Officers with the Dallas Police Department got into a shootout with multiple suspects after getting a call about a robbery at a business in southern Dallas.
The incident occurred around 12:45 a.m. on Sunday when officers arrived at the scene of a robbery in progress in the 2900 block of W. Wheatland Road, which is located in Council Member Tennell Atkins’ District 8.
“When officers approached, the suspects pulled out a handgun and fired at officers. Officers returned fire. The suspects ran from the scene. Officers ran after the suspects and there was a second exchange of gunfire,” reads a post on DPD’s crime blog.
One of the suspects involved in the shootout was shot and received medical attention at the scene before being taken to a hospital. DPD noted that the injured suspect was in stable condition and no officers sustained any injuries.
The department is currently suffering a substantial officer shortage, fielding only around 3,000 despite a previous City analysis recommending approximately 4,000 are necessary to reduce police response times and properly ensure public safety in a city the size of Dallas.
According to the City of Dallas crime analytics dashboard, there has been a 5% spike in robberies year over year, with 233 incidents reported as of February 9.
Budgeting only $654 million for DPD this fiscal year, City officials are set to spend much less taxpayer money on public safety than other high-crime cities, like New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. The City’s budget was adopted despite DPD’s officer shortage.
The department said Sunday’s robbery and exchange of gunfire with police is still under investigation.
