Seattle Jack in the Box Keeps 911 Operators Busy

The SoDo franchise has been a hub of activity for a decade.

Back in January, we told you about the SoDo-neighborhood Jack in the Box dubbed the “Worst in the Country” by a corporate employee. Shoulder-to-shoulder with the crime-ridden wooded encampment known locally as “the Jungle” and in the asscrack between two police districts, the notorious Box not only attracts shady characters but is also famously hard to patrol. But that doesn’t stop its employees and customers from calling 911. A lot.

Results of a public-records request by Seattle Weekly, stretching back more than a decade, reveal that there have been no fewer than 952 emergency phone calls from the location at Fourth Avenue South and South Holgate Street since January 1, 1999. That’s roughly 85 a year. Or one every four days. Those calls range from the relatively benign (three noise complaints) to the potentially grave (one rape, one DOA, and one bomb threat). And sometimes they occur more than once in a day.

On Sept. 2 of this year the fun began early, with an 8:08 a.m. phone call for assault. Two hours later, two more calls came in quick succession, one for a threat and the other for a suspicious person. The busy night ended around dinnertime, when the fourth and final call of the day was made, this one to report a disturbance.

At this point, it feels appropriate to mention that there are a handful of Jack in the Box outlets in and around the Seattle area.

Can’t live without your sourdough steak melt? Choose wisely.