Text messages from Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s office show senior staff scrambling to manage public messaging and safety concerns in the hours after a mass shooting killed three people at Seattle Center, fueling criticism over delayed and confused leadership.
On July 27, a shooting erupted at the popular Bite of Seattle festival beneath the Space Needle, leaving three dead and multiple others wounded. As emergency crews responded and festival-goers fled, internal communications from the mayor’s office, later obtained by KIRO 7, revealed city officials in disarray about how and when to address the public and what information to share.
The mayor’s office was notified that Seattle Center had been “contained” more than three hours before city leaders finally addressed citizens. In the meantime, a series of text exchanges show staffers frustrated with the Seattle Police Department’s slow disclosure, debates over the mayor’s presence at the scene, and the release of inaccurate information about suspects in custody.
Jonah Spangenthal-Lee, then-interim press secretary, summed up the mood in one message: “It’s f**king embarrassing that SPD has waited HOURS to put anything out.” Interim Communications Director Dawn Schellenberg shot back: “Well, we're not!” Behind the scenes, staff hashed out drafts of public statements as the situation continued to evolve.
As the city scrambled, the community watched and waited. According to police, the violence was likely the result of two groups exchanging gunfire near the festival’s closing hours, with at least three shooters involved. One suspect, a 15-year-old, was detained; another died at the scene; and a third remained at large. Four others, including a 2-year-old child, were hospitalized, though all survived. AP News reported that investigators suspected the chaos was gang-related, compounding public fear and confusion.
Records reveal that Mayor Wilson was made aware of the shooting almost immediately after it occurred around 6 p.m. But her office’s public response lagged, with Wilson not appearing at a press conference until roughly 11 p.m., hours after both Governor Bob Ferguson and Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal had already arrived. In a text, Wilson worried, “I’m sure they would love to spin an ‘absent mayor’ story.”
As the city’s communications team debated whether Wilson should head to the scene, staffers discussed how to craft her statement. Public Safety Advisor Alison Holcomb wrote, “It’s good for her to take the lead in acknowledging those impacts and letting everyone know we’ll share more as we learn it.” But the administration’s first official statement contained a glaring error: it claimed two suspects were in custody when, in reality, only one had been detained. Deputy Mayor Brian Surratt caught the mistake and directed staff, “please revise.”
Spangenthal-Lee later appeared to minimize the error, texting, “S**t happens... I’m not really worried about it.” But for families of the victims and thousands of Seattle residents, the confusion and misinformation only deepened anxiety and distrust.
The Bite of Seattle typically draws more than 350,000 attendees over three days. The shooting, which witnesses described as “pure chaos”, sent crowds running for safety, with bystanders helping the wounded and festival workers trying to usher people to shelter. “People were hiding, were pushing, people were falling on the ground, baby strollers were falling,” one attendee told the New York Post.
Assistant Seattle Police Chief Tyrone Davis told Breitbart, “We’re still trying to figure this out,” as police searched for additional suspects. While police insisted there was “no ongoing threat,” the presence of a suspect still at large left many uneasy. Just The News confirmed that one arrest had been made, but questions lingered about the full scope of those involved.
Police also told the Washington Examiner that the Seattle Monorail was shut down and urged the public to avoid the area, as confusion swirled about how many shooters were involved and whether anyone remained at large.
The fallout for Mayor Wilson was swift. Local residents Melinda Jacobson and Dale Osterud filed paperwork to recall Wilson, alleging she was “derelict in her duties for public safety of the city of Seattle.” The recall charge, described in reporting from the Daily Mail, cited Wilson’s delayed and confused response as evidence of failed leadership.
While Wilson’s staff tried to keep the focus on community healing and generalities, as Holcomb put it, “The mayor’s statement is general and focused on family and community impacts”, critics argue that the real problem was a lack of clear, timely, and accurate information from Seattle’s top office.
As of now, basic questions remain unanswered. The motive for the shooting is still under investigation. The full details of how the mayor’s office coordinated with police and emergency responders in those crucial hours have not been explained. And for many in Seattle, the text messages show a city government more worried about optics and political fallout than leading in a crisis.
In a city rocked by violence and uncertainty, Seattle’s leaders owe residents more than closed-door strategy sessions and messaging debates. They owe them competence, and the courage to face hard truths in public.
