Drug crime is up substantially in certain areas of Dallas, with one district almost logging double the number of reports compared to last year.
Several council districts have seen climbing drug-related offenses this year compared to last year. According to data from the City’s crime analytics dashboard, as of June 30, the following increases have been logged:
- 9.4% in D1 (Chad West)
- 10.4% in D2 (Jesse Moreno)
- 6% in D4 (Carolyn King Arnold)
- 26.5% in D5 (Jaime Resendez)
- 72.2% in D7 (Adam Bazaldua)
- 1.7% in D8 (Tennell Atkins)
- 6.7% in D9 (Paula Blackmon)
- 13% in D12 (Cara Mendelsohn)
- Despite being
Crime Boss of the month in June due to a 14.4% increase in his Crime Score year over year in May, Council Member Zarin Gracey (District 3) has seen drug crime reports drop by 19.3% over the studied period.
While Districts 2, 6, and 7 stand out for having the highest numbers of documented drug-related offenses (over 750), the areas of Dallas seeing double-digit increases year over year warrant further investigation.
Topping both lists is Bazaldua’s District 7, which has logged 818 drug offenses this year versus 475 last year. The district lies just east of Downtown Dallas and comprises Fair Park, Rochester Park, and Buckner Terrace, as well as parts of South Dallas, Far East Dallas, Pleasant Grove, and East Oak Cliff.
Another district seeing double-digit increases year over year in drug-related offenses is Resendez’s District 5. A total of 286 drug crimes were logged there this year as of June 30, which is 60 more than the year prior.
The Dallas Express named Resendez Crime Boss of the month in May.
Neither Bazaldua nor Resendez responded immediately to The Dallas Express‘ request for comment on these drug crime rates.
Although some progress has been made in terms of violent crime thanks to Police Chief Eddie Garcia’s hotspot policing approach, persistingly high drug crime across Dallas is just one of the consequences of the Dallas Police Department struggling with a significant officer shortage.
There are roughly 3,000 uniformed DPD officers in the field even though a City report recommended closer to 4,000. Closing this gap might be difficult, considering the Dallas City Council approved a DPD budget of just $654 million this fiscal year. As a result, DPD has far less taxpayer money than the law enforcement agencies of other high-crime jurisdictions, including Los Angeles and Chicago.
The Dallas Express, The People’s Paper, believes that important information about the City, such as crime rates and trends, should be easily accessible. According to data from the FBI’s UCR database, Dallas has more crime per capita than hotspots like Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and New York.
How did your area stack up on crime? Check out our interactive Crime Map to compare all Dallas City Council Districts. Curious how we got our numbers? Check out our methodology page here.