Screenshot: KOMO News/Youtube
Homelessness and drug addiction are a growing problem in cities all over the country, but perhaps most visibly in the northwest, where progressive leaders have allowed the problem to flourish.
The Gateway Pundit previously reported that the Democrat mayor in Seattle is proposing to give homeless drug addicts ‘gift cards’ they can use to access treatment services.
This is what passes for solution policy in blue America.
On Tuesday, the Seattle City Council rejected Council Bill 120586 in a 5-4 vote that sought to empower the City Attorney’s office with the authority to prosecute drug possession and public drug use.
Therefore, drug-related offenses can only be prosecuted by the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Prior to the city council vote, Prosecutor for King County, Leesa Manion, wrote a letter of explanation to council members and Mayor Bruce Harrell asking them to pass the legislation.
Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison was outraged by the result of the council vote.
“I am outraged that today some City Councilmembers chose to take no action against the soaring opioid epidemic in Seattle,” said Davison. “Seattle will now be the only municipality in the State of Washington where it is legal to use hard drugs in public.”
KATV reported:
The Downtown Seattle Association (DSA) provided KOMO News a statement regarding the city council vote:
“Seattle’s drug crisis is a public health emergency that is worsening by the day and one that demands urgent action. We see this emergency and its impacts daily in downtown. Allowing these conditions to persist is inhumane and unacceptable both for those in the throes of debilitating and life-threatening addiction and members of the public who are exposed to toxic fumes on our streets, in our parks and on our public transit systems. Our ambassador teams have been on the front lines of this epidemic, administering Narcan to 117 individuals since October 2022, including 91 people already this year.”
DSA’s statement went on to say that during what’s considered a “critical time for recovery” in the downtown area, the use of drugs in public spaces is a significant factor in community members feeling unsafe in exploring the city or returning to work.
The statement also referenced a poll that indicated that 77% of voters agreed with the statement that “Seattle’s hands-off approach to people using illegal drugs in public is contributing to rampant street crime and is making it much harder for downtown to recover.” According to DSA, 63% of those voters “strongly agreed.”
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