Seattle police staffing is at critical levels not seen since at least 1957. And a wave of pending retirements could decimate the department.
Seattle Police Department staffing is much worse than what local leaders have admitted to the public, putting a renewed spotlight on a crime crisis the city is not able to fully tackle. The department hasn’t seen such low levels of staff since at least 1957.
No matter how you parse through the data, total staffing is also at emergency levels. And hiring is nowhere near keeping up with separations. An officer in the North Precinct, speaking on the condition of anonymity, explained to The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH just how understaffed the department truly is.
The average age of staff eligible for retirement is 55. The oldest officer is 72, with the Burglary/Theft & Juvenile Department. The takeaway from a recent Seattle City Council meeting about staffing was that the city needs to offer better incentive packages. They believe higher pay will recruit more officers. Higher salaries or additional perks will also keep officers within the department.
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