September 9Sep 9 49 minutes ago, CooterBrown said: It does my Gen X heart proud to see a cursive G that's close to the version we spent countless hours on repetitive worksheets perfecting in 2nd grade only to never write a G like that in the real world. Still have nightmares...
September 9Sep 9 15 hours ago, utee94 said: Any time someone mentions Garza and gets a yeah but the police in response, is an example of downplaying how shitty Garza is. You just did it, no need to search back any further. I have literally never downplayed the shittiness of Garza and personally attempted to recruit* both primary and general election challengers So… no. That said, it is a fact that Garza’s shittiness is directly provided as a justification both here, in real life, and sometimes officers themselves and their union for why the police product we get from APD is so mediocre. What part of Austin do you live in? *as far as I can tell nobody good wants the job 🤷
September 9Sep 9 3 hours ago, Jerry Callo said: Fitlump started a petition to stop the use of the new logo. Blah, blah, blah, . . . too expensive . . . blah, blah, blah, . . . more important things to spend money on . . . blah, blah, blah . . . think of the children. Guess who voted with the unanimous council to authorize hiring the design firm? Then she went on Twitter and seemed to blame some combination of a heavy workload and fear of being the sole vote against, which is not an excuse I have ever seen before from a council member for a vote they regret.
September 9Sep 9 Just now, Bozo_Casanova said: I have literally never downplayed the shittiness of Garza and personally attempted to recruit* both primary and general election challengers So… no. That said, it is a fact that Garza’s shittiness is directly provided as a justification both here, in real life, and sometimes officers themselves and their union for why the police product we get from APD is so mediocre. What part of Austin do you live in? *as far as I can tell nobody good wants the job 🤷 Well then good work indeed on attempting to find challengers. I live in the part of Austin that is not Austin, just NW of the city limit. I was born and raised in Austin, lived there the first 43 years of my life. But of course, since my entire family lives in Austin and I spend a great deal of my time there, the status of both police enforcement, and prosecution, ultimately affect me.
September 9Sep 9 5 minutes ago, utee94 said: Well then good work indeed on attempting to find challengers. I live in the part of Austin that is not Austin, just NW of the city limit. I was born and raised in Austin, lived there the first 43 years of my life. But of course, since my entire family lives in Austin and I spend a great deal of my time there, the status of both police enforcement, and prosecution, ultimately affect me. Sure they effect you, but (and I sincerely mean no offense here) what I’ve found is that APD’s most ardent defenders and Garza blames (and, to be clear, that’s not you) tend to live outside the city limits and don’t pay for the generally underwhelming service we are currently getting. Furthermore, the majority of officers don’t live in the city and many of them never have.
September 9Sep 9 9 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said: Furthermore, the majority of officers don’t live in the city and many of them never have. Austin is too dangerous.
September 9Sep 9 6 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said: Sure they effect you, but (and I sincerely mean no offense here) what I’ve found is that APD’s most ardent defenders and Garza blames (and, to be clear, that’s not you) tend to live outside the city limits and don’t pay for the generally underwhelming service we are currently getting. Furthermore, the majority of officers don’t live in the city and many of them never have. That's fine, but you're bringing in outside stuff, onto this thread. On this thread, there are a couple of guys who always seem to stan for APD and do the same kind of "Yeah but" deflecting onto Garza. I get it, I know what you're saying, I've seen it. But there are a lot more people on this thread, and on this message board in general, who Bernard the APD. Which they absolutely deserve. Like I said I was born and raised in Austin, I received both my undergrad and graduate degrees from UT. I've been around shitty Austin police my entire life. They deserve all the criticism they get. I'm just not seeing a multitude of people defending the APD, on this thread.
September 9Sep 9 13 hours ago, jimmyjazz said: It's true. I turned onto the west mall just the other day from the drag (excuse me, "Guad") and almost stepped on a still-hot s'more. That place is a hellhole. I'm occasionally in the west campus area. Honestly, if they could stay on top of the trash in the dumpsters behind apartment complexes, that would make a big difference.
September 9Sep 9 3 hours ago, CooterBrown said: It does my Gen X heart proud to see a cursive G that's close to the version we spent countless hours on repetitive worksheets perfecting in 2nd grade only to never write a G like that in the real world.
September 9Sep 9 15 minutes ago, texasdago said: I'm occasionally in the west campus area. Honestly, if they could stay on top of the trash in the dumpsters behind apartment complexes, that would make a big difference. It's super fucking dense now with all the condos.
September 9Sep 9 25 minutes ago, HenryJames said: It's super fucking dense now with all the condos. And they have nowhere near enough dumpsters to handle it all. Both our younger kids rotated out of that area over the last couple of years, as the "condos" are essentially mid-century modern prisons and the flith between buildings is remarkable. It's like parking. They should have enough capacity to handle the trash. They don't.
September 9Sep 9 26 minutes ago, HenryJames said: It's super fucking dense now with all the condos. Yeah, for sure, but man the trash piles up...
September 9Sep 9 39 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said: Furthermore, the majority of officers don’t live in the city and many of them never have. This is a big cause of the disconnect. Here's a 2016 Statesman editorial stating that 73% of the officers at the time lived outside Austin, and how that was a problem: https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2016/09/04/public-would-be-better-served-if-austin-police-officers-lived-in-city/10061173007/ We all have our biases. Folks in hiring positions tend to hire people like them. If everyone recruiting and hiring is living in far off suburbs, then new hires are likely to live in far off suburbs. If police can drive into Austin four days a week, do their shift, and go home having never lived here, what incentive do they have to serve the local population well? They are not bad people, they are just doing what they have to do to get a paycheck. They are focused on their kids and their family and their community, and none of that is in Austin. The police department should try to build homegrown officers. They should be recruiting at LBJ, Akins, Navarro, Crockett, and all of the other schools within the city of Austin. They should be providing a pathway for interested graduates to get relevant experience and return when they are ready to enter the academy. And the city should provide financial incentives for officers to live within the city limits. Even if the homegrown folks eventually moved to the burbs, we would have police officers with local relatives or a memory of growing up in Austin, and perhaps they may feel more connection to Austin and be more incented to try to improve the city rather than just police.
September 9Sep 9 My mother in law had her house broken into by two men, house trashed and her car stolen, neighbor basically assaulted trying to stop the car theft. Thank God they weren't home that night. Ring doorbell has clear fucking video of both dudes. The neighbor called 911 after almost being run over (that's also on video). Guy stole my father in law's fucking cowboy hat (for some reason more insulting than the car, I can't explain why honestly) drove the car into another neighborhood and wrecked it because he was drunk off all the Still whiskey my in laws had and ran off. Those people in that neighborhood also called the cops. Police response? None until 11pm the next fucking night. They were apparently told to fuck right off by the father in law.
September 9Sep 9 48 minutes ago, Texas Jeff said: This is a big cause of the disconnect. Here's a 2016 Statesman editorial stating that 73% of the officers at the time lived outside Austin, and how that was a problem: https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2016/09/04/public-would-be-better-served-if-austin-police-officers-lived-in-city/10061173007/ We all have our biases. Folks in hiring positions tend to hire people like them. If everyone recruiting and hiring is living in far off suburbs, then new hires are likely to live in far off suburbs. If police can drive into Austin four days a week, do their shift, and go home having never lived here, what incentive do they have to serve the local population well? They are not bad people, they are just doing what they have to do to get a paycheck. They are focused on their kids and their family and their community, and none of that is in Austin. The police department should try to build homegrown officers. They should be recruiting at LBJ, Akins, Navarro, Crockett, and all of the other schools within the city of Austin. They should be providing a pathway for interested graduates to get relevant experience and return when they are ready to enter the academy. And the city should provide financial incentives for officers to live within the city limits. Even if the homegrown folks eventually moved to the burbs, we would have police officers with local relatives or a memory of growing up in Austin, and perhaps they may feel more connection to Austin and be more incented to try to improve the city rather than just police. Great post. Another part of the disconnect is that they have a very narrow and misleading understanding of the city based exclusively on what they hear from others where they live community and see policing, ie, they don’t get to understand the city the way a civilian does. For example, a few years ago an officer talked to me about how different Mueller was from the “gangbangers north of 51st.” You know, the mean streets of Windsor Park. It also creates multiple other problems, like a feeling of being able to violate basic standards with impunity. 6th street is basically safe, or in any case is less dangerous than it was in the 90’s. But because of media and politics, people in places like Leander and Liberty Hill are absolutely convinced that 6th street is a dangerous, lawless wasteland. My daughter worked on Dirty 6th street when she was 15-17 at a coffee shop, usually early mornings to afternoon. She dealt with all sorts of craziness from homeless people, but never felt unsafe when she was working there, except when she was being hit on at 16 by a married officer while their colleague looked ashamed, but did nothing. She was even uncomfortable when he came back later trying to “escort her safely” to her car because of the “danger” and that he even had the gall to say “I wouldn’t let my daughter work down here.” Edited September 9Sep 9 by Bozo_Casanova
September 9Sep 9 2 hours ago, texasdago said: I'm occasionally in the west campus area. Honestly, if they could stay on top of the trash in the dumpsters behind apartment complexes, that would make a big difference. Basic services are not a top priority in Austin, TX, sir.
September 9Sep 9 5 minutes ago, Samson's Wig said: Basic services are not a top priority in Austin, TX, sir. What if the trash is blocking the bike lane?
September 10Sep 10 Phone call and text at 5:32 - “avoid the area and shelter in place” phone call and text at 6:35 - “all clear, resume activities” phone call and text at 6:41 - “avoid the area” Make up your damn mind.
September 10Sep 10 18 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said: Great post. Another part of the disconnect is that they have a very narrow and misleading understanding of the city based exclusively on what they hear from others where they live community and see policing, ie, they don’t get to understand the city the way a civilian does. For example, a few years ago an officer talked to me about how different Mueller was from the “gangbangers north of 51st.” You know, the mean streets of Windsor Park. It also creates multiple other problems, like a feeling of being able to violate basic standards with impunity. 6th street is basically safe, or in any case is less dangerous than it was in the 90’s. But because of media and politics, people in places like Leander and Liberty Hill are absolutely convinced that 6th street is a dangerous, lawless wasteland. My daughter worked on Dirty 6th street when she was 15-17 at a coffee shop, usually early mornings to afternoon. She dealt with all sorts of craziness from homeless people, but never felt unsafe when she was working there, except when she was being hit on at 16 by a married officer while their colleague looked ashamed, but did nothing. She was even uncomfortable when he came back later trying to “escort her safely” to her car because of the “danger” and that he even had the gall to say “I wouldn’t let my daughter work down here.” Of course Dirty 6th seems pretty safe from the mornings to the mid-afternoons. I don't think many people are talking about how safe it is during those hours. Edited September 10Sep 10 by Deej
September 10Sep 10 3 minutes ago, Deej said: Of course Dirty 6th seems pretty safe from the mornings to the mid-afternoons. I don't think many people are talking about how safe it is during those hours. It’s pretty safe at night too. It was 10X more dangerous 30 years ago.
September 10Sep 10 3 minutes ago, ChickenSandwich said: Sadly the Town Lake running trail has done the complete opposite. Has it? I use it 4-6x each week (and have for over 20 years now). What are you complaining about now?
September 10Sep 10 37 minutes ago, ChickenSandwich said: Sadly the Town Lake running trail has done the complete opposite. The only dangerous thing about the trail is the heat in the summer LMAO.
September 10Sep 10 On 9/9/2025 at 8:11 AM, Jerry Callo said: Cities spend stupid money on stupid crap - news at 11:00. Probably 15 years ago, the City of Georgetown spent over $100k for the design of their new logo. It's a cursive uppercase letter G. City of Round Rock built a nice sign on 1-35 south as you enter from Georgetown. If you look closely you'll see mountains and pine trees. You know what doesn't represent Round Rock in any way? Mountains and pine trees. One thing is true across all levels of government, regardless of ideology or political affiliation - its easy to spend other people's money. This is more like its reality…
September 10Sep 10 2 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said: It’s pretty safe at night too. It was 10X more dangerous 30 years ago. Also, the fucking police headquarters is on the next block. Complete failure of the police that it was ever considered dangerous.
September 10Sep 10 1 hour ago, ChickenSandwich said: Sadly the Town Lake running trail has done the complete opposite. What? I mean, you might strain your neck on the trail. I'm out there all the time - never feel unsafe and there are always plenty of people around.
September 10Sep 10 Have you tried running the trail after dark? All of my female friends have stopped running after dark because it is not safe. and obligatroy In January 2024, a man named Seth Gott, 19, was attacked with a machete by a stranger on the Town Lake Trail near Auditorium Shores in Downtown Austin, Texas.
September 10Sep 10 I see the usual suspects are once again acting like downtown Austin is Kabul. I live in Houston and I bet I visit downtown Austin more often than that crowd.
September 10Sep 10 2 minutes ago, royiv said: I see the usual suspects are once again acting like downtown Austin is Kabul. I live in Houston and I bet I visit downtown Austin more often than that crowd. Yeah, machete dude was a one-off nutbar. And from the people I know who use the trails regularly, they are no more or less "safe" than they were some years ago. Running around in poorly lit areas with lots of places people can hide makes people nervous, and rightly so. But the number of crimes committed on the trail hasn't materially changed, from what I understand.
September 10Sep 10 33 minutes ago, texasdago said: What? I mean, you might strain your neck on the trail. I'm out there all the time - never feel unsafe and there are always plenty of people around.
September 10Sep 10 12 minutes ago, Brisketexan said: Yeah, machete dude was a one-off nutbar. You really aren’t safe around the Tower because some guy shot a bunch of people from the roof.
September 10Sep 10 Cop injured in an officer involved shooting. I wonder if whether he shot himself or was shot by another officer. Quote At least two people were injured early Wednesday morning during an officer-involved shooting near the 700 block of Azie Morton Road The department said that the two who were injured include an APD officer and “one additional person.” APD Watch Command said that both were receiving care at a local hospital, and that the officer had been shot. It didn’t disclose the other person’s injuries. https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/austin-police-officer-other-person-injured-in-shooting/
September 10Sep 10 Just now, Deej said: Cop injured in an officer involved shooting. I wonder if whether he shot himself or was shot by another officer. https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/austin-police-officer-other-person-injured-in-shooting/ Buddy of mine lives in the neighborhood said they got the all clear so he rode bikes with his kid to Barton Hills Elementary and later found out they rode right past the suspect dude was just casually walking down Barton Hills Dr. so the all clear was a fuck up. Also said the perp broke into a house on one of the side streets and the homeowner shot the dude.
September 10Sep 10 1 hour ago, ChickenSandwich said: Have you tried running the trail after dark? All of my female friends have stopped running after dark because it is not safe. and obligatroy In January 2024, a man named Seth Gott, 19, was attacked with a machete by a stranger on the Town Lake Trail near Auditorium Shores in Downtown Austin, Texas. Have you tried walking in Rivers Oaks in Houston? Got all kinds of crazy people there. Stay away, it is not safe. https://www.fox26houston.com/news/hours-long-houston-police-standoff-ends-at-river-oaks-home https://www.fox26houston.com/video/1635641 Oh, did I pick an isolated incident to paint an area of Houston? Oops.
September 10Sep 10 Wow, you mean bad things happen after dark? I am so surprised. And that the incident being used is over 18 months old. So nothing bad since?
September 10Sep 10 9 minutes ago, Js1 said: Wow, you mean bad things happen after dark? I am so surprised. And that the incident being used is over 18 months old. So nothing bad since? If we ignore Nicole's work, no.
September 10Sep 10 Correct. Only the one machete attack at town lake i could find, my bad. At least they caught the serial rapist who was targeting females running on the trail. Austin’s machete mayhem — a few of many cases: Mar 25, 2022 – West Campus students witness a machete scare near 28th & Rio Grande as APD floods the scene. Apr 18, 2022 – A man walking his dog near a homeless camp at Elmont & Pleasant Valley is slashed in the armin a sudden attack. Early 2022 – Reports swirl of multiple machete assaults at the same Southeast Austin corner. Aug 21, 2023 – Outside the Austin Proper Hotel, a security guard is nearly bled out after an attacker grabs a machete from a suitcase and strikes, causing nerve damage. Jan 9, 2024 – A random ambush on the Lady Bird Lake trail leaves 19-year-old Seth Gott with severe head wounds and a mangled hand. Jun 28, 2025 – A bus stop clash in northeast Austin ends with a man’s hand slashed and a suspect arrested. Sep 9, 2025 – Downtown bus chaos: 63-year-old Ronald Lee Turner allegedly raises a machete at CapMetro passengers near Fourth & Lavaca before being arrested with the weapon in his bag. https://www.kvue.com/article/news/crime/travis-county-prosecutors-rejecting-criminal-cases/269-e8e9b982-19ff-400e-a61a-769828ca3342 A new policy means Travis County prosecutors are rejecting hundreds of criminal cases The KVUE Defenders analyzed hundreds of cases thrown out between March 1 and June 30 of this year. Some of the more serious rejected felony charges include aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, assault of a pregnant woman, aggravated robbery and more. During the four months analyzed, the Travis County District Attorney’s Office rejected 142 felony cases – a 735% increase from the same timeframe in 2020.
September 10Sep 10 Yeah those cases are well documented. Changing your story from the trail not being safe to Austin not being safe shows the ridiculous of your argument. Sounds like we got a fat loser afraid of exercise and cities. Many such cases.
September 10Sep 10 Author Only solution is to send in the army. I keed. Many of those idiots above are homeless. That's a whole other issue which involves the nation, the state, the lege, funding for mental health, putting up a welcome sign for the homeless, judges who are are dipshits or are constrained by the law and lack of facilities, and so on and so on... Anyone who thinks Austin is more unsafe than other Texas big cities lives in a dipshit burb where only people who are afraid of everything live. Edited September 10Sep 10 by crash_davis
September 10Sep 10 3 hours ago, ChickenSandwich said: Have you tried running the trail after dark? All of my female friends have stopped running after dark because it is not safe. and obligatroy In January 2024, a man named Seth Gott, 19, was attacked with a machete by a stranger on the Town Lake Trail near Auditorium Shores in Downtown Austin, Texas. Off topic, it does anybody remember the Shoal Creek Groper back in the 90’s? for several years women jogging on shoal creek were getting groped on the trail and the dude ended up raping a couple of women. IIRC they never caught anybody.
September 10Sep 10 4 hours ago, Gale Snoats said: Buddy of mine lives in the neighborhood said they got the all clear so he rode bikes with his kid to Barton Hills Elementary and later found out they rode right past the suspect dude was just casually walking down Barton Hills Dr. so the all clear was a fuck up. Also said the perp broke into a house on one of the side streets and the homeowner shot the dude. Yep, homeowner shot him. Found out this afternoon the homeowner is a good friend of ours.
September 10Sep 10 3 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said: Off topic, it does anybody remember the Shoal Creek Groper back in the 90’s? for several years women jogging on shoal creek were getting groped on the trail and the dude ended up raping a couple of women. IIRC they never caught anybody. I remember that the police sketch they kept showing on TV looked like every generic white guy ever. Not particularly helpful. Plenty of parking at Zilker right now.
September 11Sep 11 3 hours ago, landman said: Yep, homeowner shot him. Found out this afternoon the homeowner is a good friend of ours. Fucking hero. Was he prepared because of all of the public notices?
September 11Sep 11 8 hours ago, crash_davis said: Anyone who thinks Austin is more unsafe than other Texas big cities lives in a dipshit burb where only people who are afraid of everything live. Dude's probably posting from the safety of Liberty Hill. Cherry picking stories about crime is so stupid. Just like what I did with River Oaks. And yet he did it AGAIN!? I can keep doing that, too. "Manhunt continues for murder suspect in Central Lubbock shooting" - September 5th "Man arrested in connection with deadly Lubbock stabbing" - July 9th "East Lubbock murder suspect Jeremiah Lawrence, now in custody" - June 13th "Man found dead in car in Central Lubbock, woman pleads guilty to murder" - August 15th Oh oh, look... Machete stories...!? "Lubbock man accused of brandishing machete, threatening to kill woman" - January 3rd "Lubbock machete robbery over $20 and marijuana leads to arrest" - August 25th Edited September 11Sep 11 by texasdago
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