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Public Safety

Public Safety Commission calls for $5.6M to clear DNA backlog

The Public Safety Commission upped the ante Tuesday, calling for an additional $5.6 million to tackle a backlog of DNA cases that continue to accumulate while the city’s lab remains shuttered. With a week left to pass the city’s budget,…

Austin Monitor Radio: Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo

Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo joins Austin Monitor publisher Mike Kanin to talk about policing in Austin against the backdrop of current national concerns.

City Council sounds alarm over locker rooms for female firefighters

A multiyear project to provide locker rooms for Austin’s female firefighters has stuttered past its deadline, causing frustration among both firefighters and City Council. At a budget work session on Aug. 10, Fire Chief Rhoda Mae Kerr promised to redouble…

Austin police short-staffed and underprotected, advocates say

In the aftermath of two shootings in Austin last weekend, City Council should increase police numbers as well as invest in better body armor, advocates say. Those shootings, along with a fierce national debate over the role police should be playing…

The investigations that begin when APD officers discharge their weapons

While investigations into the police shootings of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota have begun, a writer for feminist publication Ravishly wonders how each local jurisdiction investigates cases like these. Writer Ijeoma Oluo poses these questions: “Who reviews civilian complaints?…

The day after Dallas police shootings, APD graduates 37 new officers

It’s been one week since Baton Rouge police officers shot and killed Alton Sterling, a black man selling CDs outside a convenience store. Just a day later, Philando Castile was shot and killed by police outside St. Paul, Minn. Then,…

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Fire Dept. on Barton Creek drownings: There's only so much we can do

There is only so much the city can do to prevent people from putting themselves at risk in Barton Creek or other area waterways, an Austin Fire Department official told members of the Public Safety Commission on Tuesday. “Water is…

Commission wants ongoing scrutiny of police body camera policies

Activists and city leaders who pushed for the Austin Police Department to equip its officers with body cameras continue to voice concerns about the implementation of the program, including whether it will bring the intended transparency and protect the privacy…

APD response times continue to increase

According to the city of Austin’s latest annual performance review released on June 22, the time it takes Austin police officers to respond to high-priority calls has been steadily increasing over the past five years. During Fiscal Year 2014-2015, the…

County, city shake hands on sobriety center agreement

Both Travis County and the city of Austin have ratified an agreement that will form the basis of a new venture aimed at both battling substance abuse and unclogging the county’s central booking facility. On Tuesday, the Commissioners Court voted…

Council approves $17M contract for police body cameras

Despite lingering questions about the technology involved, City Council passed two contracts adding up to over $17.2 million to purchase body cameras and iPhones for the Austin Police Department at its meeting on Thursday. The purchase of the cameras has…

Council delays purchase of police body cameras

Expressing concern that they were moving too fast, City Council members voted 7-1 to delay the purchase of body cameras for the Austin Police Department for two weeks. At their meeting on June 9, Council members cited concerns with transparency…

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