The Dallas Police Department reported its final summer violent crime numbers to the Public Safety Committee on Monday, September 13. The report showed more than a six percent drop in violent crime compared to this same time last year.
One can argue that the reduction in violent crime in the city is due in part to the efforts of the Dallas SWAT team. This team executes an average of five high-risk warrants every week.
“We have to keep our eye on the ball. Our gangs, narcotics sales, drug houses where the criminal elements meet to establish those crimes,” said Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia.
Garcia added that a small percentage of Dallas residents are committing most of the violent crimes. In addition, he remarked that the violent crime numbers have been steadily decreasing for the past three months.
“We have less aggravated assault victims. We had approximately 135 less aggravated assault victims in this three-month period from last year and thirteen less murders in June, July, and August,” said Garcia.
Garcia and his team of commanders would meet every week to go over crime stats and strategize where police resources should be focused.
In one of the weekly meetings of Garcia and his team of commanders, they discovered that the city was seeing an increase in road rage incidents in the North Central Patrol Division. Following the discovery, Garcia and his team promptly diverted resources to the highways.
More officers were also tasked with targeting illegal gambling after a stabbing occurred at a gambling house.