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Mayor Harrell Celebrates CARE Department Two-Year Anniversary and Permanent Responder Program  – Office of the Mayor

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Mayor Harrell Celebrates CARE Department Two-Year Anniversary and Permanent Responder Program  – Office of the Mayor


Seattle – Today, Mayor Bruce Harrell celebrated the two-year anniversary of the creation of the Community Assisted Response and Engagement (CARE) department, combining Seattle’s 911 Center with the new Community Crisis Responder (CCR) team. Initially launched as a small team with limited hours and service area, CCRs steadily expanded in size and footprint and have been successfully and safely dispatched to over 6,700 incidents over the past two years as an alternative to a police response. This integrated model pairs call-taking and dispatch with unarmed behavioral health responders, giving Seattle a new way to respond to non-violent crisis calls while preserving police and fire resources for where they are needed most. 

“I’m proud to celebrate two years of the CARE Department and our Community Crisis Responder pilot program, which is now becoming a permanent part of Seattle’s public safety system. CARE represents the fulfillment of our vision for a comprehensive approach to public safety – a third branch working alongside police and fire to ensure every resident receives the right response at the right time,” said Mayor Harrell. “I want to thank Chief Barden and all the dedicated CARE employees for their exceptional work connecting people in crisis with compassionate care and vital services. I look forward to celebrating this department’s continued success for many years to come.” 

Under the new police contract announced by Mayor Harrell earlier this week, there are no longer any limits on how many CARE responders can be hired and they can be solo dispatched to low-acuity emergency calls. Mayor Harrell’s public safety sales tax plan would provide $9.5 million to double the number of CARE Community Crisis Responders (CCR) with 24 new positions in 2026, as well as supervisors, a new training manager, and additional equipment. The expansion will increase the number of CCRs on staff and extend service hours, ensuring more Seattle residents have access to compassionate, effective crisis response. The investment will also add 12 dispatcher and call taker positions to ensure the 911 Center, which has already fielded more than 581,000 calls and texts in 2025, is fully staffed.   

“Today we are significantly closer to achieving the vision of three co-equal departments of first responders, and a Seattle 911 equipped to send the best first response to a call. Philosophically, the police and fire departments represent physical safety and health provision; and the CARE department represents mental and emotional health provision,” said CARE Chief Amy Barden. “All three departments should and must be anchored in a philosophy of rehabilitation. I congratulate the pilot team of CARE responders and express my gratitude to the outstanding professionals in Seattle 911 who have made all this progress possible, who have converted a theory and a dream into reality.” 

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The Seattle CARE department represents a new paradigm in public safety, a third City department which works in partnership with police and fire and is focused on helping people in need of behavioral health care. Seattle’s unique approach to diversified emergency response is designed to connect people in crisis with help and free up police resources to answer the calls where they’re needed most. CARE’s model and practices were highlighted by the National League of Cities as a case study of the “Community Response Model” as part of their Reimagining Public Safety Initiative. 

Since launching in late 2023 as a limited pilot of six responders focused on Downtown and the Chinatown-International District, the CCR program has steadily expanded and demonstrated strong results. In 2024, the pilot expanded to additional neighborhoods and seven days a week with 10 additional responders. In early 2025, it added more CCRs and expanded citywide, responding to more than 5,000 incidents citywide. Today, CCRs operate citywide seven days a week to ensure reliable response times and the ability to surge resources to emerging needs in partnership with 9-1-1.  

CARE recently launched a digital dashboard, enabling the public to view data from 2024 to date, showing call volume by precinct, the busiest times of day for Community Crisis Responders and most frequent call types. 

What People Are Saying 

Charlotte Joseph, Deputy Chief CARE 

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“Seattle 9-1-1 is extremely grateful for the opportunity to work collaboratively with our public safety partners at SPD, SFD, and the Community Crisis Responders with the goal of providing the community with the best first response. The work done in 9-1-1 is essential to the public safety ecosystem. We remain dedicated to employee development, as we focus on enhancing skillsets and knowledge about the alternative response options and best practices within public safety.” 

Catriana Hernandez, CARE Crisis Response Manager 

“We are beyond excited to celebrate our two-year anniversary. It was no small feat in standing up a new program. This has only been made possible through our partnership with local government, public safety, and community services. They have tirelessly supported our emerging nationwide vision of a more holistic, adaptable, and data-driven approach to mental health emergencies” 



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Seattle, WA

MLB Mock Trade: Seattle Mariners Deal Luis Castillo to Atlanta Braves

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MLB Mock Trade: Seattle Mariners Deal Luis Castillo to Atlanta Braves


The Seattle Mariners have had a busy offseason as they try to improve their roster and break through to the World Series for the first time in franchise history. Seattle has been active in free agency and on the trade market. One of their final roster questions is who will serve as the backup catcher behind Cal Raleigh. The Mariners could make one more move before the start of the season to address this need, potentially through a trade with the Atlanta Braves.

The Atlanta Braves are dealing with some serious injuries to their starting rotation this offseason. After an impressive 2025 campaign, Spencer Schwellenbach has been shut down because of bone spurs. Breakout candidate Hurston Waldrep was also shut down during Spring Training with elbow inflammation. Both pitchers underwent surgery in February, leaving two open spots in Atlanta’s rotation. Let’s break down a mock trade centered on Luis Castillo that could help fill those holes for the Braves.

Atlanta Braves – Seattle Mariners Mock Trade

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Atlanta Braves receive SP Luis Castillo 

Seattle Mariners receive C Sean Murphy, SP Owen Murphy 

In this mock trade, the Braves acquire All-Star starter Luis Castillo. In exchange, the Mariners receive former All-Star catcher Sean Murphy and a young pitching prospect in Owen Murphy.

Fantasy Baseball Outlook

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Luis Castillo would slot into the Atlanta Braves’ starting rotation behind Chris Sale and Spencer Strider. He has been very effective for the Mariners since they acquired him from the Reds at the trade deadline four seasons ago. In 2025, Castillo went 11–8 in 32 games with a 3.54 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and 162 strikeouts. His fantasy value would likely dip if he left Seattle’s pitcher-friendly ballpark. Still, he has proven himself as a reliable, effective starter through consistent performance, and he would play a key role for Atlanta.

With the Mariners, Sean Murphy would serve as the backup catcher behind Cal Raleigh. He would likely see a drop in playing time in Seattle, but this move could also give the Mariners more opportunities to use Raleigh at DH. With the fifth spot open in the Seattle rotation, Emerson Hancock and Cooper Criswell would be viable, experienced options. Alternatively, Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan are elite prospects who have had strong Spring Trainings and could break camp on Opening Day. The young pitching prospect Owen Murphy would also join a talented farm system and provide a future option for the rotation.

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VIDEO: Scream Club Seattle keeps growing, midway through first year

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VIDEO: Scream Club Seattle keeps growing, midway through first year


(Story originally posted 8:22 pm, updated 12:32 am)

By Torin Record-Sand
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

From a distance, they looked like a regular crowd of people enjoying a nice evening walk on the shores of Lincoln Park. But they were gathered here for a singular purpose: to scream. Since September 2025, the Scream Club Seattle has met at Lincoln Park on every third Sunday to scream, led by head organizer Amber Walcker. No explanation, justification, or invitation to scream is needed – come as you are. “There are some harder emotions people come here to deal with, sure, but some people also just come to scream.” head organizer Amber explained.

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Tonight’s crowd showed the club is rapidly growing. From around a dozen or so participants in the first gathering in September, tonight seemed to attract around 40 people gathering to let it all out.

As the sun started to set, and everyone was finally gathered together, the Scream Club was ready to begin.

There are only three screams, organizer Amber explained. The first, she said, is a scream to get used to doing it in public. The second scream is there to ground you. And the final – and longest scream – is there to let you have an emotional catharsis.

She also wanted to make sure people were taking care of their vocal health beforehand. As she told everyone to walk a little bit from the meeting place and start to gather near the shore, she instructed the crowd to hum for a few minutes on the way, to warm up the vocal cords.

With that, the crowd walked towards the shore.

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“On the count of one – two – three – scream!” said organizer Amber.

You can see our video of the proceedings here. After the screaming, we talked to a few participants about why they came out.

“There’s not one thing that’s really making me want to scream. There’s a lot of stuff going on for me, a lot of emotional ups and downs. Screaming into the ocean together gives you a sense of community.” said Jessie.

“This is my third or fourth time coming to scream. With the political climate, with everything that’s happening, getting together with local community to scream feels more productive than screaming into the internet on social media.” said Ursula.

“This is my first time coming out.” said Liz. “I screamed after the Seahawks won the Super Bowl, and I really felt something. I realized I’ve been feeling a lot of frustration recently, and it felt like coming here was a healthy way to get it out rather than screaming at your neighbors.”

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Organizer Amber recognizes much of what they were saying. “Meeting like this can be an important element to have in your mental health toolbox. It’s rare to have scream therapy.” She shared an anecdote about the therapeutic origins of the group, which originally started with a chapter in Chicago. “The founder was a life coach. Their girlfriend was having a bad day, and they encouraged them to go to the Chicago Pier and just let it out. He walked her through the process, and that was that. Eventually they invited more people to come do it.” She hopes to bring that same therapeutic energy to the practice here. “It’s a moment of emotional release more than anything else. Depending on what’s going on in people’s minds, everyone will come here with a different mindset and purpose. We’re providing a safe space to do that.”

Scream Club Seattle meets at Lincoln Park on the first Sunday of every month, and they are also starting to meet on the third Sunday of every month at Golden Gardens in Ballard. Tentatively, the next events will be in Lincoln Park on April 5th around 6 PM, and Golden Gardens on March 15th around 5 PM. If you’d like to know more, you can find them on Instagram here or look at their future events on their Eventbrite page here.





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Detectives Investigating Robbery, Shooting Over $20 Necklace – SPD Blotter

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Detectives Investigating Robbery, Shooting Over  Necklace – SPD Blotter


Seattle police detectives are investigating a robbery and shooting of a 23-year-old man over a $20 necklace in Pioneer Square this morning.

At about 12:40 a.m., patrol officers responded to a shooting in the 500 block of 2nd Avenue. There, they found a victim, bleeding, with a gunshot wound to his right thigh. Police and the Seattle Fire Department treated his injury. Medics took him to Harborview Medical Center (HMC) in stable condition.

Police determined that the victim just left a bar, getting into the passenger seat of his friend’s car, when the suspect, wearing a ski mask and armed with a firearm, approached him and demanded his necklace. They struggled over the item, and the suspect shot the victim in the leg. The shooter fled in a vehicle with the necklace before police arrived. The value of the “chain” is about $20.

Detectives in the Robbery Unit responded to the scene and HMC. Anyone with information is asked to call the SPD Violent Crimes Tip line at 206-233-5000. Anonymous tips are accepted.

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Incident Number: 2026-57536



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