No, Katie Wilson Did Not Tell Seattle Police To Stop Arresting People For Public Drug Use

The Mayor’s Office and the Seattle Police Department (SPD) have a rightwing disinformation campaign to undo on the first Monday under the new administration. 

Over the weekend, rightoid shitposters and the conservative media leaked a snippet of an email from Police Chief Shon Barnes to peddle a false narrative that cops will no longer arrest people for using drugs publicly. The rightwing conspiracy apparatus spun so hard, soon enough everyone from the Daily Mail to the regular posters on Nextdoor were seemingly blaming the new Mayor for an alleged policy change. But the Mayor’s Office says no, Wilson has not directed SPD to stop arresting people for using drugs in public and SPD affirms “nothing has changed” when it comes to police continuing to make drug-related arrests in Seattle.

“You’ll know when I announce a policy change, because I'll announce a policy change,” Wilson said in an email statement. 

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You can thank We Heart Seattle’s Andrea Suarez, a failed political candidate with a knack for rightwing rage bait, for starting hubbub. In a post with more than 330,000 views as of Monday afternoon, Suarez claimed that SPD “dropped” an email, which she did not provide, where Barnes announced the department would no longer “enforce drug use, instead referring all open consumptions to diversion program LEAD-PDA,” Suarez wrote. 

“Seattle will continue to be a sanctuary city for open air use of illicit and lethal drug inviting people in droves where they won’t be arrested,” Suarez wrote. 

Conservative media had a field day with the story with over zealous headlines such as “'Effective immediately' Seattle Police will no longer enforce drug crimes, will refer offenders to diversion” from the Post Millennial and “Seattle in freefall under hyperwoke mayor as new order allows drug users to avoid prosecution” from The Daily Mail. Most outlets framed the story to vaguely assign blame to the new Mayor. 

And the Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG) took this as their opportunity to fire their first shot in what will be a bloody, four-year-long narrative battle between the cops and Wilson. 

“The recent naive, ignorant political decision to not arrest offenders for open drug use in the City of Seattle is horrifically dangerous and will create more death and societal decay,” SPOG President Mike Solan said. “It embodies an enormous flaw in those in our community who think that meeting people where they are who are in the throes of addiction, is the correct path to lift them up.”

The rightwing narrative got one thing correct: Yes, Barnes sent a New Years’ email to officers about diversion programs. But that’s pretty much all.

Here’s the email in full, originally published by KOMO and verified with screenshots by The Burner: 

Good afternoon, and Happy New Year, colleagues

I’m truly excited for the year ahead and grateful for the opportunity to continue our important work together. 2025 was an outstanding year for our department and for the safety of our city. We achieved a record number of new hires—165 new police officers joined our ranks—and we saw substantial decreases in both violent and property crime. Our homicide rate declined at a level we haven’t experienced since before the pandemic.

As we begin a new year, new policies and procedures are inevitable, especially given the shifting political landscape our city has grown accustomed to. With that in mind, I want to inform everyone of an important update from the City Attorney’s Office.

Effective immediately, all charges related to drug possession and/or drug use will be diverted from prosecution to the LEAD program. All instances of drug use or possession will be referred to Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD)—a program designed to redirect lowlevel offenders in King County from the criminal justice system into supportive social services.

If an individual fails to comply with the LEAD program, traditional prosecutorial measures will apply. As you know, LEAD is a familiar alternative to arrest program that we have been utilizing for some time. This change aligns with Seattle City Ordinance 126896. Please note that this diversion does not apply to individuals who are ineligible for LEAD or to those arrested for selling or delivering controlled substances. User quantity cases may be diverted; sell and deliver cases will not.

My expectation is that officers will continue to charge individuals for drug use or possession when appropriate—for example, when the activity occurs in public view or when probable cause for arrest is established. Our mission remains unchanged, and we fully support programs and policies aimed at reducing recidivism and breaking the cycle of repeated criminal justice involvement.

Thank you for continuing to perform your duties with professionalism and procedural justice. I’m confident that 2026 will be another exceptional year for us, and I look forward to building on our shared commitment to keeping this city safe, welcoming, and inclusive for everyone.

Respectfully,
Shon F. Barnes Ph.D

The damning line, according to Seattle Red, was as follows: “Effective immediately, all charges related to drug possession and/or drug use will be diverted from prosecution to the LEAD program. All instances of drug use or possession will be referred to Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD)—a program designed to redirect low-level offenders in King County from the criminal justice system into supportive social services.”

However, the lines preceding this statement clarify that Barnes was explaining a memo the new City Attorney Erika Evans sent Jan 1, which calls for prosecutors to divert cases rather than imposing a new policy for SPD to stop making arrests:

Effective January 1, 2026, consistent with legislative intent1, upon receipt of a

Knowing Possession or Public Use police report from a referring SPD Officer, the

Case Prep team or the reviewing Assistant City Prosecutor should immediately refer

the case to the LEAD Liaison Team for review (prior to any filing action). The LEAD

Liaison Team will assess previous attempts at engagement with the referred

individual in consultation with LEAD. If the referred individual has failed to

demonstrate a sustained level or engagement with the LEAD program or has refused

to engage with a LEAD case manager, the LEAD Liaison will assess the most suitable

subsequent action in consultation with the Criminal Division Chief.

If the arresting officer or reviewing prosecutor has identified unique articulable

circumstances that are so acute or problematic that they make diversion alternatives

an ineffective response to the situation, the reviewing prosecutor will elevate the

referral to the Criminal Division Chief to identify the most suitable subsequent

action. In considering the most appropriate action, the Criminal Division Chief may

confer with the LEAD Liaison, the applicable CAO Public Safety Precinct Liaison,

and/or the referring police officer. If CAO decides against the arresting officer’s

recommendation in these uniquely identified cases, CAO will follow-up with the

officer to discuss the decided-upon rationale.

Barnes' email is weird and confusing, but its made even worse by the fact that the conservative propagandists didn't bother to include the fact that Barnes expects officers “will continue to charge individuals for drug use or possession when appropriate.”

In a statement to KOMO, SPD reiterated that the department has not changed its policy around public drug use, officers will continue to make arrests, and further the arresting officer can coordinate with the prosecutor to block diversion if the officer has identified “unique circumstances that could make diversion ineffective.” This is consistent with the memo Evans sent and more clear than Barnes email or the rightwing outcry that followed.

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This appears to be yet another (and certainly not the last) case of the rightwing content factory making Wilson seem much more radical than she is. For Christ’s sake she said that Seattleites should have time to look up at the clouds and you would have thought she had banished the ruling class to the gulag. 

In a statement to the press, Wilson promoted her recently published  vision for public safety, where she writes, "everyone in Seattle, of every background and every income, deserves to be safe in their homes, streets, parks, and places of business in every neighborhood across our city."

Wilson said she remains committed to that vision and it will include both the enforcement of the possession and public use ordinance “in priority situations” and supporting diversion programs such as LEAD with an “appropriate level of urgency, sufficient resources, and a commitment to results.”

THIS STORY WAS UPDATED TO INCLUDE THE CAO MEMO AFTER CAO SENT IT TO ME