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by Crystal_Cotti from Austin, Texas

Last Post 50 days Ago


Travis County Soft on Crime?
Jun 10, 2008 | 9:46 PM
Category: News
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Today Chief Art Acevedo caused a stir when he said Travis County is easy on criminals compared to Williamson County.  While this may offend some judges and juries, he's simply saying what most people think.  The criminal justice system in any county is a representation of the people who live there. Our values guide jury decisions to convict and the length of sentences. In Travis County, many pride themselves on being the liberal oasis of the state and the number of drug convictions reflects that.

Many criminal justice reformers complain our country's jails are too crowded as it is with minor drug offenders, while violent criminals are still on the streets. 

Crime is up in Austin but so far I have not heard a convincing argument that throwing more pot heads in jail for longer sentences will do anything to reduce crime in Austin.

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Member Comments Total Comments: 3
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Delwingoss
Jun 12, 2008 | 10:04 PM

Crystal? Ive met you and I respect you but your comment about "a few potheads" shows almost total lack of knowledge on your part of the problems the residents of Montopolis face every single day. You have my contact inforamtion. Let me know when you want to see Austin's best kept, dirty little secrets.
Thanks, Delwin Goss
Shocker read my blog
Jun 13, 2008 | 1:05 PM

Crystal, I know you personally and I like respect your views, but you are so out of touch with reality when it comes to the outright daily criminal activity in our neighborhood (Montopolis).

The crime statistics released by the FBI on Monday for Austin are very misleading, why? There are 10 criminal offense specific crimes that get reported by law enforcement to the FBI, but the actual number of total crime in Austin, is much higher than what this FBI article reported.

What you don't see is the total number of drug arrest or sex crimes that are not considered rape or sexual assault.

What the you should report, is the total number of offense reports based on the criminal offense type, to show the public just how bad crimes is in our community.

The problem with crime in Austin is not with the Police Department, rather the Travis DA's office and Courts not following sentencing guidelines.

Don't fall for that lame excuse reported in the media from Perry appointed Melissa Goodwin's comments blaming the juries.

Being a Neighborhood Watch Captain, I stay busy chasing the criminals our of the neighborhood, because APD "still" lacks the manpower to keep officers in the patrol districts throughout their shift.

Bringing Rudy Koski to Fox 7 is a big winner for viewer and we can only hope Rudy will cover most law enforcement related stories.
Debmocracy
Jul 14, 2008 | 3:09 PM

I would say that Travis County is closer to 'fair' in terms of justice where WilCo is off the charts overly punitive, esp. to non-violent offenders. If you compare Travis to counties around the country, I think you'll find it's about average in terms of sentencing.

It's not a "soft" or "hard" scale...it's a scale of balance, where WilCo pulls the right arm down almost 90 degrees.
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Crystal_Cotti

Hi there, my name is Crystal Cotti and I'm the City Hall Reporter for FOX 7 NEWS. I graduated from the University of Texas at Austin and am proud to call this city home. When I'm not at work, I'm spending quality time with my new daughter Victoria and my husband Mark.

Member Since: 9/19/2006


 

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