Seattle Police say crowd stopped access to shooting victims in CHAZ as councilwoman blames Trump

The Seattle police revealed violent crowds in the activist-run zone prevented access to the victims, one of whom died, as they probe the shooting inside the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone.

Officers responded to an early Saturday morning to a report of shots fired inside Cal Anderson Park, which resides in CHOP (Capitol Hill Organized Protest), previously known as CHAZ (Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone).

"Officers attempted to locate a shooting victim but were met by a violent crowd that prevented officers safe access to the victims," a police statement from that night reads. 

Cops left the scene after they were informed that the victims had been taken to Harborview Medical Center, where one died and the other remains with life-threatening injuries. 

Body camera footage has also been released to the public, revealing a tense exchange between officers and protesters. The video shows multiple officers arrive at the scene where they are met with demonstrators telling them they “don’t belong." 

Later in the clip, protesters appear to be hitting at least one of the officer’s cars as they attempt to leave. 

President Donald Trump has referred to the CHOP zone as a “catastrophe” and called on local officials to take back the area. 

Some liberal officials in the city, however, put the blame for the recent shooting at the president’s feet.

In a public statement, Seattle Councilwoman Kshama Sawant said the shooting could be a “right-wing” attack and is just the type of action that the president promotes.

“If this killing turns out to be a right-wing attack, President Trump bears direct responsibility, since he has fomented reactionary hatred specifically against the peaceful Capitol Hill occupation, and even threatened to intervene with federal troops,” she said.

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