Tag Archives: Austin Police Department
It's been more than a year since Austin started training new police. It could restart this summer.
City Council members voted Thursday to make changes to how Austin police are trained, with the eventual goal of restarting cadet classes by June 7 at the latest. The police academy has not welcomed a group of new trainees since…
Police • By Audrey McGlinchy, KUT • Mar 29, 2021
Assistant Chief Joseph Chacon confirmed as Austin's new interim police chief
Assistant Chief Joseph Chacon will be Austin’s interim police chief starting April 11. City Council approved his appointment Thursday night. “This is not an easy city, probably, to be police chief,” Mayor Steve Adler told Chacon before the vote. “It’s…
Police • By Audrey McGlinchy, KUT • Mar 26, 2021
Austin nominates interim police chief, permanent chief to be named by August
Joseph Chacon, an assistant chief of the Austin Police Department, has been nominated to serve as interim police chief as Brian Manley readies to leave the department this week. City Manager Spencer Cronk announced Chacon’s nomination in a memo Monday morning.…
Police • By Audrey McGlinchy, KUT • Mar 23, 2021
Downtown Commission hears plans for APD headquarters relocation
Alex Gale from the city’s Office of Real Estate Services and Darrell Alexander from the Building Services Department spoke to the Downtown Commission Wednesday on the relocation of the Austin Police Department headquarters. Gale explained that Council had given direction…
Police • By Seth Smalley • Mar 22, 2021
Review commission works through reforms of police procedures
Last summer, amid widespread calls for police reform, Austin City Council adopted Resolution 95, which is aimed at reworking many of the Austin Police Department’s most controversial policies. The resolution ordered APD to implement restrictions on chokeholds, purchases of military…
Police • By Sean Saldaña • Mar 10, 2021
PARD begins to reimagine public safety
Last summer, in the wake of protests against the police killings of Mike Ramos and George Floyd, Austin City Council announced its Reimagining Public Safety initiative. A timeline was released with the goal of reforming “public safety over the years, including conducting…
Parks • By Sean Saldaña • Mar 4, 2021
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APD details cadet academy reforms
The Austin Police Department presented reforms to its cadet academy at Tuesday’s City Council work session, moving Council closer to a vote on restarting the academy after halting it last summer. The changes respond to a preliminary report by consulting…
Police • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 3, 2021
Austin officially moves forensics lab out from under police department
In a move long advocated for by survivors of sexual assault, the Austin City Council voted Thursday to officially transfer its forensics bureau out from under the police department. It will now function as an independent entity. “This move is…
City Council • By Audrey McGlinchy, KUT • Feb 5, 2021
Council to move forensics department from APD
City Council is set to create a new Forensic Science Department this week as part of its plan to move some civilian operations out of police control. Council members say the reshuffling will make the department more accountable and allow…
City Council • By Jonathan Lee • Feb 4, 2021
Racial inequity at APD front and center at Public Safety Commission
Public Safety commissioners took a closer look at racial issues in the Austin Police Department, diving into a recent report on the subject at their Monday meeting. A survey of over 1,000 APD officers and staff about their attitudes toward…
Police • By Jonathan Lee • Feb 2, 2021
Reimagining Public Safety task force asks for hold on cadet classes
A public meeting of the task force for Reimagining Public Safety reviewed a report Wednesday about the presence of racial and gender bias and the use of unnecessary force in training cadets at the Austin Police Academy. The task force…
Public Safety • By Sumaiya Malik, Reporting Texas • Jan 22, 2021
Videos used to train Austin police perpetuate 'racism, sexist gender norms and classism,' panel finds
A panel of community members has recommended the Austin Police Department remove 60 videos from its training curriculum after concluding they bolster racist and sexist ideas and do little to help officers constructively interact with the public. “The vast majority…
