Five years ago, Dallas Police Sergeant George Aranda stood at the podium and called for the resignation of former Chief U. Rene Hall, drawing fierce opposition from some city officials and the police officers association.
He will be on the same stage on Friday, this This is the moment multiple police associations came together to advocate for Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia to stay in his position.
“I don’t think there has ever been a group in the history of the Dallas Police Department that has come together to ask for the retention of the police chief,” Aranda told reporters at a news conference in west Dallas.
Aranda, president of the Dallas National Latino Law Enforcement Association, was joined by the presidents of the Dallas Police Association and the North Texas Asian Police Association to voice support for the city’s top cop. The press conference came amid reports that city officials in Houston and Austin, both of which have interim chiefs, were approaching Garcia.
Aranda said the reports were true, but added that the city had submitted a proposal to the police chief, who had heard positive feedback. Aranda said Dallas Interim Mayor Kimberly Biser Tolbert had offered “everything she could” to keep Garcia.
“The city has filed a complaint with the police chief at this point,” he said.
Garcia declined to comment, and Tolbert did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.
While not in attendance, the presidents of the Dallas Police Women’s Association and the Dallas National Black Police Association also spoke. Dallas Morning News They support Garcia. The Dallas Metropolitan Black Police Association (one of the three largest associations) did not attend the news conference, but its president, Lt. Andre Taylor, said: news They declined to comment. In 2019, after Aranda called for Hall to resign, the group’s former president spoke out in strong opposition.
Dallas officials expressed concern earlier this week about other cities trying to poach Garcia, and on Wednesday Tolbert said that if other cities are “running their police chief searches through Dallas,” they “should turn back and go home.”
“Of course, my City Council members and I want him to stay in Dallas and do a good job,” she said in a public statement. “Achieving that will require flexibility, creativity and plenty of accountability, but we are working tirelessly to find a solution. [García] I want to stay here.”
Aranda said Houston Mayor John Whitmire, in particular, has been “very vocal” about hiring Garcia.Houston officials announced the abrupt retirement of former Chief Troy Finner on Tuesday after an investigation was launched into the department’s decision to drop thousands of criminal investigations.
Whitmire’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He was elected mayor of Houston last year. He previously served as chairman of the Texas Criminal Justice Commission and was a Democratic state senator for decades.
Former Dallas Mayor TC Broadnax recently became Austin’s chief administrative officer, who hired Garcia in 2020. Asked whether the city would hire Garcia, a city of Austin spokesman said briefly, “The position has not yet been filled and will not be open until early next week, so no offer has been made.”
Garcia took up his position in Dallas on Feb. 3, 2021, and has received widespread praise for his violent crime reduction plan. He has said his goal is to remain in the position for five years. Since taking the position, his base salary has increased by about $60,000, bringing his total salary to $306,440.40 as of April, according to city records.
In recent months, some officials, including former Public Safety Commission Chairman Adam McGough, have been pushing for a deal to solidify Garcia’s tenure.
The Dallas police chief is not allowed to enter into a contract under the city’s charter, which gives the mayor the power to hire and fire the police chief and most other heads of city departments at any time.
Aranda cited Garcia’s accomplishments, including an annual decline in violent crime, the lifting of disciplinary measures against DPD’s discipline unit and the creation of an officer wellness unit, and said union leaders have been receiving text messages and calls from officers worried about the police chief’s resignation.
“We’re very concerned,” Aranda said, “that’s why we’re here. We don’t want to take 10 steps back like we did four years ago.”
Corporal Jaime Castro, president of the Dallas Police Association (the largest police union), echoed Aranda’s sentiment about the “rare opportunity” for police unions to come together for a purpose. He said the meeting was important and that the City Council needed to “cut through the red tape” to keep Garcia in place.
“We can’t lose Chief Garcia,” Castro said. “We can’t.”
Lt. Paul Tai, head of the North Texas Asian Police Officers Association, said Garcia’s resignation would be a “huge blow” and “devastating.” Tai and Castro called on the City Council and Dallas residents to speak out in support of Garcia staying on in his position.
Officer Jennifer Atherton, president of the Dallas Police Women’s Association, was unable to attend the press conference but expressed her strong support for Officer Garcia, noting that Officer Garcia has demonstrated a “deep commitment” to police work and understands the unique challenges women face in law enforcement.
She asked the city to consider keeping Garcia in his role for as long as possible.
“While we may not agree on every issue, Chief Garcia always listens and carefully considers our opinions,” Atherton said. “In a male-dominated culture, his support and willingness to work together is invaluable.”
Aranda added that it was common knowledge that Garcia wanted the contract and that city officials should have done something about it a year and a half ago when the contract request was first made, but he said the city appears to be doing everything in its power now to keep Garcia.
“This is unprecedented,” he said. “Normally we meet when we’re calling for a vote of no confidence in the chief. But for us to stand here united and ask that the chief be retained and that he be kept is unprecedented.”
City columnist Sharon Grigsby contributed to this report.
