Seattle Forward

Mental Health Services

I received a number of responses to my recent newsletter on gun safety measures I believe we should adopt in Washington State; many highlighted the need for a renewed focus on mental health treatment services.

My newsletter focused on the work of Professor Richard Florida at the University of Toronto who has written about the intersection of gun safety regulations and deaths by firearms. But, there are clearly other factors we must consider as well in the wake of tragedies like the one last Friday in Connecticut. Focusing in from broader gun violence to the mass shooting incidents in the last year, we have seen a trend of perpetrators who struggle with mental illness. (It is also worth noting, as this New York Times article does, that the vast majority of perpetrators of violence do not suffer from mental illness, and those who do suffer from psychiatric disabilities are more likely to be victims rather than perpetrators of violence.)

We Need Better Gun Safety Laws in Washington State

Dec. 17 update: This afternoon I proposed an amendment adding the specific gun safety measures listed below to the City’s lobbying agenda for the upcoming State legislative session. The City Council approved this amendment. 

America is still grieving for the children and adults who lost their lives last Friday in Newtown, Connecticut. That horrific event ripped deep into our national soul.

The level of violence is higher in the United States than almost anywhere else in the developed world. Why? And more importantly, what can be done about it? A lot can get done -- if our leaders in Olympia can muster the courage to strengthen safety laws for the people of Washington State.

As President Obama said at the vigil Sunday night in Newtown, “We can’t tolerate this anymore. These tragedies must end. And to end them, we must change.”

The Connecticut shootings should enable our Governor, our Governor-elect and leaders in the Washington Legislature to focus on solutions and bring us together to do something meaningful to end this nonsense.

Using Science in Government

Two recent events highlighted the City Council’s efforts to focus on evidence-based programs and decisions.

On Friday, the Office of City Auditor organized a forum in City Hall where University of Washington professors presented research on various topics relevant for city policymakers, from transportation to crime to human services. Then, yesterday morning, researchers from the Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy at George Mason University briefed the Council on several crime prevention efforts underway to make Seattle neighborhoods safer.

Using science and data to guide government investments and programs is smart government. You’d think that would be obvious and readily accepted. Think again.

Writing in The New York Times a couple of weeks ago, Jon Baron, president of the Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, lifted the rug to reveal a few awkward facts.