Copwatch ATX

He said "back the blue".

Texas Governor asks residents to sign 'Back the Blue' pledge opposing defunding police He's also threatened to take over Austin's police department and freeze property tax revenue levels of cities who tried to defund their police.

Woooow

‘Enter at your own risk!’: Police group launches anti-defunding campaign in Austin Two billboards along I-35 read ‘Warning! Austin police defunding – Enter at your own risk!’ accompanied by the TMPA logo and the social media hashtag .

"Project Safe Neighborhoods provides resources for federal, state and local law enforcement to investigate, prosecute and prevent organized crime and gun violence in cities nationwide. City of Austin Grant Manager Kyran Fitzgerald said the program had been operating in Austin for roughly a year, focusing on downtown Austin and the Riverside neighborhood."

Austin’s funding application denied for violent crime prevention grant ‘Project Safe Neighborhoods’ Ahead of Thursday’s city council meeting, $128,019 in funding for the Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative was taken off the agenda altogether, but not because of the grant review process.

https://www.statesman.com/news/20200831/protester-sues-accuses-austin-police-of-abuse-in-i-35-encounter

Protester sues, accuses Austin police of abuse in I-35 encounter One of the first lawsuits to come out of Austin’s racial injustice protests was filed late last week, as a protester accused three Austin police

"AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin council members voted to accept several state grants for the Austin Police Department on Thursday. Most of these items were passed on the council’s consent agenda, however, on item was postponed until September 3. The postponed item would authorize $128,000 in grant funding from the state for APD to use in a program called Project Safe Neighborhoods in the Downtown and Riverside areas.

The handouts were scrutinized closely by city leaders earlier in the week at a time when Austin and many other U.S. cities are reforming their police budgets.

Among the items council approved Thursday: a platform for the police helicopter and a first responder mental health program. However, while the contract to for a multifunctional seating platform and rappel attachment for the police helicopter was approved, Council Members Jimmy Flannigan, Natasha Harper-Madison, and Paige Ellis abstained from the vote and Mayor Pro Tem Delia Garza voted no on that item."

Council votes to accept more than $1M in state grants for Austin Police Among the items up for vote Thursday: money aimed at crime prevention in the Downtown and Riverside areas, a platform for the police helicopter and a first responder mental health program.