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In response to the scandal surrounding suspended cases within the Houston Police Department (HPD), Mayor John Whitmire expressed frustration and issued apologies to crime victims on Wednesday. In a startling revelation, Whitmire asserted that the city’s crime rate, previously touted as declining under past administrations, was in fact “manipulated” due to inaccurate reporting influenced by the department’s low-staffing code. He denounced any claims of a decreasing crime rate as mere “spin.”
To address the issue, Whitmire announced the formation of an independent review committee tasked with investigating the thousands of cases left uninvestigated for years. The committee will comprise five members, including Ellen Cohen, a former state lawmaker and city mayor pro-tem, as chair, along with Christina Nowak from the Texas Office of Inspector General, Texas Rangers Capt. Jeff Owles, City Attorney Arturo Michel, and Rev. Lion Preston.
Emphasizing the need for transparency and accountability, Whitmire pledged to directly communicate the panel’s findings to the public, bypassing HPD. He underscored the importance of understanding how the situation occurred, as well as the steps being taken to address it and prevent similar incidents in the future.
The scandal emerged after it was revealed that over 261,000 incident reports had been classified as suspended in HPD’s computer system since 2016 due to staffing shortages. HPD Chief Troy Finner assured that the department would discontinue the use of the code responsible for suspending cases, acknowledging the failure in the case management system. Finner attributed the inability to delete the code to the outdated nature of their record management system.
Despite ongoing efforts by investigators to review and address the suspended reports, the current system presents significant challenges. Finner reported that 130 investigators had reviewed over 3,000 reports and visited 752 homes since the issue was first announced. However, a new record management system is expected to be implemented next year to streamline processes and address deficiencies.