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Constable Bruce Elfant
Notebook Archives
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Constable's Notebook - July 2007
Nearly a year after the departure of Stan Knee, Austin finally has a new police
chief. Art Acevedo, a division commander with the California Highway Patrol,
was selected during a turbulent time for the Austin Police Department. Just
as the finalists for chief came to Austin to meet with city and community leaders,
there was yet another controversial shooting and the U.S. Justice Department
announced that they would conduct an investigation of use of force incidents
by APD officers.
The good news for Chief Acevedo is that Austin crime rates are relatively low
compared to other Texas cities and national averages.1 Austin has the lowest
rates per capita of any major Texas city when it comes to aggravated assaults,
robberies and vehicle thefts. The murder rate is 3.8 murders per 100,000 people
which is far lower than 16.3 for Houston, 16.4 for Dallas, 9.8 for Fort Worth,
or even 6.8 for San Antonio. However, the crime data for Austin does pose some
serious challenges for law enforcement officials and our community. The number
of rapes per capita in Austin at 45 per 100,000 is about average for major
Texas cities but significantly exceeds the national average of 32. Austin
citizens also experience more thefts than most Texas and U.S. cities.
Chief Acevedo’s main challenge will be to create a climate of trust and mutual
respect between some communities and the Austin Police Department. Due to a
number of incidents and their handling by APD, trust and mutual respect simply
does not exist today. Incidents must be promptly investigated in a forthright
process that offers an equal amount of respect to victims and the officers
involved. If the response to Acevedo’s selection by community leaders is any
indicator, he is off to a good start.
Lowering crime rates and building these relationships with our neighborhoods
cannot be Chief Acevedo’s responsibility alone. It has to be a shared
responsibility where APD implements sound community policing strategies and
where neighborhood associations take responsibility to establish and maintain
neighborhood watch programs, get to know the officers who patrol their areas,
and have home security audits done. Most important of all, we should get to know our
neighbors and watch out for each other.
The 24th National Night Out on Tuesday August 7, would be a great time to welcome our new police chief and extend an olive branch of cooperation. National Night Out is designed to heighten crime prevention, strengthen neighborhood and police community relations and send the message that your neighborhood is a safe place to live. Neighbors are asked to turn on their porch lights, lock their doors and socialize with their neighbors and local law enforcement
officers. If you want to host a National Night Out event or wish to find your
neighborhood event, call Rosie Salinas with APD at 974-4900 or
nno@ci.austin.tx.us. I will be out with my neighbors, I hope you will be as well. We wish Chief Acevedo a long and successful tenure.
1
http://www.Areaconnect.com/crime/compare.htm
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