The Wall Street Journal
SEATTLE (AP)--The World Trade Organization meeting three months ago touched off an urban war the Seattle Police Department may have lost before it even began.
Newly released tapes of police radio traffic, obtained by The Associated Press through the Freedom of Information Act, reveal that the initial force of 400 officers was seriously outnumbered and nearly overcome at times by protesters.
As the City Council launches an investigation of why the protests erupted in violence and whether police used excessive force, the tapes show the dimensions of the threat - real and perceived - faced by officers.
"We're losing it at 6th and Pike. We're losing it just south of 6th and Pike," one call crackled over police lines.
"Shoot as much gas as you want in there now," came the response from Capt. Jim Pugel, who commanded the force in the streets during the WTO. "If we are being overcome at 6th and Pike, I want you to drench them."
In an interview last week, Pugel shook his head repeatedly as he listened to excerpts of the radio traffic in his office at the West Precinct, where the ghost of a spray-painted anarchy symbol on a pillar serves as a reminder of the Nov. 30-Dec. 4 conference.
He recalled "how terrifying it was for the men and women out there. No officer ever says help unless they're about to be overrun or are in fear for their life."
Through 15 hours of radio traffic recorded Nov. 30, the opening day of the WTO, squad leaders repeatedly called for backup as they struggled to hold their lines against about 45,000 protesters. One leader reported early in the day: "We're surrounded, we're out of tear gas, and we're withdrawing."
There were reports over the radio of delegates being pushed in the street, bank and store employees diving under their desks or fleeing into back alleys as black-clad anarchists smashed windows and streamed in.
No one was killed or reported seriously injured, but downtown Seattle suffered more than $2.5 million in damage. More than 500 protesters were arrested. Opening WTO ceremonies were canceled, and by the end of the week the trade talks had collapsed.
In the aftermath, police were accused of using tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets to clear streets instead of making arrests. Police Chief Norm Stamper announced his retirement days after the WTO meeting.
The City Council is asking just what went wrong and why. Mayor Paul Schell, whose office has hired investigators of its own, declined to be interviewed about the tapes.
"We're getting the impression from individual police officers that they were let down. They did not have proper supplies, and they were understaffed," said Councilman Nick Licata, a member of the investigation panel.
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