This was the scene on Capitol Hill last night.
  • Brendan Kiley
  • This was the scene on Capitol Hill last night.

In Response to the Grand Jury Decision That Officer Darren Wilson Won’t Be Charged in the Shooting Death of Unarmed Teenager Michael Brown: A couple hundred protesters took to the streets of Seattle last night, joining thousands of others taking similar action in cities across the country, including Oakland, New York, and Philadelphia.

Things Were Largely Peaceful All Night: The protest began at Westlake Park and moved to Capitol Hill, then the Central District, then down toward I-5. But that’s when things got a little hairy. Some protesters decided to march onto the freeway, and there were reports that some threw rocks, bottles, and lit flares at police. In response, Seattle PD (who had thus far monitored the protests nonconfrontationally, on bikes) deployed pepper spray and flash bangs. Some protesters made it onto the freeway, essentially shutting down northbound lanes for about half an hour.



Oh, yeah, Macklemore was there, and he was on the freeway:



Some vandalism took place:


Protesters ended up back on Capitol Hill:


Five People Were Arrested: KIRO reports that “As of 1 a.m., police had arrested five people: A 51-year-old man for reckless endangerment, a 22-year-old woman for failure to disperse, and two men — 34 and 28 — for obstruction. Officers also arrested another man, who was armed with a handgun, on a weapons violation.”

And according to Q13 Fox News, another protest is scheduled for later this morning, beginning at Mount Calvary Baptist Church and ending at the federal courthouse.

Meanwhile, in Ferguson, the Situation Was Intense: Several fires were started. There was looting.




In Other News… State Attorney General Clears the Way for More Police Body Cams: In his opinion, Bob Ferguson said police officers in Washington State don’t need to ask permission of the person they are recording for consent, even though the state requires two-person consent to record audio.

The Washington Privacy Act does not require officer consent because the Washington Supreme Court has recognized that a conversation between a police officer and a member of the public that occurs in the performance of the officer’s duties is not private. … Yet, depending on the circumstances, a court could conclude that some intercepted conversations in a person’s home involving parties other than police officers might be private and not subject to lawful recording under the Washington Privacy Act, absent a warrant or consent.

As you'll recall, police in Poulsbo and Bremerton cited privacy concerns as their reason to reconsider their use of body cams.

Seattle City Council Agrees to Study Gunshot Detection System: The system involves installing sensors and microphones around the city in order to help police quickly locate the source of gunfire. The detailed study will cost $250,000.

More homes are selling, and homes are more expensive.
  • Andy Dean Photography/Shutterstock
  • More homes are selling, and homes are more expensive.

Seattle Home Sales Up 2.6 Percent This Year: That’s compared to last year. Compared to last month, sales rose 4.4 percent in October. While more homes are selling, the median sale price also rose—to $369,000 in October, up 5.4 percent from last year.

Heavy Rains Could Cause Flooding in Western Washington: Two to five inches of rain are expected to fall in the Cascades today, causing minor flooding.