how the Seattle police department is respecting our laws by refusing to enforce them. They will openly admit that they will not spend time on any theft where someone was not hurt and to instead file an insurance claim. So if that’s the case, why do we have laws at all? Had a license plate simply been run in Dan Westneat’s case, a lot of things would be different but they couldn’t be bothered. All I would like is the same thing I’m expected in my job in a professional environment: competency. And no they are not competent as a department if laws are not enforced and they are relying on the private sector (insurance) and allowing the crimes to continue. That said, I agree with Helen that the city attorney might have something to do with the lack of motivation to spend effort on more petty crimes.
The police have been unfailingly helpful when we have needed to call them for incidents in our area of Wallingford/Greenlake. They have come promptly. They have been patient and polite with us. I feel reassured knowing that they are at hand when we need them. Our incidents were related to personal safety. I understand that personal property problems do get less immediate attention. This is as it should be. However, no one should be made to feel shamed for calling them or made to feel a problem is unimportant..
That picture is funny. Cops, like everyone else, need to earn respect.
When they act like buffoons we should treat them like that. SPD has been (lately) doing a lot more crying than working.
Okay, Chris, then why don’t you go slap on a Kevlar vest and uniform and do your best to protect the citizens of Seattle like these officers do every single day. You would earn my respect for putting your life on the line on my behalf without even knowing me or my family personally. You also need to look into HOW the police are allowed to police, according to what they are told from “above”, i.e., the mayor’s office. It’s easy to ridicule the job, but I bet you wouldn’t last a day.
Hm, I’d like to strike a tough pose and offer up some platitudes, but I can’t decide — hard nosed, demanding citizen, or grateful and supportive community member? Does anyone remember what the issue was?
Not trash talking the police, but, I would prefer a police force that is sufficiently staffed and directed to enforce the laws regarding property crime. Reading Danny’s column was infuriating. Several years ago, my sister’s car was totaled by a driver that ran a red light and T-boned her car. There were several witnesses of the incident with descriptions of car and driver. SPD: “Was anyone seriously injured? No? Okay file a claim with your insurance. SPD out.” The driver whose behavior could have resulted in serious injury or death wasn’t (to our knowledge) sought out, apprehended, and prosecuted. It would be unconscionable if that driver were subsequently involved in an incident that resulted in injury or death.
I guess that’s an interesting sort of jurisprudence question. You mention property crime, but go on with an anecdote of a traffic violation. My sense is that there is a clear distinction in how these two categories are prosecuted, and I bet a quarter traffic violations never get prosecuted unless witnessed by a cop or traffic camera. If there had actually been serious injury, they’d have gone looking for the driver, but the charge would be “vehicular assault” or something, not “failure to stop.”
Lisa stated “And none of them have a particular liking for doughnuts, Top Pot or otherwise.”
I have a hard time trusting someone who doesn’t like top pot doughnuts…
I don’t know why we memorialize a policeman/woman as some sort of hero who goes out risking their life every day.
They don’t.
There are far more dangerous jobs out there. Maybe we should take a moment and note the folks behind the scenes doing the really dangerous stuff so that we can have the society we do.
1. Logging workers
2. Fishers – so we can eat our yummy fish sticks.
3. Aircraft pilot and flight engineers – so we can fly to momma on thanksgiving.
4. Roofers – you know, ’cause it rains here.
5. Structural iron and steel workers
6. Refuse and recyclable material collectors.
7. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
8. Drivers/sales workers and truck drivers
9. Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers
10. Construction laborers
On that top ten list, notice policemen/women aren’t there?
So in my mind – it’s those folks who deserve my respect. Not a poor regulated police force full of ego’s and political hacks.
That closing comment is where you turn a very reasonable point into an invitation for more quarreling. People don’t deserve respect solely because they place in the top 10 for dangerous occupations. We get into these arguments because ideally we would like to respect our police – a civil society that doesn’t, sucks. In practice, there’s plenty of evidence that individually they do earn that respect, and collectively in some ways, but the department’s car prowl response being the present example, they fall a little short sometimes. And then there’s the DOJ thing. We could reasonably hope for better.
This is why you can perform a citizen’s arrest. Police Have No Legal Duty to Protect Citizens or stop Criminal Attack. Get you Concealed Pistol License http://www.kingcounty.gov/safety/sheriff/Services/Gun.aspx
Turn Seattle back into a respectable city with out car prowls, unpunished petty crimes, drug addicts , and homeless shi*tbirds with dogs on ropes.
Or just, you leave. 🙂