Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes resigned Thursday following questions about how often he was out of town. Both he and Mayor Katie Wilson faced heavy criticism for the slow release of information following a fatal shooting at Seattle Center on Sunday.
Wilson has appointed Deputy Chief Andre Sayles as interim police chief.
"I hope this transition gives the city and this department the opportunity to return full focus to what matters most, addressing youth gun violence and preventing more tragedies," he wrote in his letter of resignation to Wilson.
Barnes was hired by former mayor Bruce Harrell in late 2024. Before coming to Seattle, Barnes was the police chief for Madison, Wisconsin.
The announcement follows questions over how long it took police to disseminate information about whether the area around Seattle Center was safe after Sunday's shooting. At that time, Barnes was at a police conference in Dallas.
The incident is believed to be gang related. Three people died from gunshots and at least four were wounded.
Wilson praised Barnes' service while leading SPD but also criticized what she called "communication gaps" between the police department and her office Sunday night.
During a Friday news conference, Wilson said there were "multiple factors" behind her decision to ask for the chief's resignation. She declined to go into specifics.
"I think there is a lot of information out there that can suggest to people the reasons why this decision was made," Wilson said. "The events of Sunday certainly played into it."
A divided response from elected officials
After Barnes resigned, four Seattle City Councilmembers, including council president Joy Hollingsworth, issued a joint statement in support of the outgoing chief. They also cautioned that making "a significant leadership change in this moment puts our city in a precarious situation."
"Having cycled through four police chiefs in just two and a half years, our priority must be stability, not further disruption. The people of Seattle deserve reliable leadership, especially as we close our a busy summer of public events," the statement read.
In a separate statement, Councilmember Maritza Rivera said the mayor’s “lack of experience and her incompetence have led to poor decision making and put the safety of our communities at risk.”
Wilson acknowledged councilmembers' criticism, but argued that, as mayor, she has a "different window" into the police department.
“I firmly believe that I’m making the right decision at the right time, and part of this is feeling a sense of urgency around upcoming events this summer, including this weekend,” Wilson said. “Wanting to make sure we have the right leadership in place at SPD, the right communication protocols, so that as we move forward, we can be much clearer with the public if something like this should happen again.”
The city’s search for a permanent chief will “focus on someone who drives operational excellence and leads organizational change,” Wilson said.
Appearing to reference Barnes’ frequent travel — and his heated reaction to a reporter who questioned him about it — Wilson said she’s looking for a new police chief who “keeps travel to an appropriate minimum” and can “navigate the inevitable criticism that comes with this job.”
Black community leaders rally for Barnes
Thursday morning, hours before the mayor confirmed Barnes resignation, dozens of leaders from Seattle’s Black community rallied at City Hall in support of Barnes. The rally was quickly pulled together by civic, faith and business leaders shocked to learn Barnes' job was on the line.
NAACP State Area Conference President Sheley Secrest said one of their messages to the mayor: be inclusive.
“When you have a decision that impacts the Black community, get the Black community together before taking action,” Secrest said.
Bishop Reggie Witherspoon of Seattle’s Mount Calvary Christian Center helped lead the rally, and spoke to reporters prior to Barnes’ resignation.
"This is a rash decision that's not well-advised. It seems to be a decision that shows some inexperience and some lack of wisdom,” Witherspoon said.
“We honor the mayor, we honor the position that she walks and we want to help her to succeed. We want the police department to succeed. When these entities succeed, we all succeed. So, it's not one against the other, it's all of us together."
When asked if Barnes were to leave, Witherspoon said the Black community will respond in what he called, "exponential fashion."
Witherspoon was among a handful of Black leaders who met with Wilson after Thursday’s rally.
The mayor's office did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday. Instead, Wilson posted a video to social media in the evening, crediting officers at the scene of the shooting while also criticizing how information was relayed to the public in the hours after the incident.
"Every SPD and city staff member on scene responded with care and professionalism. It was the very best of Seattle. However, our after action review of the city's communication with the public and the media revealed real gaps," she said.
Wilson said she did not know how little had been communicated to the public hours after the shooting occurred. She said if she had known about the delay, she would have pushed for an immediate press briefing.
In the video, Wilson said there was a miscommunication between her office and the Seattle Police Department.
She said the city should have used the Alert Seattle system to communicate updates to the public about the situation. This is the same system the city used frequently to make drivers aware of crowded places to avoid during the World Cup.
The ongoing investigation
During Friday's press conference, interim chief Sayles said police are still searching for multiple suspects in the shooting, and are not yet able to release a suspect description.
"We want to identify the correct person," Sayles said. "We don't want to have a person arrested that may have just been running to save their lives."
Sayles said wants to take a "proactive approach" to gun violence in Seattle.
"If you look at some of my statistics from when I was in Beloit, Wisconsin, we were a very proactive police department identifying the individuals that are causing the gun violence and the gang problems in that city," Sayles said.
"We're going to identify them in Seattle, and we're going to put an effort, a concerted effort, into identifying those individuals, making the appropriate arrests and sending them over to King County Prosecutor's Office."
Former police chief Barnes faced criticism for his frequent trips to Chicago, where his family still lives.
Sayles, who joined SPD in 2025, also has a second home and family living in Illinois. He said he travels there to visit every eight weeks or so, and that he currently lives in east King County and maintains a home there.
"We're looking to make this our home, this our area that we can retire to one day," Sayles said.
Former Seattle City Council President Sara Nelson was at City Hall for an unrelated meeting on Friday. In a brief interview, she said it feels like the political finger-pointing around the chief's resignation is overshadowing the bigger problem.
"I do understand concern about leadership right now," she said. "But I also want to focus on the most important issue, which is that there was a shooting at Seattle Center, and we have to do everything we possibly can to prevent that situation again. And that means focusing on reducing gun violence."
