Tag Archives: Public Safety Commission
Reporter's Notebook: The race is on
Biscoe looks like the answer for Travis County… Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt’s name moves from the “very likely” category of contenders to take over Austin state Sen. Kirk Watson’s seat at the Legislature to the “almost certain” category with…
Reporters' Notebook • By Austin Monitor • Mar 9, 2020
Public safety departments present preliminary budget requests
Budget season at the city has already begun for the 2021 fiscal year. In preparation for its deep dive into budget requests from the public safety departments, the Public Safety Commission listened to preliminary budget forecasts at its March 2…
Budget • By Jessi Devenyns • Mar 6, 2020
Austin Police Department sees increase in violent crime
While the Austin Police Department is still finalizing crime numbers for 2019, the end of the last decade and the beginning of this one saw an uptick in violent crime, according to APD Chief of Staff Troy Gay. Gay told…
Police • By Jessi Devenyns • Mar 5, 2020
Public Safety Commission previews APD’s critical incident video policy
Following Council’s request in February for a policy governing the automatic public release of videos in critical cases, Farah Muscadin, director of the Office of Police Oversight, presented a draft policy to the Public Safety Commission on March 2. Muscadin,…
Police • By Jessi Devenyns • Mar 3, 2020
Austin EMS union outlines effects of high call volume and sick leave policies
In recent months, Austin Emergency Medical Services has implemented new policies to improve the lives of its medics. The department has adjusted its start times to be on a more natural wake-up schedule and has instated a new code for…
EMS • By Jessi Devenyns • Feb 10, 2020
Reporter's Notebook: The breakdown of wide-eyed, optimistic exuberance
The trouble with working groups… At the Feb. 3 meeting of the Public Safety Commission, two agenda items required the appointment of commissioners to serve on working groups. These groups are tasked with assisting the city in determining the scope…
Reporters' Notebook • By Austin Monitor • Feb 10, 2020
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Community reacts to APD racial profiling study at Public Safety Commission
Last week, a report from the city’s Office of Police Oversight, Office of Innovation, and Equity Office showed that black and Hispanic drivers are more likely to be stopped in their vehicles by Austin police than white and Asian drivers.…
Police • By Jessi Devenyns • Feb 5, 2020
Reporter's Notebook: Reverse correlations
Reports of sexual assault down in 2019 for Austin and the country… Juliana Gonzales, the senior director of sexual assault services at the SAFE Alliance, came to give her monthly update to the Public Safety Commission on Jan. 6. She…
Reporters' Notebook • By Austin Monitor • Jan 13, 2020
Public Safety Commission pushes for an independent investigation into 'endemic' racism and homophobia in APD
Last month, City Manager Spencer Cronk announced that attorney Lisa Tatum would investigate allegations of racism among the executive staff of the Austin Police Department. The investigation follows complaints that APD Assistant Chief Justin Newsom used the N-word to refer…
Police • By Jessi Devenyns • Dec 3, 2019
APD updates the Public Safety Commission after a day of homeless camp cleanups
Questions surrounding the city’s revised camping, sitting and resting ordinances were brought to the public’s attention Monday as the state stepped in for cleanup operations and the city of Austin simultaneously conducted an operation to enforce its camping ban outside…
Public Safety • By Jessi Devenyns • Nov 5, 2019
Reporter's Notebook: Think of the children
Cub Scouts bring improvement initiatives to the Planning Commission… Webelos Scout Pack 81 Den 4 arrived at the Oct. 8 convocation of the Planning Commission to speak solemnly to the commissioners about their concerns for the city and what they…
Reporters' Notebook • By Austin Monitor • Oct 14, 2019
Public Safety Commission talks homelessness with APD
Last week brought a new level of scrutiny to the way the city polices individuals experiencing homelessness. The governor declared he would “unleash” state resources if Austin doesn’t address its homelessness issues by Nov. 1. Police Chief Brian Manley suggested…
