(The Center Square) – Youth gun violence remains a major issue in King County despite overall gun violence in the county falling over the last year and a half.
Last year was the first year in which gun violence in King County decreased since 2018. Shots fired incidents were at an all-time high for the county in 2023 with 1,729, but decreased down to 1,591 in 2024. Out of the 1,591 incidents, 394 resulted in people getting shot and 75 resulted in homicides, which is down 29% from 107 in 2023.
According to King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion, the positive trends are continuing into 2025 as there were 278 total shots fired in the first quarter, with 13 being homicides. That is down 35% from 20 homicides in the first quarter of 2024.
Despite the promising trends, Manion notes that youth gun violence in King County remains high, as the number of shooting victims in 2024 under the age of 17 represented 15% of total shooting victims, compared to 9% in 2023. Additionally, the 61 youth shooting victims in 2024 doubled from 2019 and increased 45% since 2023.
“When juveniles carry firearms, we should all be concerned,” Mannion said to the Seattle Public Safety Committee on Tuesday.
Manion noted that the county’s juvenile justice system has not reached pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. So far in 2025, there have been 500 cases involving young people filed, according to the King County prosecuting attorney.
“We are below 2019 levels, but what is concerning is that the ratio of the number of young people whose first brush with the criminal legal system is a serious violent crime; that ratio has increased,” Manion added.
The issue of youth violence is acknowledged by King County cities. For instance, in June 2024, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell issued an executive order to take immediate action to enhance student safety. In the order, it was reported that crimes around public and private schools in the city were up 14.7% through June 10 in 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.
Under current state law, it takes five adjudications before a young person caught unlawfully carrying a firearm faces sanctions that are greater than 30 days. Manion said she worked with legislators in an attempt to change that law, but those efforts were unsuccessful.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office launched the Safer Schools Strategy last year, which acts as a liaison between school officials and juvenile court staff and helps youth in the court system return to school.
Manion’s office is also launching a pilot project to see if it can seek juvenile extreme-risk protection orders in appropriate cases in which juveniles are caught carrying firearms.
Seattle City Councilmember Maritza Rivera was candid in her comments regarding Manion’s presentation, noting that her own children have been impacted by youth gun violence in Seattle Public Schools.
Fellow City Councilmember Joy Hollingsworth – a staunch advocate of solutions to Seattle’s youth violence issue – called the statistics alarming, noting that 41% of gun violence victims are under the age of 24.
“We as a society have just failed in general whenever we see a kid shot,” Hollingsworth said. “When we keep our babies safe, we keep our communities safe.”
