Clyde Hill News: January Police update
Also: 100th birthday of Clyde Hill resident, French Legion of Honour recipient Kimitomo Muromoto
Lots of news this week regarding Clyde Hill police: the Chief of Police addressed residents’ questions about the new camera system planned for Clyde Hill and the Mayor updated the public about her progress addressing trust issues with police officers.
Also below, a recap of December’s police activity as well as a progress report on cost of living adjustments for officers.
First, some good news about Clyde Hill PD reuniting a family with their “furry runaways:”
If you find this newsletter useful or interesting, please forward it to your Clyde Hill neighbors and friends. Thank you!
Disclaimer: while I am a councilmember on the Clyde Hill City Council, I write this newsletter in my capacity as an individual resident. Any opinions expressed are my own and not necessarily the position of the City. The information and references here are from public sources. I welcome email responses — and if the topic is about City business I will respond from my City email account.
Of the many topics covered at the City Council meeting this week — including the new fire station and how to structure subcommittees to get the city’s work done — this week’s newsletter focuses on the discussions related to police issues.
Chief of Police addresses resident privacy concerns related to new camera system
Last week, this newsletter reported on plans for a camera and license plate recognition system in Clyde Hill (link). In response, residents had questions about privacy and public records requests for video of cars.
At the Council meeting, Chief of Police Kyle Kolling explained that
This is not a video system — it’s a license plate reader….
It just takes a picture… there’ll be a picture of a license plate on a vehicle. It just runs the plate… we don’t get advice on every plate, we just get advised if the plate comes back — like a stolen hit or a stolen license plate, or the vehicle comes back that the owner has warrants… felony warrants, criminal history, things like that….
Most of the officers have it just set up for stolen vehicles, stolen plates, and warrant hits… because [that’s] most associated with criminal activity.
You can hear the Chief’s complete answer and watch the entire police report here (link).
Progress on cost of living adjustment for officers
Clyde Hill police officers are one step closer to a cost of living adjustment as the City of Clyde Hill sent an executed “Memorandum of Understanding” (MoU) this week to the union that represents officers.
City Council met “in closed session for the purpose of discussing collective bargaining negotiations” Tuesday night before voting 5-0 to “authorize the Mayor to enter into an [sic] Memorandum Of Understanding” with the union representing police officers (link, items 8.1 and 10.1).
Update from Mayor on trust problems with police officers
The Mayor provided an update to the community at Tuesday’s meeting on her progress in addressing trust problems with Clyde Hill’s police officers. At the start of the discussion, she read from this activity report:
For context, late in 2022 Clyde Hill police officers expressed “a clear lack of trust in the administration” and the city council voted 5-0 expressing its “lack of confidence in the Mayor’s performance” in addressing police trust issues (link).
At the meeting, the Mayor noted that she has brought in dispute resolution expertise to help address the problem. She also acknowledged the need to change culture and earn trust, and that “this will take time.”
Several councilmembers acknowledged the Mayor’s commitment while asking for specifics about the broader plan. Cm Bruce Jones suggested that “there’s work [Council] could do between [monthly] meetings” to help progress. Councilmembers Scott Moore and Kim Muromoto then volunteered to work on this topic. At the suggestion of Cm Muromoto, Council will engage Clyde Hill’s Civil Service Commission1 to make sure that residents and their concerns are appropriately represented in this effort.
December Police report round up
From this month’s police report (details available here, link, at page 8):
Burglary involving “equipment taken from construction site.”
Two DUI (Driving Under the Influence) incidents, one assisting Washington State Patrol as well as:
“Officer stopped a vehicle for failing to stop at a stop sign. Driver showed signs of intoxication and, upon further investigation, was cited for DUI. Case forwarded to the City Prosecutor.”
Two criminal traffic incidents:
“Officer stopped a vehicle for speeding and cited driver for driving with a suspended license. Case forwarded to the City Prosecutor.”
“Officer stopped vehicle and cited driver for failing to transfer their title within 45 days.”
Three incidents involving warrants:
“King County Sheriff's Office called to confirm on a Clyde Hill PD warrant. Warrant confirmed and subject booked into Kirkland Jail.”
“SCORE Jail [link] called to confirm on a Clyde Hill PD warrant. Warrant confirmed and subject booked into Kirkland Jail.”
“Officer made a social contact of two subjects attempting to fix a vehicle. Subjects voluntarily gave their ID and both had outstanding warrants. Both subjects were taken into custody and transported to jail. Vehicle was taken in for a search pending search warrant.”
The report also describes a traffic accident (single vehicle collision), malicious mischief (report of vehicle window broken), and two incidents involving Child Protective Services.
Happy 100th birthday Kimitomo Muromoto!
The Council voted 5-0 to honor Kimitomo Muromoto, long-time Clyde Hill resident, on his 100th birthday. Mr Muromoto is the father of Cm Kim Muromoto.
Mr. Muromoto is a World War II veteran who served in the legendary 442nd Infantry Regiment, “best known as the most decorated in U.S. military history and as a fighting unit composed almost entirely of second-generation American soldiers of Japanese ancestry (Nisei).” (link)
In 2022, Mr. Muromoto received the French Legion of Honour (link). He’s been interviewed and written about extensively:
Planning Commission to seek public feedback on proposed code changes
Tuesday night, the City Council voted 5-0 to refer proposed changes to Clyde Hill’s municipal code on to the Planning Commission for public feedback, accepting the recommendation of the Land Use Committee.
In addition to the proposed changes describes in last week’s newsletter (link), the Land Use Committee also recommended this change, which the Council referred to the Planning Commission by a 5-0 vote:
The Land Use Committee, after Consulting with the City Attorney, recommends that… we consider revision of 17.72.040 to apply only to residential properties.
Schools, government buildings, commercial properties, and any other existing non-residential land uses in the city would be exempt from the loss of an approved variance if destroyed. The primary concern and focus for 17.72.040 is on residential properties which make up nearly all land uses in Clyde Hill.
Thanks for reading! Please forward and share with your friends and neighbors, and if you are not already getting this newsletter, subscribing is both easy and free.
Dean Hachamovitch
Clyde Hill’s Civil Service Commission has “jurisdiction over full-time Police Department Officers in matters relating to qualifications and hiring, as well as complaints or appeals by police officers concerning grievances, disciplinary matters, or termination.” (https://www.clydehill.org/government/civil-service-commission)