(The Center Square) – Seattle city leaders have recently proposed new bills to address drug and sex trafficking in the areas of the city where that criminal behavior has become more common.
Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison is proposing legislation – referred to as the “Stay Out of Drug Area” – that would prohibit a defendant from entering a designated zone if they commit a drug-related criminal offense in that zone.
Orders could be issued by the court either as a condition of pretrial release, or a condition of sentence if convicted.
“The Stay Out of Drug Area legislation is a mechanism to reduce illegal drug use so our public spaces can be safer and more accessible for everyone,” Davison said in a news release.
According to Davison, the legislation focuses on areas in the city where there is established drug-related activity. These zones include a portion of the downtown area and the neighboring International District.
“We must address the safety needs of residents, visitors, and businesses – both their employees and customers – who live, shop, and work in zones that are overburdened with illegal, dangerous, public drug use and other criminal activity,” Davison added.
On the same day of Davison’s announcement, Seattle City Councilmember Cathy Moore revealed her own proposal to combat commercial sexual exploitation and the rampant and escalating gun violence associated with it.
Moore’s proposed bill would create a new loitering law that targets buyers of commercial sex. It would provide multiple grounds for arresting buyers, which Moore says is generating a sex trade that is so profitable that it is fueling regular gun battles over turf.
Promoting loitering for purposes of prostitution to target sex traffickers would be considered a gross misdemeanor offense.
Moore said her legislation makes clear that diversion, not prosecution, is the preferred approach for people participating in prostitution.
Dana Mongillo is the owner of Fuzzy Buddy’s Dog Daycare on Aurora Avenue.
She said the neighborhood is a crime zone and that residents and business owners are fed up.
“Right now, our neighborhood is a crime zone, and we’re hurting. We deal daily with the city’s inability to shut down the organized crime groups that have brought drugs and gun violence into the neighborhood, along with sex trafficked women and children,” Mongillo said at a Thursday press conference. “We can’t continue to excuse this as ‘just regular Aurora stuff.’ It’s not. It’s dangerous and it’s wrong. It’s time to do something about it.”
Both Davison’s and Moore’s respective bills will be introduced to the Seattle City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Aug. 13. If passed, they would need a final vote from the full city council, which would likely occur in late August or early September.