AUSTIN, Texas — Only one month after the start of the partnership between the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and the Austin Police Department, some community groups want it gone.
The Austin Justice Coalition (AJC), ACLU Texas and other advocate groups gathered at City Hall Thursday afternoon to call on City leaders to end their request for extra DPS patrols. The groups are accusing DPS troopers of targeting minority groups and are criticizing City leaders for not including their voice in the decision to bring DPS troopers to Austin.
This comes after DPS Director Steven McCraw said Tuesday that troopers have been patrolling areas that have high crime. However, APD Chief Joseph Chacon said that police department is willing to shift that strategy.
“It's really not targeting a neighborhood. We're really targeting crime in the neighborhood,” McCraw said. “And really, we're about protecting that neighborhood from crime. So that's what's got different terms. And I think that's an important part. We view our role is to go in and when you if you see six police officers or six troopers, when you turn around, you should feel safe, not threatened.”
But community groups were still upset Thursday, saying DPS targets minority groups in North, South and East Austin.
“Everybody deserves to feel safe,” said Chas Moore, executive director of the AJC. “Some folks' safety can't come at the expense of others, right? If we're only trying to keep one part of us safe while terrorizing another, that's not safety.”
Many advocates were also upset that the agreement for the partnership was made only between the mayor and the interim city manager.
"Not a single voice of the council members was there, meaning by extension, our voices, our representation was not there,” said Alicia Torres, an immigration campaign consultant for Grassroots Leadership.
KVUE reached out to DPS for a comment on Thursday’s criticisms, but we have not heard back yet.
APD will provide more updates on the partnership during the Public Safety Committee meeting on May 22.