Seattle, WA – This week the Seattle City Council proposed their police budget for 2021, including a 20% cut to the Seattle Police Department.  Although this is a drastic cut, the “Defund the police” activists had been seeking a 50% cut to the police budget.

Councilmembers proposed both eliminating 93 vacant Seattle Police positions and laying off 35 additional officers by July 1, 2021. The council’s planned layoffs would not be based on seniority, but by prioritizing officers with histories of sustained complaints.

Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda defended the budget, saying “this is the first year that the [...]