A Legislative Update from Gina Mosbrucker

As the ranking Republican on the House Community Safety, Justice and Reentry Committee, I’ve been steadily working on legislation to make our communities, streets and neighborhoods safer. This includes returning to law enforcement officers the tools they need to do their jobs. We’ve succeeded in many ways, but a report recently released by The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) shows we still have a long way to go.

The WASPC Annual Crime in Washington Report indicates our state has experienced its highest murder rate since the 1980s. The crime report reflects our public safety policies need more work and staffing levels are too low.

Washington has the lowest number of police officers per capita in the country. If Washington had the national average of officers-to-population, we would have more than 7,000 officers commissioned than we do right now. For more on the report check out the stories below.

• Report: Washington sees record-high violent crimes in 2023, record-low officers per capita (FOX 13)
• Homicides, violent crime up in WA as police staffing hits all-time low (The Seattle Times)
• Murders hit record, auto thefts soared in 2022, new figures show (Washington State Standard)

Public safety will continue to be one of my highest priorities as we convene in January for the 2024 legislative session.