Amid violence at Seattle courthouse, sheriff orders staff to work remotely

Just two decades ago, King County Supreme Court justices routinely complained about the absurdity of sentencing drug dealers to jail while watching in the adjacent park, once nicknamed Muscatel Meadows.

“It was never Shangri-La,” said Andrea R. Vitalich, a senior assistant attorney for the King County District Attorney

But in the last few years things have taken a tough leap from “dirty to downright dangerous,” said Vitalich.

The attempted rape of a woman in a courthouse toilet last week was “the last straw,” she said after years of escalating attacks on court officials, jurors, witnesses and others.

Courthouse officials and others have scheduled a lunchtime rally at the King County Administration Building on Fourth Avenue and a march around the courthouse for Friday. It’s not a requirement, said Vitalich, but a request.

“Please do something. It has become an unbearable situation for everyone,” she said.

Citing the unsafe environment around the courthouse, King County Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht said this week that the unsolicited clerks would be returning to remote work immediately.

“The safety of our employees is my top priority,” she wrote in the August 2nd letter. “Due to the unsafe environment around the courthouse, administration, parking garage and correctional facilities, as well as unions’ concerns, we are now returning to 100% teleworking for professionals who do not routinely interact with the public.”

The announcement effectively pauses the return of about 60 employees who had already worked remotely, said Sgt. Tim Meyer, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office, and does not affect the duties of the assigned deputies.

Johanknecht said she will meet with other district officials to discuss security solutions for the courthouse and the surrounding area.

Calls for help from people who work in the blocks around the courthouse – where the sheriff’s office is based – are not new.

In June, 33 King County Superior Court judges and four court commissioners ordered Seattle Parks and Recreation’s Superintendent Jesús Aguirre in June to close City Hall Park and relocate residents of the sprawling camp just south of the courthouse.

“We write out of deep concern for the safety of the jury, courthouse staff, the public and those who are not housed in and around City Hall Park and seek protection,” wrote the judges and commissioners.

“As you know, conditions in and around the King County Courthouse, including City Hall Park, have been in a critical, unsafe, and unhealthy phase for years. As a last resort to address these issues, we ask that you close City Hall Park. “

The letter cited a Seattle Times news report about legislation put in place by Metropolitan King County Councilor Reagan Dunn to protect the 0.56-acre park as a public safety hazard following a fatal knife stab and several previous violent crime incidents to condemn.

In 2017, two King County Superior Court justices ordered the county council to clear the streets around the courthouse entrances after two jurors were attacked and staff members were beaten and spat at.

This report contains information from the Seattle Times archives.