Violent crime drops in Washington as drug offenses skyrocket, latest statistics show

Yahoo

7 days ago

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Violent crime in Washington dropped significantly last year but remains well above pre-pandemic levels.
And Washington remains dead last in police staffing per capita compared to other states.
These findings come from a report released this week by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs that shows some encouraging signs after years of rising crime.
Murders statewide dropped nearly 19% from 2023, for a total of 312 people killed, but that figure is still more than 50% higher than 2019. This mirrors national data showing the trend of declining murders continuing in the first quarter of this year in the country's biggest cities.
Robberies are down 16%, creeping closer to 2019 levels. Meanwhile, a yearslong rise in assaults since the pandemic slowed but didn't abate.
Theft and property damage reports also decreased.
Overall, the state's crime rate dropped around 9%, the report found.
'We have seen significant decreases in crime this past year, which is something to celebrate because that means fewer victims,' said Steve Strachan, the association's executive director. 'Now, our challenge is to keep this momentum going.'
State Sen. Manka Dhingra, the chair of the Law and Justice Committee and a former prosecutor, attributed the reductions partially to state investments in behavioral health treatment and housing construction. So she's worried federal cuts to social service programs could reverse Washington's progress on crime.
'It takes an entire community to address violence,' said Dhingra, a Democrat from Redmond. 'When people can't get access to housing or treatment, that's when you see crime escalating.'
Two types of crime saw significant jumps in 2024.
Drug arrests leaped from 5,022 reported in 2023 to 10,907 last year, driven by a major increase in methamphetamine offenses, according to the association's report.
As one of the explanations for the sudden rise in drug-related arrests, Strachan points to legislators' drug policy overhaul in 2023 to toughen penalties for possession or public drug use. That law was passed in response to the state Supreme Court declaring Washington's previous drug possession statute unconstitutional. The legislation also guided increased drug treatment options.
The 2023 law 'was designed around the idea that treatment will always be in the foreground, and that criminal sanctions will always be the last resort, and I think that's what we're seeing in agencies all across our state,' Strachan said. 'However, the tool of criminal sanctions are there and are being used when absolutely necessary.'
Meanwhile, courts have chipped away at case backlogs tied to the pandemic shutdown and local jails have eased restrictions on what level of offenders should be taken into custody.
This upswing in drug crimes could also be a cause of the drop in more serious offenses, Strachan said, with criminal punishment potentially serving as an incentive to get treatment.
Domestic violence incidents ticked up about 10%, as well, making up half of all crimes against people. Strachan couldn't see a clear explanation for why domestic violence has increased.
The association's nearly 600-page report covers data reported by state, county, municipal and tribal law enforcement agencies across Washington.
Washington continued to sit last in the nation in police officers per capita, at 1.38 officers per 1,000 people at the end of October. The state has ranked last for 15 straight years, according to the association.
The national average is 2.31. Washington had 11,070 full-time commissioned officers in 2024, up a few hundred from the past couple years.
Last year, the state had its highest rate of law enforcement employees per capita since 2020, according to FBI data.
Dhingra pointed to new regional police training academies in helping address Washington's struggle in hiring and retaining officers. In recent years, the state has opened academies in Arlington, Pasco and Vancouver.
Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson has made this issue a focal point of his first year in office. He refused to sign a state budget that didn't include $100 million in grants to hire new police officers.
State lawmakers delivered on that demand, despite some misgivings, but allowed the money to go toward more than just new cops, including peer counselors, behavioral health co-responders, training and other broader public safety efforts.
'It's going to be a big step forward. I have no doubt about that,' Ferguson said as he signed the legislation in May. 'Jurisdictions will make their choices, but there's going to be significant investments in new law enforcement officers.'
To access the grants, cities and counties need to either implement a new 0.1% sales tax for public safety or have already imposed a similar tax. They also need to follow state model policies as well as collect and report use-of-force data.
Strachan isn't sure the money will make a significant difference in the state's progress to increase police staffing.
The average annual cost for one officer is $154,704, according to state data. To tie for 50th in the nation in staffing per capita, Washington would need to hire 1,513 new cops, costing $234 million per year, according to the association.
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