Three people were killed and three wounded in three Seattle shootings over 24 hours during Labor Day weekend, prompting Interim Chief Andre Sayles to outline a crackdown on known violent suspects.
Sayles said police are boosting patrols, using a gun-violence reduction unit and community response group, and building cases with prosecutors against people he called "trigger pullers."
No arrests had been made when he spoke; detectives were interviewing witnesses and reviewing surveillance footage, including about 450 hours of video in one case.
The shootings appeared unconnected and not tied to July's Bite of Seattle attack: a 20-year-old man was killed after a street-takeover fight, a 23-year-old woman was shot in a vehicle, and a 17-year-old died in a later altercation.
The phrase "trigger pullers" drew local criticism for softening the label for suspects, even as Sayles also faced questions about whether weekend street takeovers had stretched police staffing.