Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson went on defense Monday after reporters pressed city leaders over their delayed communication following a deadly mass shooting at Seattle Center.
Three people were killed and four others were wounded when gunfire erupted Sunday evening at the Bite of Seattle food festival, where thousands of people had gathered near the Space Needle.
The shooting broke out around 6 p.m., but city officials did not hold a press conference until just before 11 p.m., leaving residents and festivalgoers looking for answers while the chaos unfolded.
Seattle police posted one update about 30 minutes after the shooting confirming officers were investigating.
At that point, police did not say whether anyone was in custody or whether the public should be looking for a suspect.
Wilson issued her first statement around 8:30 p.m.
By then, the silence had already triggered anger from viewers, residents and people on social media who wanted to know why the city was moving so slowly after bloodshed at one of Seattle’s biggest summer events.
On Monday, Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes said the city had “no problem” doing an after-action review to improve its communication strategy.
Wilson said officials were trying to balance speed with accuracy.
“If we had been reporting up to the minute everything that we were hearing in the swirl that happened last night, there would have been a lot of inaccuracies out there that would have confused people and that we then would have had to correct,” Wilson said. “We are managing this tension, and we are doing the best that we can to provide accurate information in a timely manner without increasing confusion.”
That explanation did not erase the city’s own mistake.
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In Wilson’s initial statement, the Mayor’s Office said two people were in custody in connection with the shooting.
That was wrong.
Wilson later clarified that only one person was in custody.
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson loses cool at Monday presser when confronted on why the five-hour delay on communicating details of Seattle Center shooting; city staff abruptly ends presser.
Wilson denies that Gov. Ferguson’s office delayed Sunday’s presser for photo op.… pic.twitter.com/Hu7RcAx2s8
— Lynnwood Times (@LynnwoodTimes) July 27, 2026
Before the late-night press conference began Sunday, officials said they were waiting for “dignitaries” to arrive.
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson and Rep. Pramila Jayapal both spoke at the news conference, along with Wilson and Seattle Police Assistant Chief for Special Operations Tyrone Davis.
Asked Monday whether the press conference had been delayed until elected officials could show up, Wilson denied that any elected official’s office asked for the briefing to be held.
“As soon as we coordinated with SPD and agreed that it was time to talk to the media, as soon as we knew that we were going to be doing that, I and Gov. Ferguson and Congresswoman Jayapal arrived on the scene within minutes,” Wilson said.
The answer did little to quiet questions about why a city facing a mass shooting at a packed public festival took hours to give the public a full update.
The shooting killed two men, ages 19 and 44, at the scene.
A 56-year-old woman later died after being rushed to Harborview Medical Center.
Four others were hurt, including a 2-year-old boy.
Police have said they believe three people exchanged gunfire.
One suspect was taken into custody, another suspect was killed, and authorities were still looking for another possible suspect Monday.
For Seattle residents, the issue was not just whether the city eventually got the details right.
It was whether leaders in a blue city already battered by public safety concerns understood the fear spreading through the crowd and across the city in real time.
Families had run from gunfire.
A toddler had been wounded.
Three people were dead.
And for hours, the public was left with limited official information while rumors filled the vacuum.
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Wilson framed the delay as caution.
Critics saw it as another example of progressive city leadership moving too slowly when public safety is on the line.
Seattle leaders can promise reviews, better messaging and lessons learned.
But after a shooting at a crowded food festival, residents were not asking for polished talking points.
They wanted answers.
They wanted protection.
And they wanted them before the dignitaries arrived.
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