SPD to crime victims: do our job for us
By I’ve come to have fairly low expectations of the professionalism of the Seattle Police Department over the years, such that revelations of bad behavior rarely surprise. But I can honestly say I wasn’t expecting this:
Seattle police should stop telling victims of property crimes to arrange perilous meet-ups with thieves to recover their stolen items, according to the department’s top civilian watchdog, before someone gets hurt.
In a thorough report released last week, Office of Professional Accountability (OPA) Director Pierce Murphy dug into a complaint about a failed attempt at a citizens’ arrest near Northgate Mall on February 3. The citizens thought police were going to arrive and help, but the man who’d stolen thousands of dollars worth of their carpentry tools tussled with then, brandished a handgun, and got away.
Where did they get they idea they should confront the man in the first place? From Seattle police officers.
Full report about this madness here. As most of the problems with the SPD, while quite serious, are generally not unique, it seems improbable that such a stupid practice is limited to the SPD. I wonder how widespread this is.