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The Austin Police Department has announced it will no longer respond to “non-emergency” calls after a police budget cut in 2020 resulted in a staff shortage. Austin City Council member Mackenzie Kelly said the decision to fund the police had “dire consequences” in the city.
Austin City Council voted in August 2020 to cut up to $ 150 million – about 34% – from the police budget. In late July, Austin reported that the number of homicides in 2021 already matched the total number of homicides for all of 2020.
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“A lot of what we see happening from today is coming home to roost this decision,” Kelly said. “And it is disastrous.”
The city now plans to send social workers to answer “non-urgent” calls to make up for the lack of available agents.
Residents have been advised to call 311 to report crimes like theft and burglary that are no longer active.
“One of my biggest concerns is getting prostitution on this list,” Kelly said on “Fox & Friends”.
“We have victims of human trafficking, and they are going to send a social worker and not a police officer? That is nonsense to me.”
Kelly told host Steve Doocy that officials don’t prioritize public safety if civilians are sent to answer calls.
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“This is what the police are for. They are trained to respond to these kinds of incidents, not a civilian,” she said.
The department had 150 vacancies at the end of July, an amount that Austin’s acting police chief Joseph Chacon called a “crisis” level.
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Kelly expects 147 more officers to be cut by the end of the year.
“I don’t see this ending well for anyone, especially the taxpaying citizens of the city of Austin.”
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