Crime rates throughout the nation reached an all-time high during the pandemic, however, in the past two years, crime rates have begun to stabilize. The Index-Crimes Dashboard reports that year-on year, rape cases decreased by 7.9%, robbery decreased by 9.3% and murder decreased by 7.3% in 2022.¹ Despite a decrease in crime, eight out of every 10 Harris County voters believe that crime reduction should be a top priority in the upcoming election.² This begs the question - why is the local community expressing a desire for improved public safety if the data suggests that crime rates have gone down as of late?

The are many factors that can impact the feeling of public safety, including what is portrayed in the media. For example, in the most recent election, Harris County Republicans claimed that Democratic leadership’s soft-on-crime policies were to blame for the 2019 - 2021 spike in the crime rate.³ Narratives such as this can impact the sense of community trust in law enforcement and government. After the Democrats' victory in the past election and with the subsequent polices that are being brought to the table, this narrative has been put to the test.

Since Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones took office on January 1, 2023, she has championed policies to improve public safety in the County. On June 27, Commissioner Briones held a press conference with the Harris County Sheriff's Office to showcase the expansion of the TeleDeputy program. This program enables low-priority calls made to the Sheriff’s office to be made over the phone, eliminating the need for in-person deputies (the table below shows how priority is defined).

Commissioner Briones emphasized that approximately 60% of the calls made to 911 could be handled over the phone, freeing up resources for more pressing matters, such as immediate intervention in cases of domestic violence. Under her leadership, her policy team worked with the Sheriff’s Office to develop the program's proposal and garner support from stakeholders. As a result of their work, the Commissioners Court unanimously approved $1.7 million worth of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) federal funding for the TeleDeputy program.

Table of priority assignments, definitions, and examples

Improving police response times will improve public safety, subsequently increasing community trust in the police. The Houston Chronicle recently investigated response times and found that the Houston Police Department is now responding to top priority calls at the slowest rate since 1990.⁴ In Harris County, priority 4 call response times are, on average, 33 minutes at the Harris County Sheriff's Office and 88 minutes at the Houston Police Department. This can lead to the public feeling a sense of unreliability towards the police which has caused vulnerability and distrust. To alleviate this tension and improve public safety, response times must be reduced. Programs like this are vital to the betterment of public safety and public trust in the police.

Without change in policy, change in attitudes is impossible. In order for Harris County constituents to feel safe within their community, they need to know that when law enforcement is called, they will show up because, in many cases, a prolonged response time from the deputies can be the difference between life or death.

It is imperative that we acknowledge that public safety is not just reducing the crime rate but also addressing police response times and community perception. By making the current police procedures more efficient, Commissioner Briones has opened the door to the possibility of further innovation. This program is a step towards positive change; however, there is still much work to be done to ensure the safety and sense of security of Harris County constituents.