Dallas Police Chief Discusses 2022 Crime Fighting Progress and His Future

Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia Friday praised officers, the community and city leaders for their support in reducing violent crime in 2022.

Figures through Wednesday, December 28 showed a 9.33% reduction in homicide, a 4% reduction in aggravated assault and a 4.87% overall reduction in crimes against persons. It is the second year in a row of reduction after previous increases.

Some property crimes were up including 11.86% more stolen motor vehicles and 17.46% more stolen vehicle parts including catalytic converters. But overall crime including other categories of violent and property crime was down nearly 1%.

It comes from a police force that currently has 3,061 according to a December 9^th dashboard of information for the Dallas City Council Public Safety Committee.  The city had 3,690 police officers on October 1, 2011 according to police records, about 600 more than today.

Garcia, an avid Dallas Cowboys fan, uses sports metaphors, like comparing his department to a standard nine-player baseball squad.

“This department is doing seven-person baseball and we're doing our very best to use data to insure we have a good idea, the propensity where the ball is going to go when the hitter hits it,” Garcia said.

Experts from the University of Texas at San Antonio helped Garcia craft the Dallas crime plan, implemented in 2021.  It targets grids where data shows crime is most likely to occur in the future, then uses programs called Place Network Investigations and Focused Deterrence in those grids.

“These aren't new concepts, but you need to track them, you need to believe in them, you need to make sure the morale of the department is to a level they can understand it and want to do it,” Garcia said.

The Chief said he wants to add more officers but the number leaving exceeded hundreds of officers hired in each of the past two years. Response time to calls increased according to figures from the dashboard.

“We’ve also seen calls for service, particularly priority one and priority two go up. And so, when that happens, it’s a perfect storm for those response times to go up,” Garcia said.

And still, Dallas achieved 2022 crime-fighting success in the target areas.

“Yes, it could be broader. We would need more people for it to be broader. But, I’m proud that, with the staffing issues we have had, these men and women have done remarkable jobs,” Garcia said.

Taking reports online or by phone without dispatching officers along with other technology improvements are part of the plan to keep crime-fighting progress improving.

The City of Dallas is also pursuing blight reduction and better lighting in crime-prone areas.

“We need to look at ways we can cure the illness by investing in people and places that we have neglected for far too long,” Garcia said.

Eddie Garcia has enjoyed strong support from Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson and other city leaders, from police officer groups and from community leaders in his nearly two years as chief.

He would not say how long he plans to continue as the top Dallas cop though he admits it is a grind.

“My goals were I want to reduce violent crime, I want to increase department morale, I want to increase community trust in this police department, and I want the next chief to be from the Dallas Police Department,” Garcia said. “Even though every day there’s no light at the end of the tunnel, just another tunnel, I enjoy that. When it no longer becomes fun then it’s time to do something else because I couldn’t be effective if I didn’t enjoy this job. But I enjoy this job.”

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson issued a statement about the improvement in crime figures and Garcia’s performance.

"Since I took office amid a significant spike in violent crime, public safety has been our top priority. Now, thanks to our commitment to both data-driven policing strategies and community-based solutions, Dallas will soon report two consecutive years of year-over-year violent crime decreases — an extraordinary achievement in the face of rising crime in cities across the nation.

We still have significant work ahead of us, and we must continue to increase hiring and retention, which can help us further reduce crime and provide quicker responses. But behind the people of Dallas, a resolute City Council, and the tireless work of the men and women of the Dallas Police Department, I know we can continue to make strides toward our goal of making Dallas the safest major city in the United States.”