The 'Woke Language' Interim Seattle Police Chief Uses to Describe Shooters Is Not Going Over Well

Like many Democrat-run cities across the country, Seattle is a hot mess when it comes to combating crime, with city "leaders" often demanding hands-off approaches to things like confronting street thugs, repeat offenders, violent wacktivists, and the like.

Though this approach has been favored for some time now by the Democrats and socialists who hold all the power, Seattle's openly socialist mayor, Katie Wilson, took things to a whole new level once she took office, making stupid and dangerous decisions like these, for example:

Socialist Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson claims surveillance cameras are "primary threat to immigrants"—they helped identify suspect in brutal assault of elderly manhttps://t.co/QruGGeIx2c

— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) May 6, 2026

UPDATE: Seattle Marxist Mayor Katie Wilson announced today that she has turned off the city cameras since the World Cup Matches are over.

Activists are still planning their protest against the cameras

Wilson just let every criminal know she isn't interested in stopping them https://t.co/XewFbjchwZ pic.twitter.com/5AfCKDVtLG

— Ari Hoffman (@thehoffather) July 7, 2026

Perhaps more infamous was Wilson's decision to force then-Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes to resign just days after the city badly bungled the initial response to the mass shooting that occurred at the Bite of Seattle food festival in July, which killed three, including one of the alleged suspects, and injured four.

Now in Barnes' place is Interim Police Chief Andre Sayles, who had a rather interesting way to describe shooters during a Labor Day press conference in response to a surge in violence on Seattle streets:

A violent 24-hour stretch in Seattle left three people dead and three others injured following three separate shooting incidents in and around the Belltown neighborhood.

[...]

In response to the rapid succession of street takeovers and gun violence, questions have been raised regarding whether the department was overwhelmed by the volume of incidents occurring in such a short window of time.

[...]

Sayles added that SPD's intelligence unit is working to address street takeovers more effectively. The department plans to partner with local businesses, increase patrols, and focus efforts on targeting known "trigger pullers."

"Trigger pullers"? That didn't sit well with some Seattle residents, including journalist Jonathan Choe, who wrote on X, "Now Seattle leaders are trying to control the narrative by creating woke language. Incredible."

The Post Millennial's (TPM) West Coast editor Ari Hoffman, also a Seattleite, was equally unamused:

So in Seattle we aren't calling them "shooters" anymore? Now they are "trigger pullers"? pic.twitter.com/fiYvVMYpQO

— Ari Hoffman (@thehoffather) September 7, 2026

Seattle-based TPM investigative journalist Katie Daviscourt remarked, "Quite the rebrand."

I get that this term is sometimes used by law enforcement officers, but I don't think it's very common, in part because it's almost like it takes the focus away from the fact that someone actually shot the gun and puts more focus on the gun itself. Which, come to think of it, might be the point:

A term from the Biden Administration to move away from “repeat offenders who shoot and kill.” Another socialist accommodation to criminals, along with “gun violence.” Takes the focus away from criminal behavior to the mechanics of a gun. “If only that gun had no trigger.” pic.twitter.com/Keu4kv0vTO

— Marcus Notrealius (@TheLieKeeper) September 7, 2026

Sounds about right.

Editor’s Note: The American people overwhelmingly support President Trump’s law and order agenda.

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