Seattle’s new approach to drug enforcement is triggering alarm among police and public safety advocates, who warn the city is quietly sliding back toward the conditions that once fueled crime, open-air drug markets and deadly overdoses.
City leaders last week pushed back against criticism that they had effectively stopped prosecuting drug users, saying there had been no formal policy change. The clarification came in an email from the Seattle Police Department, which said officers were still expected to enforce drug laws despite an internal communication that sparked backlash.
“There has been no policy change,” new Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson previously said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “You’ll know when I announce a policy change, because I’ll announce a policy change.”…