Amy Radil
Reporter
About
Amy Radil is a reporter at KUOW covering politics, government, and law enforcement, along with the occasional arts story. She got her start at Minnesota Public Radio in Duluth, and freelanced for Marketplace and other programs from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Amy grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. She graduated from Williams College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
Location: Seattle
Languages Spoken: English
Pronouns: she/her
Stories
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SPD renews call for hiring incentives, as neighboring cities snap up recruits
Seattle’s police chief says the city is critically short on officers, and he thinks offering hiring incentives would help. Critics say that money can do more good by going directly to people in need. Meanwhile, recruits in nearby cities say they’re benefiting from more targeted incentives, that reward them for specific skills.
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Family of Auburn man killed by police sues city, officer who shot him
The parents of Enosa (E.J.) Strickland Junior filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against Auburn Police Officer Kenneth Lyman and the City of Auburn. They allege that Lyman’s negligence and unconstitutional excessive force resulted in their son’s death on May 20, 2019. The lawsuit says that Lyman has been the subject of at least a dozen use of force reviews since joining the department in 2016.
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Seattle's payroll tax is thriving, but faces next legal challenge
Seattle’s new payroll tax survived its first court challenge last June, and the city collected $231m from affected businesses in 2021. The city is forecasting continued growth: $277m in tax proceeds for 2022 and almost $300m next year. Now the lawsuit heads the Washington State Court of Appeals, which is scheduled to hear oral arguments in the case Friday.
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King County sheriff finalists cite challenges in crime, recruitment, and community trust
King County's next sheriff will likely come from Texas or Georgia. Or it will be the person currently running the office. The three finalists to become King County’s next sheriff spoke at a virtual press conference Tuesday. They all cited recruitment, rising crime, and building community trust as some of their top priorities.
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SPD’s roving unit shifts focus from 'hotspots' to retail theft
In recent weeks Seattle police officers have increased their presence in public “hotspots” for local crime. This week those officers turned their attention to organized retail theft as well. SPD said on Thursday they made 49 shoplifting arrests, and 13 individuals were booked for various felony charges and outstanding warrants.
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In King County’s new inquests, victims’ families see steps forward, police see 'overreach'
Attorneys for victims’ families welcome the changes in King County's new inquest process, while police call the structure unworkable and unfair.
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Inquest jury finds Seattle police officers' deadly force 'justifiable' in Damarius Butts case
Inquest jurors delivered their findings Monday in the 2017 Seattle police shooting of Damarius Butts. All eight jurors called the officers’ use of deadly force in the encounter with Butts “justifiable.”
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Inslee signs law returning some powers to Washington police; opponents call it a rollback
Last May, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed a series of new police accountability laws. This week, he signed another bill that supporters call a "clarification" of those laws. But opponents call it a "rollback."
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Seattle City Attorney has a new plan to arrest, intervene with 118 repeat offenders.
Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison calls it a “reset” in the city’s approach to repeat offenders. The High Utilizer Initiative will focus on people "engaged in a repeated criminal activity resulting in a disproportionate amount of crime in the city of Seattle.”
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Washington lawmakers create first-in-nation alerts for missing Indigenous people
Later this year, Washingtonians may start seeing alerts about missing Indigenous people on highway billboards, your cell phone, or local media. A bill to create a new public alert system for missing Indigenous people has passed both chambers of the state Legislature. It could soon be on its way to Governor Jay Inslee’s desk for his signature to make it official. The program in Washington would be the first of its kind nationwide.