Renton motor vehicle thefts, burglaries, and robberies all spiked as police pursuits were curtailed in 2021; then declined when police were reauthorized to pursue in 2024. Reckless driving injuries and fatalities are not shown on this chart but they also climbed dramatically with the non-pursuit law.

Washington State legislators undertook a deadly experiment in 2021, and residents of our state suffered immeasurable pain and suffering as a result.  The Legislator limited the ability of police to pursue criminals, and consequently increased motor vehicle thefts, burglaries, robberies, and (most tragically of all) reckless driving fatalities.  Their ill-conceived law empowered perpetrators of these dangerous and destructive crimes to simply drive away from police, even in stolen cars if they chose to, without worry about being pursued.  Many of us spoke out vehemently about the harm this was causing our residents, but it took years of heartbreaking tragedies to finally persuade enough of our legislators to undo their foolish law.

Washington legislators were determined to show that they could reduce the  3 to 6 deaths that occur statewide from police chases, and instead of altering that trend, they got hundreds of new fatalities as criminals sped recklessly with abandon through all our streets and highways.  The latest statistics show Renton saw hundreds of additional crimes during this time period, as can be seen in the chart above.  Rates of crimes in these categories finally began falling in 2024, when the police pursuit limitations were repealed.

Currently our legislature is looking at reduced penalties for perpetrators caught in child sex stings, as well as reduced sentences for a large number of other crimes.  They are also considering preventing officers from pulling over cars for broken equipment and/or lapsed registrations (and typically insurance).  I hope they put more analysis and thought into their deliberations this year than they did in 2021, when they effectively sentenced many of our innocent residents to beatings, burglaries, robberies, assaults and even death on our roadways and elsewhere.