Audit of CCTV cameras Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson turned off finds public safety benefits

Tuesday, Wilson will announce next steps on CCTV cameras.

The review, commissioned by Wilson’s office and conducted by the Policing Project at New York University School of Law, recommends stronger auditing, clearer operating rules and tighter controls on retained footage. The audit does not decide whether Seattle should expand the system or continue operating it.

The findings arrive after an earlier city watchdog review found officers overwhelmingly followed surveillance safeguards, and more than three months after the deadly Bite of Seattle shooting intensified demands for additional camera coverage.

The audit describes existing protections, including a prohibition on facial recognition, digital masking to prevent SPD’s CCTV cameras from recording private spaces, and restrictions on continuously monitoring camera feeds.

Researchers also reported that they did not observe prohibited or unauthorized Fusus software features being used during their review.

However, they recommended requiring a case number or explanation whenever cameras are accessed, logging uses of artificial-intelligence features, and establishing regular internal audits to identify potential misuse.

The report also recommends putting SPD’s current five-day retention practice for raw CCTV footage into formal policy. Footage saved into case files can be retained indefinitely under current practice, something the researchers recommend changing through retention schedules based on case status and disposition.

Another recommendation would generally require warrants for retrospectively tracking someone’s movements across multiple camera clusters. The report distinguishes that activity from checking cameras near a known crime scene, which it says should not require a warrant.

The review follows earlier findings from Seattle’s Office of Inspector General. That review examined 1,659 saved CCTV clips and found approximately 98 percent involved serious or violent crimes or high-priority incidents. Only 38 involved incidents that were both nonviolent and low-priority, mostly traffic incidents.

The watchdog also identified alleged shortcomings, including unclear private-camera rules and insufficient documentation of search justifications for compliance and oversight. It reported no instances of improper surveillance-data sharing.

SPD reported that officers and detectives receiving RTCC assistance were three times more likely to arrest a suspect, and that the center assisted in 17 homicide cases during 2025, helping close 10. But the audit notes that SPD counts any analyst action as assistance, even when checking a camera produces no useful evidence.

A separate University of Pennsylvania evaluation is examining crime, investigations and other outcomes, with results expected in late 2027.

Individual cases have nevertheless demonstrated the system’s investigative value. RTCC footage captured the attack on 77-year-old Richard Vera near Third Avenue and Pike Street and helped investigators identify the men charged with assaulting him.

In another case, an RTCC analyst directed officers to a suspect after he allegedly struck a 75-year-old woman in the face with a stick fitted with a metal screw in December 2025. Deputies detained him within five minutes. Later that month, RTCC personnel located a suspected stolen-SUV driver on camera after he abandoned the vehicle, sending officers a photograph that helped them find and arrest him at a nearby park.

More recently, RTCC footage captured part of an October machete attack at Hing Hay Park, showing the suspect chasing a victim. Witnesses and victims identified the man to officers, who allegedly found him still holding the weapon.

Wilson paused the planned camera expansion in March. She subsequently authorized temporary operation of Stadium District cameras for Seattle’s World Cup matches after citing credible security threats.

Then, on July 7, she announced their shutdown.

“Effective this morning, the Stadium District cameras are turned off,” Wilson said.

She said they would remain offline pending completion and review of the audit, while existing cameras downtown, in the Chinatown-International District and along North Aurora continued operating.

After gunfire erupted at Seattle Center during the Bite of Seattle on July 26, major venues and event organizations urged Wilson to reactivate the Stadium District cameras and invest in coverage around Seattle Center. The coalition included Climate Pledge Arena, the Seattle Storm, Seafair, the Space Needle and Visit Seattle.