Teresa Batajola
ICHS President and Chief Executive Officer
Heritage House
Dear Mayor Bruce Harrell and Chief Adrian Diaz,
On Sunday, Oct. 9, at approximately 3:50 a.m., a shooting occurred outside the entrance to the Legacy House, an assisted living facility at 803 South Lane Street, following an altercation between groups. About seven shots hit the car parked in front of Legacy House by International Community Health Services (ICHS) workers, and two hit the Legacy House building.
At this time, we do not know the nature or circumstances of the shooting. We are extremely relieved that no staff or residents were injured in the shooting. However, as you can imagine, our employees are struggling with anxiety and trauma from random acts of violence.
Disturbingly, when the ICHS leadership made a report to the police and asked how we could cooperate with the police investigation, we were told that no case would be opened as no one was injured in the shooting. In short, from a worker’s perspective, the dispatcher informs us that this is low priority for them.
ICHS is deeply concerned about the prevalence of gun violence and violent crime in the Chinatown International District (CID) community, which threatens the health and well-being of our patients, staff and older residents.
ICHS’ flagship International District medical and dental clinic is located at International Village Plaza at South 8th Avenue and South Lane Street, as well as our vision clinic and assisted living facility, Legacy House, which also houses our premium services program, the Adult Day Center , and premium meal service.
This is not an isolated case. CIDs frequently experience gun violence and other violent crimes. We recognize that the shooting on October 9, 2022 occurred in the larger context of two circumstances that led to public safety challenges.
1) High violent crime rates due to repeated cycles of drug dealing, gang violence, and other illegal activities.
2) The Seattle Police Department (SPD) responded slowly or did nothing to 911 calls, leading to a chronic cycle of distrust and doubt about the city’s commitment to addressing CID public safety issues.
All of this leads to a ingrained view at the CID that police will be unable to follow up on crime and years of deteriorating public safety conditions.
Our employees repeatedly share with us their concerns about their safety and well-being. Car vandalism and break-ins are frequent in the area near our clinic. For example, at noon in November 2021, a person smashed the windows of at least three cars on 8th Avenue South in front of the ICHS clinic. Shredding and grabbing are repeated periodically in the CID.
The ICHS staff member was reportedly followed as he returned to the car alone. The staff at Legacy House, our 24/7 assisted living facility, who work night shifts to care for our seniors, express a particular fear of walking to their cars at night. Again, these are recurring events.
The wave of anti-Asian hate crimes has also exacerbated public safety concerns. Healthcare workers across the country have faced a rise in anti-Asian sentiment and action during the pandemic. Asian businesses in the CID have been targeted. Elderly Asians continue to face harassment in the streets. Verbal and physical aggression is common.
In August, ICHS staff at the ID clinic called 911 for a patient who was in crisis and said he intended to harm himself. After two hours, the SPD did not respond. When 911 was called again, the dispatcher said there were too many life-threatening emergencies, and SPD was busy responding even though the patient had confirmed suicidal ideation. The patient’s treatment team had to advance alternative safety plans at the risk of the team and ICHS.
Lack of response to SPD can pose serious safety risks to patients and others who are experiencing mental health-related emergencies. Unfortunately, this is not the first time ICHS has encountered a lack of response from the SPD. In another instance, the SPD failed to respond to an outreach request for a suicidal patient, which resulted in the provider having to take the patient to the hospital themselves. This poses a significant risk to both providers and patients.
In another incident involving an individual on the sidewalk outside the clinic, ICHS called 911 and asked for help from a mobile crisis team. The SPD responded instead, refusing to offer any intervention.
Currently, ICHS staff report that calling 911 does not help them. When SPD was involved, staff said they were not a positive experience. The lack of police response or action in an emergency is a deep-rooted challenge to public safety and everyone who lives, works, does business or visits CID.
Calls for an increased police presence in the CID are not new. Donnie Chin’s legacy as a staunch protector of our community is built on the city’s history of neglect and late or non-responsiveness to CID emergencies. And Donnie Chin lost her life in this effort. For decades, community leaders like the late Uncle Bob Santos called the Seattle Police Department directly. SPD needs a larger community presence in CID, and the city must treat the area’s public safety on the same level as the rest of Seattle’s neighborhoods.
We call on the City of Seattle to do more to ensure the public safety of our staff and the more than 8,000 patients we serve at ID clinics. We also call on SPD to commit to being part of the CID community. They must explore ways to be more compassionate and sensitive to diverse populations and create a culture where members of our community feel more supported when interacting with police.
