Unsolved murders skyrocket in Washington State

An analysis by FOX 13 showed that by this summer, the city of Kent had already surpassed the total number of murders it saw in 2022.

Using statistics from the FBI, the outlet reported that in 2019, out of the four homicides the city investigated, only one was solved. The following year, out of the eight homicides reported, only three were “cleared.”

Out of the 12 homicides investigated by the city’s police department in 2021, only half were cleared.

The outlet found a similar trend in Tacoma. The city saw 17 homicides in 2019 but only 11 were solved. There were 28 homicides in 2020 and 15 were solved. Homicides rose to 30 in 2021 and 16 were cleared.

According to the outlet’s analysis before the pandemic, approximately half of Seattle homicides were solved but in 2021, the rate of cleared cases fell to only 24 percent.

Fox13 noted, “That means if you’re killed in Seattle, the suspect has a 75 percent chance of getting away with murder.”

Seattle has had 66 homicides so far in 2023 and is on track to beat the all-time homicide record of 69 set in 1994. That number includes an unborn baby killed with her mother by a gunman while in a car at a stop light in June. Seattle has already beaten the 2022 homicide record of 57, which was the highest seen in a quarter century.

The Executive Director for the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, Steven Strachan, told the outlet, "We’ve seen a significant upward trend in homicides, particularly the last two years in the state of Washington. It’s doubly concerning because the rest of the nation has begun to level off a little bit, we’re still seeing that number increasing at an alarming rate."

Earlier this year, Seattle Police Officer Guild president Mike Solan said that the Emerald City has seen more homicides than hired officers.

A massive police officer exodus of 600 officers since the City Council began defunding the department in 2020 has left Seattle operating below the recommended safe police coverage for a city of its size.