It may be a while before the next time Chief of Police Kathleen O’Toole visits the S.W. Precinct. Joining the WS Block Watch Captains’ Network for a public discussion tonight, the meeting was ended early due to outbursts and interruptions from the audience.
Beginning at 6:30 p.m. and originally scheduled to end at 8:30 p.m., the meeting was abruptly called to a close 40 minutes in.
For the first 25 minutes things seemed to be going smoothly. With nearly 80 people in attendance the focus was kept on crime issues in the West Seattle area with O’Toole and S.W. Precinct Captain Steve Wilske managing to address numerous issues that have recently plagued the community (more info to come).
While addressing progress that is being made in the Mental Health Court system in Seattle O’Toole was stopped mid-sentence by Cynthia Whetsell, an activist with the Stop Mass Incarceration Network (SMIN).
“Ok, I can’t wait on that because it is not a priority. The Seattle Police has killed several mentally ill people, including Larry Andrew Flynn last July in Gasworks Park, who was mentally ill and he had a broken bottle. He was tazed and shot numerous times by Seattle Police,” she explained, visibly fighting back tears.
A number of audience members applauded while others began calling for Whetsell to step outside.
Standing stone faced O’Toole waited until the outburst was quieted down with the moderator for the evening asking that all comments and questions be written down and passed to the front before any comments from the audience.
Less than 6 minutes later another audience member yelled to the front as Wilske was addressing crime near the West Seattle Food Bank. The man explained that he had earlier seen a group of “multi-nationals” hanging around the area “passing joints” and appearing very nefarious. Again audience members and the moderator asked for all comments to be held till later.
Another outburst occurred as O’Toole was speaking about resources that are currently being developed to deal with gang crime in the Somali and East African community. While saying that these programs are designed to keep youths out of jail one man shouted out “Is that what the new jail is supposed to?”.
Speaking out against the building of a new jail this interruption was immediately met with disdain from nearby audience members who began shushing the man.
“Oh what, you’re going to shush me because you sit and live inside your privilege?” the man retorted.
Keeping calm O’Toole attempted to engage the question and began explaining her experience on the east coast working in corrections and her stance of trying to create a system of resources to keep troubled youths away from incarceration.
The final outburst that summarily shut the meeting down came from Emma Kaplan, also with SMIN.
“I’m sorry I am going to say something, I want to situate this meeting in the fact that 12 year old Samir Rice, in Cleveland, was gunned down by police. Eric Garner choked to death on video for everyone to see,” she yelled over those who tried to quiet her down.
“It has now come out that more black men have been murdered by police than were lynched during the worst years of lynching,” she shouted as the moderator called the meeting to a close.
More information to come shortly.