Crime in the City of Austin has not slowed down ever since calls and action to defund the police four years ago.
"It would be fair to say that the staffing crisis has measurably worsened on an annual basis ever since 'defund the police' in 2020," said Matt Mackowiak, Co-Founder of "Save Austin Now."
The Austin Police Department is understaffed and violent crimes are taking place on a weekly basis. According to Mackowiak, Austin cut the police budget from $450 million to $300 million. The city is also losing about 15 officers a month while only gaining 40 or 50 in a year.
Austin saw a record 89 murders in 2021 after the Austin City Council decided to defund the police the year prior. As of early September, the city has reported over 40 homicides in 2024 alone. There were 71 homicides in 2022 and 73 in 2023.
"Austin is in the fifth year of a public safety crisis that has been brought to our residents through defunding the police," Mackowiak said.
Recruiting law enforcement officials is difficult in today's climate and less people are wanting to join the force. Most of the country's biggest cities including Houston are struggling with bringing on more police officers. However, Houston did not defund their police department like Austin did.
Mackowiak is hoping to see the tide turn with more officers brought on in Austin and crime start to fall.
"It is the responsibility of elected officials to make public safety a priority and that only happens if the residents and the voters demand it," he said.