Houston Launches Multiagency Violent Crime Initiative

HOUSTON, TX — It was a crime summit extraordinaire, one for the ages. Leading law enforcement officials representing 13 federal, state, and local departments gathered at the U.S. Attorney's Office here on Thursday to send a warning to violent criminals.

"There ain't gonna be any more slap on the wrist in Harris County," Art Acevedo, the city's police chief, said during the proceedings. "You're going to grow old in prison."

Acevedo's stern announcement follows the tone of recent meetings held at the Houston FBI field office and in the nation's capital that drew up plans for agencies to share crime data and other resources to deal with violent crime and the people who carry it out. The Harris County District Attorney's Office and the U.S. Attorney's Office promised tight and coordinate cooperation.

"We're committed to the containment and eradication of violent crime," said Tom Berg, an assistant to Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg, as reported by the Houston Chronicle.

While the rate of violent crime in in the U.S. has risen in the past several years, the rates are still far below what they were in recent decades. Violent robberies are on the rise in Houston, according to data released by local officials, and this initiative is designed to combat those crimes.

Abe Martinez, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, is fully behind the program.

"This is the first time that I will have experienced where the heads of all major agencies, state, federal, local have come together to work together as one unit," he said.

The Houston Police Department will put two task forces in action in the effort; one will focus on the people committing violent crimes, including repeat offenders and gang members, while the other will utilize intelligence produced from the overall initiative to apprehend violent offenders.

"It is a region that is locked and loaded," Acevedo added. "We are coming after the worst of the worst, and we promise you, that you will be growing old in prison."

— Image: Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo (Houston Police Department)