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Youth mental health, violence prevention focus of Seattle mayor's new plan

A new investment strategy would be coupled with an Executive Order, which will include $2 million toward violence prevention and intervention.

SEATTLE — Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell proposed a new plan to support youth mental health and address gun violence on Friday. 

A new investment strategy would be coupled with an Executive Order, which will include $2 million toward violence prevention, intervention and other steps to promote safety.

Harrell announced the plan just over a week after 17-year-old Amarr Murphy-Paine was shot and killed outside Garfield High School. Harrell cited the shooting, calling it a "tragedy" that inflicted trauma on the community.

"Young people deserve safety and support to thrive – these investments in youth mental health and school safety deliver on these priorities and calls for action from students, families, and educators," a statement from Harrell reads, in part. "We cannot solve this alone, but the City has the capacity to convene the partnerships needed to make progress."

The proposal will allocate up to $10 million from the city's mid-year supplemental budget toward youth mental health and safety for the start of the 2024-25 school year. The investments would begin in the summer. 

The first priority will be $2.4 million for telehealth therapy services, according to Harrell's office. The goal is to make it easier to access care and improve the diversity of the provider pool. The money is expected to expand access to telehealth from 80 students to more than 2,000.

As part of the city's research, a survey of 10th graders found that 19% feel unsafe at school and 12% perceived handguns were available. That research prompted Executive Order 2024-01, which takes immediate and long-term steps to address youth and community safety. Those steps include:

  • Developing a "100 Days of Action" campaign focused on violence prevention
  • Dedicating $2 million to youth violence prevention
  • Expanding current initiatives to support student safety around schools
  • Stationing officers outside Garfield High and expanding patrols
  • Taking steps to add CCTV cameras to streets surrounding Garfield High
  • Better identifying students at risk of being impacted by violence
  • Commissioning a report to track firearms and improve partnerships to address dangerous and illegal guns
  • Conduct further research on community safety
  • Strengthen emergency alert protocols
  • Advocate for change at the state level to address firearm safety, including changes to how firearms are purchased and giving cities the freedom to implement their own regulations

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