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| Residents in Austin neighborhood concerned about crime as police department struggles with understaffing |
| 2024-08-31 |
| [FoxNews] Understaffing in the Austin Police Department in Texas has left residents concerned about crime in the city. Residents in the Montopolis neighborhood in Austin’s southeast told KVUE-TV crime in their area is getting worse. Delwin Goss told the station he woke up to gunshots in the neighborhood overnight Thursday, which he said has become shockingly common. "It’s making the hair on my arms stand up. To hear eight, nine, 10 shots. Just bam, bam, bam. Where are those bullets going?" he said. He said his neighbor told him she hears gunshots from her home between two to three times a week. "I don't want to be shot sleeping in my bed," he added. And although Austin Police told him when he called they were already investigating, he blames the department’s understaffing problem. Austin Police Association President Mike Bullock addressed the officer shortage Thursday, writing on X, "500 officers short has a real impact on businesses and Austinites who expect to be able to safely run a business and live in Austin. We’re so close to having a contract that can make significant progress towards ending the staffing crisis. Question now is if the city will actually prioritize making it happen." Austin City Council Member Mackenzie Kelly addressed the police understaffing problem this week while speaking on the Austin Police Association’s podcast, attributing it to funding cuts in 2020. "Our staffing currently at the police department is a direct result of the failed policy that was passed in 2020 to remove funding for the police department," she told Bullock. Related: Austin Police Department: 2023-11-13 Police investigate after SWAT officer and 2 others found dead following hostage firefight in Austin Austin Police Department: 2023-08-22 Austin [TX] police chief abruptly retires amid staffing shortages, lack of police union contract Austin Police Department: 2023-04-09 Greg Abbott working to 'swiftly' pardon Army Sergeant convicted of murder in Black Lives Matter riot |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #3 I think it is an interesting experiment, getting rid of the police. Leaving aside their role in municipal revenue generation, do we really need cops? What if we simply rely on the angels of our better nature? I also think it is a stupid and self-evident experiment. But by actually doing it, we know for sure. No need for speculation. It's a stupid idea. Pity we don't have a model of a real-world city to play with, like SimCity but with added details and realism. We could try out various policies and plans and maybe get a foretaste of the coming disasters. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2024-08-31 22:47 |
| #2 ^ Until they need one |
| Posted by: Frank G 2024-08-31 17:04 |
| #1 I thought Austin residents wanted fewer police. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2024-08-31 16:10 |