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Tag Archives: Austin Police Department

Austin records first traffic death involving rented scooter

A 21-year-old scooter rider was killed in a crash last week, says the Austin Police Department. According to the department, it’s the first death related to a rented scooter in Austin. Police say Mark Sands was riding a Lime scooter on…

City of Austin orders outside review of police handling of sexual assault cases

The city has ordered an independent review of the Austin Police Department’s handling of sexual assault cases, asking investigators to track incidents from when they’re first reported to police to when they’re closed or handed off to the district attorney’s…

Reporter's Notebook: At long last, an end

Casar wins!… Friday’s news that the Texas Supreme Court has ended the long-running legal battle over the 2014 District 4 City Council race between since-re-elected Greg Casar and former opponent Laura Pressley broke quickly on Twitter, and came with a…

Austin Police Department orders outside audit after state finds it misclassified cleared rape cases

The Austin Police Department has ordered a third-party audit of rape investigations after state auditors found it misclassified certain rape cases. “This review will look from the beginning to the end,” Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said. “From the moment…

Advocates say APD should focus less on how rape cases are coded and more on solving them

When Austin Police Chief Brian Manley announced last week that state auditors had found problems with the way police classify rape cases, some people were not shocked by the news. “It wasn’t a huge surprise to us,” said Kristen Lenau,…

Police department still waiting for explanation of DPS audit of sexual assault clearance rates

On New Year’s Eve, Austin Police Department Chief Brian Manley gave a press conference in which he noted that nearly two-thirds of the sexual assault cases reviewed by Texas Department of Public Safety from January, November and December of 2017…

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2018: Manley takes the helm at APD

From a public safety standpoint, Austin police officers went through the wringer in 2018. Most of the year was spent without a contract with the city, in March a serial bomber created terror, and in July the entire fleet of…

Office of the Police Monitor building a police oversight agency

For 16 years, the Office of the Police Monitor has been available for citizens and city staff to issue complaints against law enforcement. However, it appears not many Austinites take advantage of its services. Police Monitor Farah Muscadin found that…

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Council approves labor contract with police after a year without one

Officers with the Austin Police Department are getting a new labor contract. After nearly a year of negotiations, City Council members unanimously approved a four-year and $44.6 million contract between the city and the local police union. Police reform activists…

Austin reconsiders homelessness ordinances as Houston laws are challenged in court

It’s a new fiscal year for the city of Austin, and one of the myriad items on City Council agendas over the next year will be an overhaul of ordinances relating to homelessness. That won’t be easy, as federal courts…

EMS truck

Low morale in Austin’s public safety departments requires attention

The Public Safety Commission heard a variety of concerns at its Oct. 1 meeting in regards to the chronic low morale that public safety officers are experiencing within their respective departments. “It is pretty unanimous the officers are really getting…

APD to make changes in mental health cases

As a result of Austin Police Department policies, “people experiencing a mental health crisis in Austin may be at higher risk of having a negative police interaction than people in a city that more closely aligns with best practices,” according…

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