Legally allowed and permitted by policy are entirely different matters. Seattle has been following a number of other jurisdictions in de-emphasizing property crimes and quality of life offenses for either NO prosecution or minimal prosecution. As a result, many agencies are either not responding or not taking action on lesser offenses - including property crimes.
The sad reality today is that property offenses, trespassing, and similar low level offenses are simply not a priority in many jurisdictions. With declining personnel and other resources, reversals in proprietorial priorities, and changes in the laws, many locales will be forced to either hunker down or engage in vigilante justice to protect their property.

