Thread created for any discussion. Per news reports, shooting appears to be a personal altercation, likely between two people. Shooting was near the fountain and a children’s playground. Seven people were hit. Two died on scene, one at the hospital, and four others were treated at the hospital and released with minor injuries. One suspect is in custody, not clear if they turned themselves in or were apprehended. The suspect is described as a “young person.” Police are seeking a second shooter and it’s unknown if there are more. They do not believe there is any threat to the general public.
No explanation why the police press conference took so long. I believe the Chief of Police was out of town. The shooting took place in the midst of a major food festival called Bite of Seattle and the scene immediately turned into chaos. Seattle is in the midst of their Seafair festival, a multi week summer event. The Torchlight Parade was Saturday night, and the Air Show is next weekend. All of these events are heavily attended.
Son lives across the street from Seattle Center and was safely at home; response staging area was a block up the street. He is already moving to the Eastside in six weeks and this reinforces his desire to get out of the city area.
I’m glad your son is safe. This sounds so similar to a shooting in our town earlier this summer right down to the police/mayor being out of town and so slow to release information .
I read somewhere (so no idea of accuracy) that at least one gun was adapted for rapid fire, maybe eight shots. So multiple bullets in a very crowded venue.
Newest report of location was NW corner of the Armory. Playground is to the east and fountain is to the west.
Such a tragic event, and information really has been slow to get out. I’ve learned the most from posts to Reddit, not from official releases, but the narrative does indeed seem to be that the gunfire was more personal/gang than ideological (planned mass shooting).
The chief of police of Seattle lives in Chicago with his family and rents a place in Seattle. He was home (in Chicago) where he spends most weekends unless galavanting elsewhere.
“ ‘Just spraying bullets’: Artist recalls what he saw Sunday
Caricature artist Dexter Rothschild, 43, was drawing near the Armory when he saw a young man begin shooting about 30 to 40 feet away.
“I saw one shooter just spraying bullets westward, I imagine, at the person he was trying to hit.”
Rothschild only got a split-second look, but he remembers the shooter using what looked like a handgun with an extended clip on its handle. The shooter was either in his late teens or early 20s and wore a black jumpsuit, he recalled.
Rothschild remembers seeing the shooter holding the gun with just one hand, seemingly unable to hold it steady.
“His arm was just moving up and down,” Rothschild said. “To me, it looked like somebody who was not in control.”
Rothschild had just completed a portrait of a couple. A woman who had been hanging out in the same group as the couple was hit by gunfire, he said.
Rothschild immediately called out to people around him to duck and to take cover. He then hid behind a tree.
When he looked back, he said, he saw the woman he’d just drawn screaming and crying over her friend, who had fallen to the ground.
Wow–seems very odd to have a chief of police who spends most of his time across the country instead of in the city and county he’s supposed to be running the police department in! For all the issues with our police departments, that is not one of the criticisms I’ve heard of our police chiefs.
He was recruited from Madison, Wisconsin about a year or so ago. Chicago is quite a ways from Madison so I am surprised why Chicago was mentioned as his current residence.
He had a position in Chicago from 2017 to 2020 before becoming the Madison Chief of Police from 2021 to 2025. Likely he was commuting to Madison also, a much easier commute.
Yup, just checked, he rented an apartment in Madison while his family stayed in Illinois.
That explains why he was “anchored” to the Chicago area. But seriously, a police chief’s job is not a job that can be done in a hybrid mode! Dude should not have accepted the job if he couldn’t commit 100%!
In Washington, a 15 year old suspect charged with a “serious violent offense” may be tried as an adult. See RCW 13.40.110: .
“Serious violent offense” includes first and second degree murder, first degree manslaughter, first degree assault, and attempts at such. See RCW 9.94A.030: .
The 19-yo was involved in the shooting.