Crime in Waco

Welcome to Waco -- the 7th most violent city in Texas.

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Advertising company replaces Waco murder rate billboards with a more upbeat message (Waco Tribune-Herald)
Police association says city is lying about crime (KXXV-TV.com)
Waco 7th on FBI's list for Texas cities with high crime rates (KCENTV.com)
Waco Police Association wants more resources to fight crime (Waco Tribune-Herald)
Waco City Manager responds to police association comments (Waco Tribune-Herald)

Advertising company replaces Waco murder rate billboards with a more upbeat message

By Erin Quinn, Waco Tribune-Herald, Nov 20, 2008

Two controversial billboards posted by the Waco Police Association telling drivers passing through Waco that the city is among the most violent in the state have been replaced by the advertising company with a more upbeat message.

Mat Naegele, vice president and general manager of Temple-based Lamar Advertising, said Wednesday he replaced the billboards Saturday, the day the association’s contract was up. In place of the billboards — which stated, “The Murder Rate is Up! Waco is the 7th most violent city in Texas!” — Naegele said he put up messages touting Waco as a great place to live.

Charley Wilkison, public affairs director at the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas, of which the police association is a local affiliate, said the billboards accomplished what they were intended to do.

“The point was made,” he said. “Waco is a very violent city. . . . We got the attention of the public and, by and large, they were on our side.”

The billboards, however, came at the dismay of local business owners and city officials, who voiced concern that the billboards were bad for tourism. The move also was criticized by some police association members who said they wanted the billboards taken down.

Naegele said he thought it was time for a more positive message.

“Given the current economic environment, Lamar has decided to display copies promoting Waco, our attractions and our local commerce,” Naegele said in a written statement Wednesday. “These displays and the decision to post have been executed solely by Lamar Advertising.”

Anne Cyr, president of the Waco Police Association, has said the billboards were erected to expose the Waco City Council’s refusal to meet with the association to discuss issues, including police staffing and resources.

The association failed to reach an agreement with Waco City Manager Larry Groth regarding pay and other issues during this summer’s “meet and confer” sessions. Groth said the association wanted more than the 5 percent raise he offered. Back to top

Police Association Says City is Lying About Crime

KXXV-TV.com, Updated: Sep 3, 2008 10:19 PM CDT
By Brian Collins

WACO-Anne Cyr, president of the Waco Police Association met with press Wednesday on the steps of city hall claiming Waco city council would not allow them on their agenda, and that the city was lying about crime statistics.

Cyr also called Waco the 7th deadliest city in Texas, and said the Waco Police Association started airing commercials Tuesday about how bad crime was. She also called for more police officers for the city.

City officials fired back saying each council meeting allows people to state their concerns, and so far the Waco Police Association has not voiced their concerns during the meetings.

Larry Groth released a statement that said the police force accounted for 25 percent of the cities general fund, and that city officials "were very disappointed with the Waco Police Association's Press Conference."

The Uniform Crime Report (UCR) is issued by the FBI each year and is what the city of Waco uses as their Crime Statistics. Some say the statistics are skewed because the FBI only receives crime reports that are filed.

According to the 2006 UCR, Waco is the 11th most violent city in the State. However, the FBI cautions against ranking based on the data in the UCR due to the variables that need to be considered when working with the raw data.

The report also indicates that for 2006, Waco comes in tied with Falls in the category of murder and non-negligent manslaughter. Back to top

Waco 7th On FBI's List For Texas Cities With High Crime Rates

KCENTV.com, Updated: Sep 3, 2008 7:23pm

A local group is calling on the city of Waco to step up and provide more resources to fight crime.

The FBI ranks Waco as 7 on its list of Texas cities with the highest crime rate. The group says requests to meet with city officials to discuss the issue have been denied 3 times and now they're taking action.

The group is running a commercial alerting residents and tourist about the problem. The city says they're disappointed with the association's actions and couldn't meet with them because of ongoing negotiations.

Temple and Killeen were not on the list. Back to top

Waco Police Association wants more resources to fight crime

By Ken Sury, Waco Tribune-Herald, Sept. 3, 2008, 11:29 AM

The Waco Police Association has taken its case for more resources to battle violent crime in Waco to the steps of City Hall.

Anne Cyr, the association president, said in an 11 a.m. news conference on the Waco City Hall steps that it has been rebuffed in attempts to meet with the mayor and city council on the issue. Cyr said the group has sent three letters to the mayor and city council and received two rejection letters and no response to the third.

She said Waco officers need more resources to fight violent crime in the city, but didn’t specify what resources are needed.

Cyr added that the association has begun running commercials on local stations starting today. The commercial also is on the group’s Web site, wacopa.org, which says that Waco is the seventh most violent city in Texas, according to a 2006 report that is on the site.

The commercial is below. It touts headlines from the Trib as examples of the crime problem. Small point, though: The headlines in the video aren’t exactly what has been in the newspaper. We don’t put exclamation marks in our headlines as two of those indicate, nor do we capitalize most words in our headlines. Back to top

Waco city manager responds to police association comments

By Mike Anderson, Waco Tribune-Herald, Sept. 3, 2008, 04:04 PM

Waco City Manager Larry Groth has just released this response to the Waco Police Association’s news conference earlier today:

“We were very disappointed with the Waco Police Association’s Press Conference held this morning and its allegations against the mayor and council. The mayor and council did not accept the association’s request to meet with them because of ongoing negotiations in the meet & confer process between city management and the association.

“Our current agreement with the police association ends at the end of September and negotiations in the meet & confer process, which was requested by the association, is intended to establish the next agreement. The council was simply following the ground rules established by the process. Chief Brent Stroman briefed the council at a work session earlier this year on crime rates and department needs as we prepared budgets for the upcoming year.

“Public safety has been and continues to be a very high priority with this council and past Councils. This is evidenced by their past actions such as:

“1. Council recently approved the 2008-09 budget committing over $29 million towards the police budget, which is a third of the total general fund budget and 85 percent of property taxes;

“2. Approved the hiring of additional recruits to ensure the department will be at full strength;

“3. During the past five years, authorized 27 additional patrol officer positions and two additional sergeants including a new Street Crimes Unit.

“Safety of this community is extremely important to the council and city management. Crime is not acceptable at any level and Chief Stroman diligently works with city management and his command team to properly allocate resources. We were happy to see the latest UCR Report that indicates reported crimes are down by 9.56 percent during the first seven months of 2008 compared to the same time period during 2007.” Back to top

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To the Mayor and City Council
from the Citizens of Waco

From Douglas:

Please give more funding and resources to the Waco PD. As a taxpayer, I want my taxes to go towards our law enforcement and the prevention of crime. I want to live in a community where my family is safe. Safety should come before a revitalized downtown. Please listen to the officers who are on the front lines daily and give them the funding and support they need. I agree...

From Bill:

Hire more officers and pay them wages that set high standards for others to follow. Be proactive on crime not reactive and behind the times. Do everything to the best of you abilites not to the least of your abilities.

From Chuck:

Thank you for communicating directly with the business community in Waco. Don't just assume that all of us blindly follow what Larry Groth tells the Chamber of Commerce to do and say. The truth is business in Waco is suffering and your billboard has nothing to do with it. We know the WPA is right so please do not quit fighting.

From Linda:

As a resident of Waco, and also a mother whose son was murdered in 2002, I feel it is important that we make the public aware of the crime in our small city. I don't understand why businesses are so concerned about the billboard affecting their businesses and not concerned about the safety of the public -- their own families included. Crime does not matter to people until tragady hits home. Although my son was murdered in Las Vegas, Nevada (attending college) we hold an event on September 25th, National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims, to honor those whose lives were taken from us by the hands of another person. I meet with families on this day whose lives have been shattered because someone brutally murdered their loved ones. If you polled each family, I bet that they too support the billboards in the hopes that we bring more police to our city. I applaud the police association for bringing awareness to the public with the truth about the crime in our city. My family and I support them 100%. God bless them for what they are doing.

From Bradley:

When will we get decent police protection in the city of Waco? My property in Waco has been broken into over 20 times in less han a decade and yet never once has ANYTHING AT ALL ever been recovered. I was beaten and robbed and yet the person was never caught. Waco claims to be a cheap place to live but we pay a high price by having to buy alarm systems for our houses, having to replace items stolen and never recovered, having to pay medical bills for violent crime and then see the crime go unpunished as well. This is an awful burden to the law-abiding citizens. I can NOT blame the Waco Police Association for bringing our problems out in the open because just perhaps they might finally be addressed. Thank You for your attention.

From Cassidy:

As a Waco Police Officer's wife, I would hope that the City of Waco officials that think the officer count is not an issue just think about their own safety and their own families when making a decision about the future of Waco PD. Just think about it, your wife or husband is at home alone while you are at work and they are in need of an officer; unfortunately that officer is on another call and the wait time is several minutes....sorry there are not enough officers on duty to address your emergency at that time, it will be several minutes before someone can get to your home. Please remember that our loved ones are putting their lives at risk each and every day for you and me!

From Chris:

The Waco Police Officers do a fantastic job. The Council needs to step up and support the Police by giving them the tools they need to perform their job.

From Tiffany:

Listen to our police officers and help keep waco safe! Think of your people and help reduce our crime rate.

From Melissa:

Please give more funding and resources to the Waco PD. As a taxpayer, I want my taxes to go towards our law enforcement and the prevention of crime. I want to live in a community where my family is safe. Safety should come before a "revitalized" downtown. Please listen to the officers who are on the front lines daily and give them the funding and support they need.

From William:

PLEASE PUT SAFTY FIRST.

From a police officer:

Over the last two decades, Waco City Hall has literally run the Waco Police Department into the ground. Gross neglect has left the department weak and powerless to fight crime in a crime infested rat-hole (which is what Waco has become). The level of manpower on the street day to day has not increased in the past 14 years and yet the police workload has quadrupled. Every day and night, the calls for emergency service back up and stack up, and crime victims have to wait! Waco is crime infested and I personally BLAME Waco City Hall and the Waco City Manager! Other cities in Texas support their police departments, but NOT Waco. Our rich Mayor and overpaid City Manager could care less about the Waco Police Department or the numerous crime victims in Waco.

From Carlos:

It is disturbing that I had to see a commercial by Waco Police Association asking for help. This must have been their last resort. We can not forget or let down those that protect and serve. Forgetting and not supporting these officers is like not supporting our troops fighting for our freedom. Elected officials are required to protect, serve and do what is best for our communities. Shame on you if you are not doing that. Let's get with the program and do our jobs. Support our officers and make Waco and the surrounding cities a place we can be proud of.

From Kevin:

The mayor and the city council need to listen to what the police have to say. They are the ones out there in the streets every day getting shot at and assaulted, while you, the people elected by us, sit up on your pedestal and look down your nose at everyone (except Baylor, of course).

From Sam:

GENTLEMEN AND LADIES, I WANT EVERYTHING DONE TO MAKE OUR STREETS AND HOMES SAFER FOR EVERYONE. SUPPORT AND SUPPLY THE PEOPLE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT ALL THEY NEED TO DO THEIR JOB. "ALL EVIL HAS TO DO IS WAIT FOR US TO DO NOTHING." IT IS TIME WE TAKE A STAND AGAINST THE CRIMINALS, NOW!

From Lauren:

Put public safety first! The City Council is constantly trying to bring business to Waco, but no one will want to have their business here or move here when the city is so unsafe. Maybe if the city were safer, more people would want to spend their lives here and bring revenue and businesses to the city.

From Dean:

Please don't ignore the men and women who put their lives on the line every day for your safety. If these men and women say it's bad, then it's bad. You will not draw people to Waco with such a high crime rate. And to say that you don't believe the statistics is absurd.

More comments from citizens coming soon ...

► WPA BRIEFING ROOM

WPA President Anne Cyr backed by the WPA Board of Directors talks to the Waco media about the billboards along IH-35 on Oct. 21, 2008.

Waco is the 7th Most Violent City in Texas!

FBI Crime Statistics show Waco is becoming more dangerous. With an alarming increase in the number of drive-by shootings, home invasions, armed robberies and violent crime, the criminals are creating an atmosphere of fear in our city. Repeated attempts to warn the Mayor and City Council of Waco's growing crime problem have been ignored by the politicians at City Hall. They don't want to discuss the issue in a public meeting because they don't want you to know how dangerous our city has become.

That's why in Fall 2008, the Waco Police Association took its message to the community in the form of billboards along IH-35. The billboards were posted several weeks after a similar warning appeared in commercials on local television stations.

Welcome to Waco -- the 7th most violent city in Texas.

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To the Mayor and City Council from the Citizens of Waco

► WPA BRIEFING ROOM

WPA President Anne Cyr backed by the WPA Board of Directors talks to the Waco media about the billboards along IH-35 on Oct. 21, 2008. Waco is the 7th Most Violent City in Texas!

To the Mayor and City Council
from the Citizens of Waco

WPA President Anne Cyr backed by the WPA Board of Directors talks to the Waco media about the billboards along IH-35 on Oct. 21, 2008.

Waco is the 7th Most Violent City in Texas!