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Seattle Justice

The Rise and Fall of the Police Payoff System in Seattle

Christopher T. Bayley
Every contested police shooting, community protest, or incident of municipal corruption should be a signal to
those who serve the public that they need to reexamine their own methods. Christopher T. Bayley

Struggling under a hundred-year history of extortion, official corruption, and police

brutality, the city of Seattle was overrun with vice in the 1960s. Seattle Justice: The
Rise and Fall of the Police Payoff System in Seattle by Christopher T. Bayley
(Sasquatch Books; $24.95; October 2015) is the inspiring story of the man who waged a
David vs Goliath fight to end some of the worst government briberyand won.

In the late 1960s, Christopher T. Bayley was one of the youngest county prosecu-

tors in the country. He had a fire in his belly to put a stop to the antiquated bribe system
that had infiltrated Seattles government for a century. The system involved city officials
turning a blind eye to illegal gambling, unlicensed bars, and prostitution, in exchange
for which police officers demanded operating fees in the form of cash payments from establishment owners. The
money trail that started on sordid streets traveled high up in the Seattle Police Department and affected top levels
of both city and county government.
Against the odds Bayley defeated Charles O. Carroll, an entrenched incumbent who had the job for twentytwo years, to become King County prosecutor. Six months into his first term, he indicted a city councilman, the
previous county prosecutor (who had the job for twenty-two years), a former police chief, and an assistant
police chief.
An illuminating read for those who enjoyed Jim Lynchs Truth Like the Sun, Seattle Justice captures the true
story of how vice and payoffs became rules of the game in Seattle. Bayley details just what it took to clean up the
city and shows how a community can reexamine the way it operates and work to improve every day.

(MORE)
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About the Author

Christopher T. Bayley served as King County
prosecuting attorney from 1971 to 1979. He graduated
from Harvard College and received a JD from Harvard
Law School. He is currently chairman of Stewardship
Partners, a land conservation and restoration organization
in Washington State.

Seattle Justice
The Rise and Fall of the Police Payoff System in Seattle
Christopher T. Bayley
October 2015 $24.95 240 pages Hardcover
ISBN 978-1-63217-029-3
Available wherever fine books are sold.
Sasquatch Books 800/775-0817 www.sasquatchbooks.com

SASQUATCH BOOKS

1904 3rd Avenue, Suite 710 SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 98101

206/467-4300 TOLL FREE 800/775-0817 FAX 206/467-4301
www.sasquatchbooks.com

Praise for Seattle Justice: The Rise and Fall of the Police Payoff System in Seattle
by Christopher T. Bayley
Christopher T. Bayley has put forward a thoughtful and detailed accounting
of, as he has written, How a city can will itself to do better. You will find
that Bayley was a major figure in bringing much-needed reform to Seattle.
Bill Gates, Sr.

This is an important story of young citizen activists, dismayed over a

tolerance policy on crime in King County, Washington. Bayley, a leader of
the group, ran for county prosecutor against an entrenched incumbent in
what appeared to be a hopeless raceand won. As prosecutor, he created a
professional team that ended tolerance policies and his legacy is a highly
professional county prosecutors office that is the pride of citizens forty
years later.
Daniel J. Evans, former Washington State governor and US senator

Seattle suffers from the It-Cant-Happen-Here syndrome, and this book

should shake that complacency. Our politicians, government, and the press became deeply corrupted by
an illegal payoff system, and Bayleys book spells it out with an investigative reporters relentless
precision and a lawyers attention to solid evidence.Toppling that system took a lot of courage, plenty
of luck, and the rise of reform politics in the state. What a saga! What a narrow escape! What a warning
for today!
David Brewster, writer, editor, and publisher; founder ofSeattle WeeklyandCrosscut.com

Christopher T. Bayleys memoir reminds us of an old and not very respectable Seattle in which he played
a pivotal role in transforming it into a major city respected for the honesty of its politics and law
enforcement.
Slade Gorton, former US senator

This is the story of how young Seattleites reformed a corrupt police force and prosecutors office through
intelligence, energy, and courage. Our burgeoning millennials need to step up and pursue needed reforms
for American communities to continue progress today.
William D. Ruckelshaus, former administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

As candidate and prosecutor, Bayley led the cleanup of Seattle corruption. That he and his team did it
largely through the political system shows the reforming power of representative democracy. There is a
lesson here for right now in America. Sovereignty resides with the people, after all.
Bruce Chapman, Seattle City Council member (19711975), founder of Discovery Institute

Seattle Justice tells firsthandthe important story of how a few dedicated reformerschanged a corrupt
civic culture. The battle was as much against complacency as the wrongdoing itself. Every generation
needs its Bayleys to challenge theindifference and inertia of its time.
Ted Van Dyk, author of Heroes, Hacks andFools and longtime Democratic national policy
advisor

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