Disturbing footage of a woman thrashing on a crowded Seattle sidewalk while screaming incoherently has renewed debate over the city’s approach to homelessness, crime and public drug use.
The homeless woman was seen in footage from Jonathan Choe flying into a frenzy in Seattle’s Chinatown district, which the journalist said was ‘like a scene out of a horror movie.’
Witnesses said she may have consumed a combination of fentanyl and psychoactive substances. Journalist Jonathan Choe also said several men appeared to be trying to take advantage of her before paramedics arrived and transported her to a nearby hospital for treatment.
The video attracted more than two million views in less than 48 hours, with viewers describing the incident as another example of the fentanyl crisis affecting communities across the United States.
Choe accused Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, a socialist, of allowing the city’s Chinatown district to “devolve into the city’s human dumping ground and containment zone.”
He said that, despite repeatedly documenting disorder on Seattle streets, he had not heard a “peep from Wilson or other elected officials in this city” about the worsening crisis.
The journalist urged Seattle residents to contact their representatives and “tell them to do something about it before more lives are lost to the streets,” as scrutiny of Wilson’s mayoralty continues to grow.
Wilson has faced accusations that she has failed to confront Seattle’s crime wave while threatening to drive businesses away through pledges to raise taxes.
In July, Wilson also came under fire over her handling of a deadly shooting that killed three people. Members of her own police department accused her of mishandling the response, and she later dismissed the police chief amid the fallout.
Shocking footage spread across the United States after a journalist recorded a woman appearing to suffer a drug-related episode on Seattle streets.
Footage by Jonathan Choe showed the homeless woman thrashing in Seattle’s Chinatown district, which the journalist likened to “a scene out of a horror movie.”
The disturbing scenes emerged as scrutiny intensifies over the leadership of socialist Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson.
The controversy follows a mass shooting in July at the Bite of Seattle food festival, where residents criticized authorities for issuing conflicting information and providing what they described as a confused response.
With several suspects still at large, officials delayed a news conference for several hours. Wilson initially blamed the Seattle Police Department for the hold-up.
She subsequently fired Chief Shon Barnes over the response and awarded him a taxpayer-funded severance package worth $700,000.
However, officials offered a different account during a September hearing before the Seattle City Council’s public safety committee, where several criticized Wilson’s handling of the shooting.
Assistant Chief Tyrone Davis and Interim Chief Andre Sayles presented an explanation for the delay in releasing information that sharply differed from the mayor’s version of events.
Davis, who was serving as acting chief when the shooting occurred, told council members he had been prepared to hold a news conference at 7:30 p.m.—about 90 minutes after the first shots were fired.
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“We were ready to go,” Davis said. He explained that he had informed Deputy Mayor Brian Surratt of his plan to address reporters but was instructed not to speak publicly without Mayor Wilson present.
Wilson did not speak to reporters until another three and a half hours had passed. She appeared alongside Governor Bob Ferguson, Representative Pramila Jayapal and Davis.
Wilson faced intense criticism in July over her handling of the deadly shooting, which claimed three lives.
Wilson fired her police chief Shon Barnes (together) amid criticisms over her handling of a mass shooting in July
‘What I shared in the 20-minute press conference at 11.00pm would have been the same exact information I would have provided at 7:30 – nothing changed,’ Davis told the city council.
‘That’s how stable the situation was. That’s how well run our officers were. That’s how well prepared detective Pritchard and our media folks were.’
Last month, text messages between the top officials were also released, which revealed chaotic internal communications between Wilson’s police leadership.
The texts showed that Chief Operations Officer Sarah Smith first alerted leadership that there was a mass shooting at 6.39pm, and asked nine minutes later: ‘Is there a conference call on this?’
Assistant Chief Tyrone Davis responded at 6.49pm: ‘I hope not. Let the incident stabilized [sic] 1st please.’
An internal briefing was then scheduled for 8.30pm, and another for Wilson and Washington Governor Bob Ferguson at 9pm.
Wilson has come under mounting scrutiny for her mayorship this year. Pictured: Seattle’s iconic Space Needle and Museum of Pop Culture were blighted by tent encampments when Our News Outlet visited earlier this year
A press conference was scheduled for 9.45pm, but at 9/42pm mayoral public safety director Alison Holcomb told the police leadership that Wilson was not on time, the texts showed.
‘Mayor’s on her way. Please wait for her,’ Holcomb told the group just minutes before the press conference, reports Fox13.
At 10.22pm, the messages show that Smith was telling Barnes the briefings were still being ‘delayed, because they were waiting for the mayor to arrive.’
‘Sigh. Now they are waiting for the Governor to show up before they do it. So it’s gonna happen, but they’re still just waiting for him now,’ Smith added minutes later.
The messages indicate the Seattle policing leadership was confused and miscommunicating at the time of the shooting, with scrutiny since falling on the nearly five-hour delay to hold public press conferences about the tragedy.
Three people were killed in the shooting and five others were injured. Police said the incident was gang-related and at least one suspect remains at large.
