Violent crime in Seattle reached 15-year high in 2022
SEATTLE — The violent crime rate in Seattle reached a 15-year high in 2022, according to the Seattle Police Department (SPD). Newly released data shows shootings and “shots fired events” also were at an all-time high in 2022.
According to SPD data released Monday, there were 739 shootings and shots fired incidents in the city in 2022, which is a 19% increase from 2021.
Violent crime in the city increased by 4% in 2022, according to the data. Seattle police said the increase in violent crime came from homicides, which were up 24%, and aggravated assaults, which was up 5%.
According to the data, the violent crime rate in the city increased from 729 per 100,000 in 2021 to 736 per 100,000 in 2022. Seattle police said property crime rates also slightly increased in 2022 from 5,730 to 5,784 per 100,000.
There was a total of 52 homicides in the city in 2022, which was the second-highest total. The highest number of homicides in the city was in 2020 with 53.
The report shows Seattle’s Chinatown International District, Brighton, and Northgate were the three neighborhoods with the highest number of shootings in 2022.
Some Seattle residents KOMO News spoke with Tuesday said they feel safe “most of the time,” but others said they don’t feel safe and work needs to be done.
“I live in Central District; it is awful over there,” a man who wanted to remain anonymous told KOMO News. “We hear gun shootings all the time, people living in their cars, trash all over the place, needles everywhere.”
“I think there’s always been a lot of shootings, but generally, I feel safe,” said downtown Seattle resident Emma Federico. “I think our police could do a better job of protecting and serving instead of reacting and serving.”
KOMO News is planning to sit down with SPD Chief Adrian Diaz on Tuesday to discuss the newly released crime statistics and what is being done to curb the shootings moving forward.
