SEATTLE — Following Chief Adrian Diaz’s September 1 announcement, the Seattle Police Department has reallocated 88 officers to patrol duty, the department announced on Friday, September 4.
“Patrol has been asked to continue to respond to a growing number of issues without additional resources. We begin to address that today,” Diaz said.
Of the 88 officers, 29 are Community Police Team Officers, 21 are Traffic and TCI detectives, and 20 theft detectives, according to Seattle police.
Patrol will begin on September 16, according to Chief Diaz.
“To better align department resources with our mission statement and community expectations, today we are beginning the process of re-assigning department resources to add over 100 officers and supervisors to our 911 Response team,” Diaz said in a letter to the department on Tuesday, September 1.
Diaz has just recently taken over the post after the resignation of Former Chief of Police Carmen Best. Best had been vocal against the Seattle City Council’s efforts to defund the department.
“In recent weeks, every day we have seen the demands placed on patrol – from working in the community throughout the COVID-19 crisis to responding to on-going civil unrest,” Diaz said.
“We also have consistently heard from community that they want to see officers more, have them respond faster to emergency calls, and spend more time getting to know neighbors and working with them to solve issues leading to criminal behavior.”
The department is also forming the ‘Community Response Group’, made up of 100 officers and 10 sergeants whose priority will be to address the increased response times to 911 calls throughout the city.
