Austin Police Chief Brian Manley wrote to the mayor and City Council on Friday regarding discretionary arrests for nonviolent misdemeanors, and racial disparities in those arrests, essentially to say “We’re working on it.” On the former, the chief said APD has met twice with a stakeholder group (that includes members of Measure ATX, the Texas Fair Defense Project, Grassroots Leadership, and more), and plans to complete policy updates some time this month. The latter is something Manley expects to get covered later this fall, with APD submitting to Council a first quarterly report on the issue in January. Manley also said he expects to present to Council APD’s plan for ensuring the constitutional and legal rights of detainees or arrestees who may be affected by Senate Bill 4 on Monday, Oct. 1.
This article appears in September 7 • 2018.