Seattle restarts police cameras in key districts after audit review

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson authorized the Seattle Police Department to reactivate surveillance cameras in the Stadium District and install new units in Capitol Hill and the Central District. This decision marks an expansion of the city’s Real Time Crime Center, a digital network that aggregates video feeds from across the metro area for police analysis.

The move comes after an independent review by the NYU Policing Project assessed the department’s current infrastructure. The report confirmed that existing safeguards, such as a ban on facial recognition software, remain in place. However, it identified specific weaknesses in how the department shares data and oversees user access.

Wilson cited persistent crime rates as the primary driver for the expansion. "At this juncture, there are good reasons for targeted deployment of police CCTV cameras in areas experiencing persistent crime," she said. "I am authorizing SPD to move forward with the expansion of CCTV cameras."

The department’s leadership supports the plan. Interim Police Chief Andre Sayles pointed to data from the recent World Cup, noting that the city recorded zero homicides during that month. "I won’t credit the cameras alone, but they helped our officers and detectives tremendously," Sayles said. He added that the new installations will help address safety concerns in neighborhoods with recent shootings.

The audit found that the department stores video clips indefinitely on a vendor platform called Evidence.com. It also noted that analysts could access camera feeds without logging an active case number. The report issued 19 recommendations for policy changes. Wilson stated that the city intends to implement most of these suggestions while installing the new equipment.

Business and political leaders have largely backed the rollout. Bob Kettle, the City Council Public Safety Chair, described the decision as pragmatic. The Downtown Seattle Association and the Seattle Metro Chamber also supported the expansion, citing the role of technology in public safety.

Critics, however, argue that the reforms are insufficient. A coalition named Community Not Cameras released a statement calling the audit’s recommendations "half-measures." The group urged the city to dismantle the network entirely rather than patch it with new rules.

The coalition raised concerns about federal jurisdiction. Noah Williams, a coalition member, warned that court orders could force the technology vendor Axion or the city to hand over footage to federal immigration enforcement. "Seattle is a city that is full of tech talent, and we have a broad pool from which to hire if we wanted to operate a system that was fully controlled by us," Williams said. "That is simply not what this system provided by Axon is."

Wilson addressed these concerns during a press conference on Tuesday. She stated that the city has received zero external requests related to immigration or reproductive healthcare enforcement. "I am dedicated to making Seattle the safest big city in the country," Wilson said. "Safe from gun violence and serious crime and safe from authoritarianism from the federal government."

The department will begin activating the cameras in the Stadium District immediately. Deployments to Capitol Hill and the Central District are scheduled to occur in the coming months as the city integrates the policy changes outlined in the audit.