Seattle Police Used Traffic Cameras Without Formal Policy

A city audit revealed that the Seattle Police Department accessed traffic feeds lacking clear, interdepartmental guidelines.

Updated on Sept. 29, 2026 in Law Enforcement

Bold flat-color editorial illustration in deep red and cream featuring a minimalist traffic signal silhouette, representing city surveillance oversight. — A Seattle city audit found the police department accessed municipal traffic camera feeds without formal agreements or clear data retention policies. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The Seattle City Auditor released a review finding that the Seattle Police Department utilizes traffic cameras managed by the Seattle Department of Transportation without a formal written policy. Auditors also discovered technical failures led to the improper retention of video recordings.

Why it matters

The absence of a formal agreement raises concerns regarding the oversight of surveillance technology used by city agencies. SPD officials argued that because the feeds are publicly accessible, a formal sharing policy was previously deemed unnecessary.

The Seattle City Auditor's review confirms SDOT failed to adhere to mandatory 10-day retention periods, resulting in five clips being held longer than permitted. Officials are currently working to establish a formal policy to govern future feed sharing.

The players

Seattle Police Department

This is the primary law enforcement agency responsible for patrolling Seattle and managing the city's Real-Time Crime Center.

Seattle Department of Transportation

This agency oversees the maintenance and operation of Seattle's public traffic camera infrastructure.

Seattle City Auditor

This office provides independent oversight of city departments to ensure financial and operational compliance with local policies.

The details

The Seattle Police Department accesses traffic camera feeds through the Real-Time Crime Center, a system that auditors noted lacks a written agreement with the Seattle Department of Transportation. Additionally, SharePoint technical issues during the first half of 2025 prevented the automated deletion of video evidence, forcing the department to grapple with data retention compliance.

Technical issues prevented automatic video deletion throughout the first half of 2025.
A coalition held a public rally against the use of cameras at City Hall in July 2026.
The official Seattle City Auditor's report was released in September 2026.

Legal Context

This audit follows a pattern set by the City of Seattle's 10-day traffic camera video retention policy, which the department failed to meet due to system errors. The oversight highlights recurring friction between city surveillance expansion and established data management mandates.

Residents may see increased scrutiny of surveillance practices following the audit and recent public protests at City Hall. The lack of a formal policy could lead to new requirements for how SPD and SDOT disclose their interdepartmental data-sharing agreements to the public.

The takeaway

The audit underscores the importance of maintaining automated data purging systems to ensure transparency in municipal surveillance. Residents should monitor future city council meetings where officials will likely finalize the new interdepartmental camera sharing guidelines.