The Seattle City Council is ready to defund the police department by 50 percent.
Mayor Jenny Durkan does not approve but according to the Seattle Times, the majority of the city councilors are ready to make it happen and can override the Mayor.
Seven out of the city council’s nine members have indicated support of defunding the police. The department’s current budget is $409 million.
The council has specifically with Decriminalize Seattle and King County Equity Now. Decriminalize Seattle is a coalition inspired by the Black Lives Matter protests and defunding the police is the goal.
The surprising move comes after a Seattle Police Precinct and six city streets was taken over by rioters who called the “police free” zone, CHOP.
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The city eventually removed the protesters but not before two people were killed by gunfire.
According to Fox News, when police eventually took back over the CHOP area one officer took down a sign saying “we are not leaving until our demands are met: 1. Defund SPD by 50 percent now. 2. Fund Black Communities. 3. Free all protesters.”
Durkan, a Democrat, first called the CHOP area “a summer of love” but that love quickly turned to chaos and she was criticized for her handling.
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On Thursday, Durkan said that she “deeply, deeply regret the loss of life in and around Capitol Hill.”
Seattle’s plan would be by far the most radical cut to the police department.
City leaders in Los Angeles voted recently to slash the Los Angeles Police Department budget by $150 million, which would reduce the number of officers to a level not seen for more than a decade. The New York City Council voted to cut the NYPD budget in 2021 by $1 billion.
