Public Safety

Central Health evaluation targets care delivery, med school transparency

To indulge in an extended health care metaphor, one could compare the extensive evaluation Central Health has commissioned to a very public checkup where anyone with any interest in the condition of the community health organization gets a chance to…

Public Health • By Chad Swiatecki • Aug 15, 2017

Public Safety Commission hears update on Austin's homeless

Representatives from the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO) and the Austin Police Department’s Homeless Outreach Street Team (HOST) briefed the Public Safety Commission Monday night on the state of the city’s homeless population. “I think in Austin we know what…

Public Safety • By Nina Hernandez • Aug 8, 2017

Sobriety center likely won’t open until 2018

After years of planning, the downtown Austin sobriety center is still months away from opening its doors. On Wednesday night, the interim head of the nonprofit outfit that will operate the center told the Downtown Commission that the center’s future…

Public Safety • By Caleb Pritchard • Jul 24, 2017

African-Americans spend more time in Travis County jail for same offenses as whites

Travis County has a long way to go before its criminal justice system matches its progressive reputation, according to a report released Thursday by a local advocacy group. African-Americans booked into the county jail spend more time behind bars than…

Public Safety • By Jack Craver • Jul 14, 2017

District attorney isn't making a mountain out of some mold here

Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore is downplaying concerns over the hundreds of Austin Police Department rape kits stored inside boxes that were recently found to be covered in apparent mold. Along with representatives from the Austin city manager’s office,…

Police • By Caleb Pritchard • Jul 7, 2017

Council narrowly approves controversial Central Health board nominee

By a one-vote margin, City Council approved the appointment of a new member to the Central Health Board of Managers after complaints about the nominee’s potential conflicts of interest. Council voted 6-5 to assign Julie Oliver, a division controller for…

Public Health • By Jack Craver • Jun 16, 2017

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Casar: End curfew law that targets minorities

Seventy-six percent of teenagers accused of juvenile curfew violations from 2014 through 2016 were minorities, with Hispanics making up the majority of those cited by the Austin Police Department, according to the department’s own records. The law prohibits persons under…

Public Safety • By Jo Clifton • Jun 14, 2017

Rundberg residents search for resources to continue restoration

Residents of Rundberg Lane in North Austin saw many benefits during the three years the area received a stepped up police presence thanks to a $1 million federal grant that concluded last year. Crime, especially in a handful of “hotspots,”…

Public Safety • By Chad Swiatecki • Jun 12, 2017

Public Safety Commission has a HOT debate

As the city of Austin scrounges for money to hire more police officers, firefighters and paramedics, it shouldn’t look to the tourism industry for help. That was the message delivered to the Public Safety Commission Monday by Bill Worsham, a…

Police • By Jack Craver • Jun 8, 2017

Public safety agencies envision big staff increases

In presentations to the Public Safety Commission Monday, leaders of the Police Department, Fire Department and Emergency Management Services called for significantly boosting staff in the coming years, both to make up for existing shortages and to keep up with…

Public Safety • By Jack Craver • Jun 6, 2017

Central Health board chair lays out case against nominee

The chair of the Central Health Board of Managers is ramping up the pressure on City Council to reject an applicant to the board due to the applicant’s position with a major hospital. In a lengthy letter sent Friday to…

Public Health • By Jack Craver • Jun 5, 2017

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