Seattle’s interim police chief used the phrase “trigger pullers” to describe known gun-violence suspects during a Labor Day weekend news conference, as officials addressed a string of shootings across the city and outlined the department’s response.
The violence left three people dead and three others wounded in three separate shootings within a 24-hour period, according to FOX 13 Seattle.
Interim Chief Andre Sayles said the Seattle Police Department was stepping up patrols, working more closely with local business owners, and sending out both its community response group and gun violence reduction unit in an effort to prevent further shootings.
“We’re looking at ways to where we can identify individuals that are known, we call trigger pullers, in our community,” Sayles said during a Sept. 7 briefing. “Identifying them, making sure that we’re putting cases on those individuals working with King County Prosecutor’s Office, to bring these individuals to justice, because the families that lost loved ones, throughout the year and years past, deserve justice.”
Seattle Police investigate a mass shooting in the city. (KCPQ)
Seattle police told News Outlet on Wednesday that “trigger puller” is an informal expression and is not a term mandated under department policy.
The wording quickly drew criticism from some local commentators, who argued that it downplayed or softened the description of suspects accused in violent gun crimes.
“So in Seattle we aren’t calling them ‘shooters’ anymore? Now they are ‘trigger pullers’?” local radio host Ari Hoffman wrote on social media after Sayles’ comments.
The phrase is not new to law enforcement. In 2022, then-FBI Director Christopher Wray used the term during remarks to the Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies.
“You all know what’s driving the violent crime in your states,” Wray said. “Whether it’s a community where a disproportionate amount of gun violence takes place or rival gangs wreaking havoc in a particular region or a handful of well-known trigger pullers who keep finding their way back to the streets, no matter how many times they’re arrested, at the FBI, we want to be your integral partner in the fight against violent crime.”
Seattle police work at the scene of a shooting. (KCPQ)
Sayles said investigators did not believe the three shootings were connected and that none appeared to be linked to the deadly July shooting at the Bite of Seattle festival.
The first shooting occurred early Sunday near Denny Way and Clay Street, where a fight following a street takeover escalated into gunfire, killing a 20-year-old man and injuring two others, FOX 13 Seattle reported.
About an hour later, a gunman fired multiple shots into a vehicle near Third Avenue and Blanchard Street, fatally wounding a 23-year-old woman.
Before midnight, a third altercation near Elliott Avenue and Bell Street left a 17-year-old dead and a 21-year-old seriously injured. Investigators did not immediately identify a clear gang connection in that case.
Three people were killed and three others were injured in shootings over a 24-hour stretch in Seattle. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
No arrests had been made in the three shootings when Sayles spoke with reporters. He said investigators were working with witnesses and reviewing surveillance footage, including about 450 hours of video in one case.
Sayles also acknowledged questions about whether police resources had been strained by the shootings and a series of street takeovers over the weekend.
“That’s something I have to look at. I haven’t really dove into what the staffing numbers looked like,” Sayles said. “And if that was the case, then we will do what we need to do as a department to make sure that they are not overwhelmed.”
Sayles said the department’s intelligence unit was working to identify where street takeovers were being organized and that officers would coordinate with regional, local and federal partners.
“We have officers in these dedicated areas,” he said. “They’re a block or two away, and it’s one of those incidents where we respond to violence on a daily basis. It’s not like we can be there and stop it, but our goal is to be there and stop it.”
Mayor Katie Wilson listens to an attendee after a vigil a day after the Bite of Seattle food festival shooting on July 27, 2026. Three people were killed and four wounded. (Getty Images)
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson offered condolences to the victims’ families during a public appearance, FOX 13 Seattle reported.
“This weekend, we’ve seen three people die, which is incredibly tragic, and my heart goes out to the victims and their families,” Wilson said.
Seattle police told the station the department was seeking tips, photos and videos from the shooting scenes that could help lead to arrests. Investigators continue to pursue leads in all three cases.
News Outlet has reached out to the mayor’s office for additional comment.
