Dallas Police Chief Opens Up About Deep Ellum Beating — But Why Did It Take So Long?

In the weeks since Austin Shuffield was caught on video repeatedly slugging L’Daijohnique Lee in a predawn Deep Ellum parking lot confrontation, Dallas residents have endured another baffling — and at times, seemingly unjust — series of responses by the police department.And in the public’s eyes, the buck stops with Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall.The chief acknowledged some missteps when I interviewed her Tuesday about the department's handling of the case. And she explained the rationale in great detail.“As a woman to watch another woman get beaten so violently — all of us had emotions about that,” she said. “But professionally, we have to step aside with our emotions and take the job and put it first. We took an oath to do that.”The problem is that her explanations were exactly what the public needed to hear day to day — directly from her — as this story unfolded.I wouldn’t pretend to know every issue that bedevils the Dallas Police Department, but I’m certain of this much: Communication breakdowns, whether within the department or between police and the public, make awful cases such as the Deep Ellum attack even worse.   Continue reading...