Crime

April 11

A vandal damaged a woman’s vehicle in the 11200 block of Northgate Circle before 4:34 p.m.

April 12

A trip to Lowe’s Home Improvement on Inwood Road near Forest Lane left a man’s vehicle missing a catalytic converter before 5:22 p.m.

April 13

Hot & Pot. Recovered at 3:10 p.m. at NorthPark Center: a vehicle stolen in Amarillo and marijuana.

April 14

Overnight before 8:04 a.m., a burglar shattered a window to steal contents from a vehicle at apartments in the 3800 block of West Northwest Highway.

April 15

What’s a prowler call an unlocked garage? A garage sale where everything is free! Before 8:06 p.m., an opportunistic thief made off with a man’s stuff from a home in the 6200 block of Royal Lane.

April 16

No rush. Reported at 8:13 a.m.: the April 14 theft of a man’s vehicle from the 8500 block of Pickwick Lane.

April 17

Dispatched at 1:29 p.m.: Officers responded to shots fired at Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church on

Preston Road and Walnut Hill

Lane. Police say a security guard was cut by glass during the incident but was not shot.

April 19

Stolen before 1:41 p.m.: landscaping tools from a home in the 5400 block of Pebblebrook Drive.

April 20

Stolen before 11:18 a.m.: a man’s vehicle from a home in the 10400 block of Shadow Bend Drive.

April 21

Arrested at 8:23 p.m.: a 28-yearold woman accused of shoplifting from a store at NorthPark Center, biting three people, and having a glass pipe for drug consumption and .5 grams of methamphetamines.

April 22

Burglarized before 9:28 p.m.: a man’s vehicle at apartments in the

3900 block of West Northwest

Highway.

April 23

Reported at 3:06 a.m., the first of two overnight burglaries at apartments in the 6800 block of Bandera Avenue. It occurred at a man’s home. In the second, reported at 1:13 p.m., a prowler forced entry into a woman’s home.

April 24

Before 6:28 p.m., a vandal damaged a large metal trash bin outside Quest Diagnostics Forest Lane on Central Expressway.

April 25

Before 8:26 p.m., a crook brandished a deadly weapon while robbing the Texaco Dallas at Preston Road and LBJ Freeway.

April 26

Reported at 1:20 p.m., an acquaintance refuses to return a woman’s vehicle taken from the parking lot near Liberty Burger at Forest Lane and Inwood Road.

April 27

Stolen overnight before 8:03 a.m.: a breaker attachment from heavy equipment in the 8800 block of Devonshire Drive.

April 28

Reported at 3:23 p.m.: a prowler damaged the bumper of a woman’s vehicle during a theft at a NorthPark Center parking lot.

April 29

Unhappy auto theft Friday. Stolen before: 11:28 a.m.: a vehicle from apartments in the 6200

block of West Northwest High-

way. 11:37 a.m.: a man’s truck from the Campisi’s Restaurant parking lot on Lovers Lane.

4:24 p.m.: a woman’s vehicle from Preston Royal Village.

April 30

Broken before 9:51 a.m.: the window of a woman’s vehicle on the Grace Bible Church campus at Inwood and Northaven roads. Taken: a bookbag.

May 3

Doubletake! A man and woman had unpleasant trips to Preston Center. Reported at 5:05 p.m.: the theft of her vehicle. Reported at 5:08 p.m., the theft of his.

May 4

Reported at 9:54 p.m.: A shooter fired a gun toward a woman in a NorthPark Center parking lot but missed her.

May 5

Stolen before 8:46 a.m.: a woman’s vehicle from a home in the 6606 block of Pemberton Drive.

May 6

Stolen before 9:59 a.m.: a man’s vehicle from a home in the 5500 block of Glenwick Lane.

May 8

Reported at 5:17 p.m.: the fourday old burglary of a woman’s vehicle at apartments in the 8600 block of Thackery Street.

SKULDUGGERY of the MONTH: IS SOMEONE WATCHING YOU?

Reported at 3:44 p.m. April 28: a likely “jugging” incident. That’s what investigators call it when thieves stake out financial institutions for customers leaving with money bags and then follow to take the cash. To get the loot in this case, a crook smashed the window of a man’s vehicle at Preston Forest Shopping Center.

(PHOTO: PEXELS.COM-ARTYOM-KULAKOV)

For more crimes visit: peoplenewspapers.com/ category/crime/

Chief of Police Eddie Garcia often speaks around Dallas, including at a recent meeting of the Rotary Club of Park Cities at Maggiano’s Little Italy at NorthPark Center. (PHOTO: WILLIAM TAYLOR)

Police Chief Outlines Four-Step Plan

Garcia prioritizes recruitment, community trust, morale, retention

By Maddie Spera

People Newspapers

Chief of Police Eddie Garcia has a fourstep plan to grow and improve the Dallas Police Department.

The first step is to recruit, he told members of the Rotary Club of Park Cities during one of the club’s weekly lunch meetings this spring.

The appreciation Dallas has for our men and women is amazing, and I applaud this city for it. Eddie Garcia

Garcia explained that, especially in the past few years, many honorable police officers have felt vilified, which has resulted in fewer people willing to do the job.

For police officers, support and appreciation from their community are essential. This aligns with the second step of his plan: to increase community trust, and Garcia already sees an improvement.

“I came from a state where individuals are almost fearful of saying they support law enforcement,” Garcia said. “The appreciation Dallas has for our men and women is amazing, and I applaud this city for it.”

He also wants to increase morale and prevent retirement-eligible officers from immediately leaving.

“When we hire a recruit, it takes about 18 months until they’re ready to be a solo beat officer,” Garcia said. “We have an attrition rate in Dallas that fluctuates around 200 officers that are eligible to retire per year. If just 30 of those officers stuck around for another year, that’s an academy class, and it’s one that starts today, not in 18 months.”

Implementing this plan is not without roadblocks. Garcia acknowledged that it would not be possible without the city’s support, specifically Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, whom Garcia called the most supportive mayor he has seen thus far.

Garcia prioritizes investing in the community rather than making mass arrests and ignoring the root of the issues.

Last May, he put that into action when he went undercover and volunteered, along with a dozen other officers, at Cafe Momentum. The restaurant doubles as a non-profit helping formerly incarcerated individuals reintegrate and have a second chance.

The chief and other officers who volunteered came back a couple of weeks later in uniform and had a chance to speak with and encourage the young adults who work at Cafe Momentum.

“We want our people to succeed,” Garcia said. “We do not succeed as a department if the individuals don’t succeed. So, it was important to show those young adults that not everyone is against them, and our police department certainly isn’t. A lot of our officers had a similar rough upbringing as the kids at Cafe Momentum, so sharing those stories was very impactful.”

Garcia said Dallas has work to do but is on the right track to reduce violent crime and has the tools and plan to make that happen.

“If it doesn’t work, we’ll try something else,” Garcia said. “But I guarantee you, this department will not give up.”

DID YOU KNOW?

• In 2021, Edgardo (Eddie) Garcia became the 30th police chief and first Latino to lead the Dallas Police Department in its 140-year history. • Before coming to Dallas, Garcia spent his entire 29-year career with the San Jose Police Department, rising to chief in 2016. • He earned a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice management from Union Institute and University and studied administration of justice at De Anza College in Cupertino, California. • Originally from Puerto Rico, he is bilingual in English and Spanish. • He always wears long sleeves when in uniform to hide his tattoos.