What's Next For The 'Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone' Is Unclear

SEATTLE, WA — The future is uncertain for an area of Seattle now known across the nation as the "Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone." Mayor Jenny Durkan and Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best held a news conference Thursday afternoon to discuss the so-called zone, which came about after police abandoned a precinct building and gave demonstrators free reign over the area.

Since Monday, the blocks surrounding the Seattle Police Department's East Precinct have quickly become a topic of national interest, prompting the ire of President Donald Trump both Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

The area — first deemed Free Capitol Hill, now often just called CHAZ — encompasses a short stretch of East Pine Street, 11th Avenue and 12th Avenue, including a portion of Cal Anderson Park.

On Monday afternoon, police removed "sensitive items" from the East Precinct, boarded up the windows and put up fencing, then largely left the neighborhood.

At the time, the police chief called the move "an exercise in trust," and an act of de-escalation, following nightly protests at a police barricade that often ended with officers deploying tear gas, flashbangs and pepper spray on large crowds.

Related: OPA Launches 2 Probes Into Weekend Protest Response

In the days since, the CHAZ has turned into a street fair, art space, community garden and documentary screening site. Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant rallied an estimated 2,000 people at Cal Anderson Park Tuesday evening, before leading a march to City Hall.

Durkan slams Trump's tweets

Early on in her remarks Thursday, Durkan addressed Trump's tweets directly.

"Unfortunately, our President wants to tell a story about domestic terrorists who have a radical agenda and are promoting a conspiracy that fits his law and order initiatives," Durkan said. "It's simply not true. Lawfully gathering and expressing first amendment rights, demanding we do better as a society, and providing true equity for communities of color is not terrorism. It's patriotism."

Durkan continued to say federal intervention, as threatened in the President's tweet, would be not only unwelcome but illegal.

Gov. Jay Inslee weighed in on social media Thursday morning.

What's next for CHAZ?

Although Thursday's news conference lasted more than 30 minutes, neither Durkan nor Best provided clear details for the city's path forward on Capitol Hill.

Durkan redirected questions about when police might return to the precinct to the chief, who was non-commital to a timeline. Best visited the precinct with her command staff earlier Thursday, and officers were seen entering the building shortly before the news conference began.

The mayor repeated that she did not want to reestablish a "flashpoint" in the area.

"We also have to make sure we don't recreate the entire cycle that we just were able to disrupt," Durkan said. "We're trying to do things in a way that is responsible and addresses the real-life situation on the ground."

According to Best, police response times are up to three times longer since the East Precinct shuttered.

"The difference in that amount of time could prevent someone's life and prevent a violent attack," Best said. "It was never an option to have residents of the precinct, many of whom are members of our most marginalized communities, by the way, waiting an extra length of time for an officer to arrive to a violent crime in progress."

Best said her department was open and ready to "engage in dialog and action" to address inequality and racism. Some community leaders have called for the precinct to be transformed into a community center. Best did not commit to that, nor did she say when the building might return to normal operations.

"We all know that over history when people have cried out for justice — when they've been Black, when they've been Latino, when LGBTQ or Asian — the police department and the police officers are often on the wrong side of good, and often perpetuating the status quo," Best said. "We have to acknowledge history — a long history of abuses."

Another question remained unanswered Thursday: who directed officers to leave the East Precinct on Monday?

Best says the decision to remove the barricades and reopen the roads was reached with her command staff to de-escalate tensions and allow protesters to march through the streets.

"We were asked to do an operational plan, in case we needed to leave," Best said. "We got an update that there was the potential for fire — of course if the precinct goes down in fire, the whole block could potentially burn up."

According to the chief, what began as a precautionary measure ended with officers out of the precinct altogether

"As officers were taking things out of the precinct, they didn't want to come back into the precinct, and many of them did not."

Pressed on who may have directed officers to leave the precinct Thursday, Best remained vague.

"We're still going to evaluate exactly, pinpoint exactly why that changed, but it didn't come from me."

In a video sent to officers earlier in the day, and posted publicly by the police department, Chief Best blamed external pressure in forcing police from the precinct.

"To have a change of course, nearly two weeks in, it seems like an insult to you and our community," Best said. "Ultimately the city had other plans for the building and relented to severe public pressure."

Police backpedal claims of intimidation, harassment in the CHAZ

Reporters at City Hall asked the police chief to detail earlier claims by the police department that people and businesses within CHAZ had reported acts of extortion and intimidation since officers left the area.

Several media outlets reported on remarks given by Assitant Police Chief Deanne Nollette Wednesday, citing vague concerns purportedly from neighbors and businesses. Many restaurants refuted the assertion after it surfaced, and Capitol Hill's chamber of commerce told the Seattle Times it had seen no evidence the claims were true.

Best repeated the claims in the message sent to officers Thursday.

"We have heard that there are armed people 'patrolling' the streets near 12th and Pine," Best said. "We've also received reports that these armed people may be demanding payment from business owners in exchange for some of that protection."

At the news conference, Best confirmed no formal reports were filed with the department, saying they heard from people "anecdotally" and via social media and news reports.

The Times tracked the source of the unfounded claims to a post on a conservative website, later repeated by a commenter on the Capitol Hill Seattle blog.