By Liz Steen

Special Correspondent

Promising a city that is “safe and free,” Mayor Katie Wilson announced Tuesday that Seattle would reactivate police surveillance cameras in the SODO Stadium District and expand the network into Capitol Hill and the Central District, while adopting stronger privacy safeguards recommended by an independent audit of the SPD Real Time Crime Center (“RTCC”), a unit within SPD staffed by civilian employees.

“I am dedicated to making Seattle the safest big city in the country – safe from gun violence and serious crime, and safe from authoritarianism from the federal government,” Wilson said. Video of Tuesday’s press conference is here: https://www.adc.seattlechannel.org/mayor-and-council/mayor/city-of-seattle-mayor-videos  A link to a map of the CCTV Camera Locations is here: CCTV Camera Locations | Seattle GeoData

Freedom From Crime vs. Freedom From Surveillance.

Wilson expressed hope that the footage will help solve crimes.

"Our city has too many grieving families, too many communities who rightfully expect crimes to be solved, but are losing hope of their day in court," Wilson said. "Justice means protecting from harm and preventing it. It means delivering accountability afterward. My decision today strikes that balance."

CCTV cameras monitored Downtown, Chinatown-International District, and North Aurora  when Seattle hosted the World Cup for 22 homicide-free days, but were switched off on July 19, 2026 pending an audit to determine the surveillance system’s benefits and risk connected to the police department’s 24-hour surveillance Real Time Crime Center (“RTCC”) employees who use the camera footage.

Wilson paused the CCTV expansion, which was approved before she took office, earlier this year while the NYU School of Law Policing Project reviewed the program's privacy protections. Cameras in the Stadium District operated during the World Cup but were subsequently deactivated. Cameras already operating in Downtown, Chinatown–International District and North Aurora remained active.

“I understand that (turning on Stadium Cameras) is a priority for many businesses and others in SODO and also for Councilmember Rob Saka as the representative for District 1,” Wilson said referring to the district that includes West Seattle, SODO, and Pioneer Square – the cameras are located around the SODO Stadium District.

Police, Neighborhood Groups, Support the Cameras and the RTCC

How the footage will be used remains to be seen. Police Officers will not have access to the cameras and the city will turn off the cameras for 60 days if the federal government tries to access the system through Axon, the company that sells the subscription and the cameras.

“Our analysts are the ones that control the cameras. Our officers don't have access to the cameras,’ said Interim Seattle Police Chief Andre Sayles.

Seattle police credit the CCTV cameras with solving “hundreds” of crimes, including 17 homicide investigations, according to Sayles. The Mayor’s independent audit of the police department’s Real Time Crime Center, released Monday, refused to draw that conclusion because of the way the data is reported.

CCTV Footage Reviewed Vs. Footage Used as Evidence

SPD will move forward with recommendations for stronger safeguards from the mayor’s privacy audit of RTCC, the SPD civilian employee unit that uses the camera footage. The 29-employee RTCC system received more mixed reviews in the audit due to SPD’s broader data collection categories. The Policing Project audit, speaking of RTCC and not specifically about the Axon CCTV cameras in Seattle said, “Although the potential benefits of the RTCC as described by the City are plausible, the current research base supporting these benefits is thin.”

The audit passage saying benefits are “thin” appears to address the usefulness of SPD’s investigation data reporting. Auditors urged SPD to report the way the camera footage is used, specifically, rather than a yes-or-no response saying only whether or not investigators used the data as part of their investigation.  SPD counts the CCTV footage as assisting investigators both when footage is used to rule out a line of inquiry in an investigation, and when footage provides direct evidence of a crime in an investigation. All investigations where SPD employees review footage are counted as “assisted” by the footage. 

The auditors wanted more specifics. The report from the NYU School of Law Policing Project settled on the more pedantic distinction that CCTV camera footage had been used in successful investigations, but the camera footage itself could not be proved to be decisive in collecting evidence if SPD only reported whether or not footage was reviewed.

Link to SPD’s civilian-controlled RTCC system info here: https://www.seattle.gov/documents/Departments/Tech/Surveillance/2024%20SIR/TACPP/RTCC/RTCC_SIR_One_Pager_english_FINAL.pdf Link to audit of Seattle’s RTCC here: Policing+Project+Seattle+RTCC+Governance+Audit.pdf

Axon CCTV Subscriptions Work “Like YouTube.”

RTCC employs 29 civilians under the Seattle Police Department. These employees log into the Axon system, like you would a Youtube account, to view and download footage, according to police spokesperson Patrick Michaud. The log ins are unique City employee numbers, not a badge number. In theory, Axon can track every city employee number to see who viewed and downloaded footage, to verify the accuracy of the footage.

Seattle owns the video data from the cameras, while Axon hosts the data through its Evidence.com evidence-management software system; similar to the way an individual owns a Youtube account and uploads footage.

“The system will maintain audit logs of user and system actions… We own the data,” said police spokesperson Michaud, comparing the Axon account and software to a Youtube account. Axon hosts the footage but cannot independently use the footage, and has restricted access under the contract.  Axon is contractually required to notify Seattle if the federal government or anyone else requests to view the CCTV footage.  

Seattle police representatives said Tuesday that SPD employees, not outside contractors or police officers, control the Axon data.

Although the audit did not recommend returning the Axon Fusos CORE devices that are provided as part of the company’s subscription, the city also plans to return 100 AI-assisted devices that would have connected private surveillance cameras to the police network, according to SPD technology director Nick Zajchowski. Camera owners can still register their systems through Axon’s website, allowing them to share footage with SPD. Linked here: Camera Integration - Connect Seattle.

SPD opted to return the software stations that would have allowed private cameras to connect to the police CCTV network. The Policing Project Audit “SPD has purchased 100 fususCORE devices to give to businesses at its discretion; each can support several cameras.” The devices appear to have been purchased as part of the subscription, but Seattle opted not to use the AI-assisted technology.

“We have decided not to give those devices away,” Zajchowski said.

 Link to Axon Fusos here: https://cdn.mediavalet.com/usva/axon/Hn45atxxFEGiT35S5EVaIg/HOGftib6pU-QtMemC4c1BA/Original/Axon%20Fusus%20AI%20Product%20Card%20EN_US.pdf

Wilson Promises to Keep Surveillance Footage Out of ICE's Hands

Faced with a balancing test among business owners, neighborhood groups, police, and civil liberties groups worried about abuse of the surveillance, the mayor appears to have backed the police, with caveats particularly around immigration arrests in the city.

Wilson said that the city will shut down the camera system for 60 days, however, if there’s a chance the data might be misused.

“I will not allow the data that the city collects to be used to harm immigrants, LGBTQ plus people, or others who may be targeted by federal agencies or other bad actors,” she said, while also acknowledging, “Even if we implement all of these recommendations, some level of risk will remain.”

The city added protections to the contract to avoid giving data to ICE or other federal agencies.  SPD says it currently conducts monthly audits of the camera footage using a sample of incidents, but the department is still working with Axon to find a way to report the data. The Policing Project audit recommended stronger access controls and regular internal audits.  

Seattle ICE Arrests Do Not Appear to Rely on Axon CCTV Footage

Seattle’s Axon CCTV cameras were on for the three weeks of the world cup, during which ICE arrests surged nationally, beginning in mid-June. See picture. The Deportation Data Project identified June and July 2026 as record months for arrests as approximately 1.4 million international visitors traveled to the United States. The data can be searched here: Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Deportation Data Project Unfortunately the data stops in August 2026, shortly after the specific Axon CCTV cameras were turned off in Seattle. Other surveillance cameras remain in the city. More information is available through the City of Seattle Surveillance Impact Report from 2024 and 2025, linked here: https://www.seattle.gov/documents/Departments/Tech/Surveillance/Material%20Update%20Docs/2025/2025%20SPD%20RTCC%20SIR%20-%20Material%20Update%20-%20Track%20Changes.pd

The decision announced Tuesday leaves Seattle with a difficult balance: using surveillance cameras to investigate violent crime while ensuring the footage does not become a tool for federal immigration enforcement or an intrusion on residents’ civil liberties.

“By centralizing surveillance technologies and data, real-time crime centers raise significant concerns around privacy, accountability, and oversight,” said Max Isaacs, the Director of Technology Law & Policy at the Policing Project. “Although SPD has implemented meaningful safeguards, our review identified important policy gaps that city officials should act promptly to address significant risks.”

The link to the auditor’s public statement is here: https://www.policingproject.org/civil-liberties-audit-urges-seattle-to-increase-transparency-and-adopt-safeguards-for-real-time-crime-center

Potential West Seattle Impact.

The expansion of Seattle's surveillance network also raises questions about its potential use in other neighborhoods, including Alki Beach in West Seattle, where residents have complained about street racing, reckless driving and late-night disturbances. The neighborhood is not currently slated for the cameras, but was used in the October 2024 feasibility study from council member Saka. Saka’s Amendment is linked here: CB 120844 - Amendment 4 v2 (added; 9/25/24) Saka said he wanted the cameras to be evaluated for “a range of public safety concerns” including “unlawful racing and related community safety challenges.” This appeared to indicate the city would use license plate reader technology, but Wilson rejected the technology on Tuesday.

“These are not Flock cameras. This is a different system, managed by a different company,” Wilson said. Flock Safety is known for its automated license plate recognition systems and has faced criticism over law-enforcement data sharing, including concerns about federal immigration enforcement and police officers who used the cameras to monitor women they were dating.

Axon's technology could allow police to monitor public areas, review footage after incidents and connect privately owned security cameras to the Real-Time Crime Center. The city has rejected the license plate readers as too risky, but the same privacy concerns identified in the Policing Project audit would apply to any expansion along Alki: who can access the recordings, how long they are retained and whether footage collected for public safety could be used for unrelated investigations. The controversy extended to a different type of camera in Renton, where city officials briefly approved Flock cameras before turning them off and covering the devices. Link to coverage of Renton’s Flock cameras here: https://www.westsideseattle.com/robinson-papers/2026/08/23/west-seattles-surveillance-standoff-will-rising-shootings-finally-turn?

Wilson said Axon has a better security record than Flock Tuesday.

“While there are obviously similarities in the technologies, I think it’s fair to say Axon has a more responsible record,” she said.