Seattle Police aims to bring back SROs amid school violence

Seattle Police consider SRO revival amid rising school gun violence

The conversation around school safety is gaining urgency as violence among teenagers increases.

SEATTLE - The conversation around school safety is gaining urgency as violence among teenagers increases.

Seattle’s Interim Chief of Police, Sue Rahr, is advocating for the return of School Resource Officers (SROs), saying they will create a safer environment for students.

Chief Rahr told FOX 13 News that reinstating SROs is a potential measure to address the surge in violence. "We want to become part of the school staff. We want to be there in a way that helps students feel safe, not intimidated," Rahr said.

Recent statistics reveal a troubling trend: 69 teenagers have been charged with felony gun offenses. This spike in youth violence follows a deadly shooting at Garfield High School less than two weeks ago.

Chief Rahr emphasized the critical nature of the summer break for planning. She aims to convene students, district leaders, and Seattle's Mayor Bruce Harrell, to discuss strategies to curb gun violence, including the potential reintroduction of SROs. Rahr, who holds her interim position for only six months, is ambitious, hoping to have a plan in place by September, before the start of the next school year.

King County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Jamie Kvistad highlighted the challenges in tracking the presence of firearms in schools. "Just last week alone, we had two children in possession of firearms in two different schools in two different districts, one of which was a firearm with an extended magazine—it was a ghost gun," Kvistad said.

Kvistad is spearheading the Safer Schools Strategy, a program launched in the fall, which has already led to 69 felony gun charges against students for various felony crimes including gun possession, robberies and shootings. She stressed the importance of school engagement for youth, as many who end up in detention are not enrolled or actively participating in school.

Following the shooting of Amarr Murphy-Paine outside Garfield High School, there have been increased calls for stronger gun regulations. "We need to regulate guns even more to make sure that no young person has access to a gun," said Natalya McConnell, a Franklin High School senior and member of the Seattle Student Union.

She recalls fighting for the removal of SROs from the campus.

"They're a danger to all students," McConnell said. "They just create violence, they increase violence. Police officers are not preventative measures. In fact, they make students even more angry and more likely to commit a violent act."

She highlights the shooting at Garfield happened outside on the front steps. Miles Hagopian, a freshman, said, "I don't think putting more guns into schools will help anything. If anything, I think it will make the problem worse."

Seattle Police Chief Rahr is focused on rebuilding trust and opening lines of communication with students. She advocates for a reevaluation of the SROs' role, seeing them as relationship builders rather than disciplinary enforcers.

"What school resource officers can and should do is be in the school to build relationships, to open up lines of communication. If we want to prevent violence, and if we want to prevent deadly shootings, we need to be there before the issues happen," Rahr stated.

Chief Rahr acknowledges the community’s frustration and assures that the investigation into Amarr Murphy-Paine’s shooting is ongoing, with an arrest expected soon.