The aftermath Sunday’s deadly shooting at the Seattle Center during the annual “Bite of Seattle” event—which is supposed to be “gun-free”—has taken more twists and turns than a rollercoaster, with the end result being public and press frustration and massive criticism, and what some critics suggest was a display of incompetence that the Jet City may never live down.
The shooting cost three people their lives, but about 19 hours into the investigation, it was revealed that one of the “victims” was actually one of the three shooters. The dead, according to ABC News affiliate KOMO, included Junior Cee Niko Semo, 19, now believed to be one of the gunmen. At age 19, it is illegal under Washington statute for him to possess and carry a handgun concealed.
The surviving shooter, who was apprehended, is a 15-year-old who also could not legally possess or carry a handgun under state law. However, it is not clear whether the young teen and Semo engaged in a gunfight with a third gunman. One report indicated Semo and the younger teen were “associates.” The 15-year-old is being held on assault and weapons charges.
The other two victims appear to have been innocent bystanders caught in the line of fire: 44-year-old Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, killed at the scene, and 56-year-old Ashley Whitehead, who died later at the hospital.
That third suspect was reportedly still on the loose. Police Chief Shon Barnes was out of town at the time of the shooting, and the first press briefing was delayed for at least five hours to ostensibly allow time for “dignitaries” to be on hand for a photo op. Reporters seeking information to which the public is entitled grew frustrated by the delay. Barnes told a press conference the next day that one reason for the delay was that police knew the third suspect was still running free and they were concerned for the safety of Mayor Katie Wilson, Gov. Bob Ferguson, and Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal. But reporters have hammered the city and police commanders for not revealing that an active shooter was still unaccounted for; information to which the public was entitled long before it was revealed, say critics.
City Leaders Return to ‘Gun Violence’ Messaging
One Seattle talk host is publicly asking whether Wilson should face recall for her handling of the incident, and she was even asked by one reporter during the first late-night press briefing to skip her commenting on “gun violence” and simply tell the press what happened earlier in the evening.
City officials are now reluctantly acknowledging the shooting might have been gang-related, an admission Chief Barnes seemed hesitant to make when he said during the presser that the city has a problem with “small groups.”
Barnes took some bristling criticism for this from the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, whose national headquarters is located just across Lake Washington in the city of Bellevue. CCRKBA Executive Director Andrew Gottlieb said Barnes’ preference for using the term “small groups” rather than gangs “sounds like political correctness rather than candor.”
Gottlieb also criticized Barnes and Mayor Wilson for repeated use of the term “gun violence.”
“Wilson must have used the term ‘gun violence’ more than a half-dozen times during her remarks,” he said. “Chief Barnes used it at least ten times. All that does is demonize guns when the real culprit here is apparently a teenager who legally could not be carrying a handgun.”
“Mayor Wilson and Chief Barnes repeatedly mentioned efforts to reduce ‘gun violence’,” Gottlieb added in a statement to the media. “That typically translates to more gun control measures against law-abiding adults including the 112,500 King County residents who have valid concealed pistol licenses. They haven’t hurt anybody. Yet, instead of acknowledging that the problem is with criminals, including juveniles whose parents should be asked why their kid is at the Seattle Center shooting people, we hear about something called ‘gun violence reduction.’ But you’re not going to reduce gun-related violence by penalizing the wrong people, and Seattle’s leaders must keep that in mind.”
Ammoland News spoke with one former law enforcement official who suggested the city’s handling of the shooting and the aftermath was amateurish at best. Other critics have called it a “clown show.”
Former King County Sheriff Dave Reichert also publicly criticized the city’s aftermath response. He told KOMO that the first press briefing should have happened as soon as an hour after the shooting, simply to assure the public that things were under control. The five-hour delay was simply unprofessional.
Police officers on the scene at the time shots were fired can be seen in news footage racing to the sound of gunfire. They quickly took the 15-year-old into custody and retrieved two guns, one apparently wielded by the teen suspect and the other apparently belonging to the dead 19-year-old. It was the command performance which is failing the public confidence test.
Before being elected as Seattle’s mayor, Wilson had never before held public office. She was a founder of the Transit Riders Union. She is a democratic socialist, according to a Wikipedia biography. There are times, say critics, when she is obviously way over her head.
Gun Laws Failed to Stop Underage Suspects
While Seattle city officials are being criticized for mishandling the investigation, there is another factor to be considered, one which so far hasn’t become part of the conversation.
Since 2014, anti-gunners have pushed several restrictive gun control measures into law. None of those gun laws prevented the mass shooting, which left four other people, including a 2-year-old toddler, injured. The Seattle Center’s prohibition against guns at the Bite of Seattle didn’t prevent the fatal shooting. Background checks and the state’s 10-day waiting period didn’t keep guns out of the hands of the teens involved. The gun prohibition movement may get called out on this.
If there were ever an example of gun control’s complete failure in Washington state, the Seattle Center’s triple homicide would be it.
About Dave Workman
Dave Workman is a senior editor at TheGunMag.com and Liberty Park Press, author of multiple books on the Right to Keep & Bear Arms, and formerly an NRA-certified firearms instructor.
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