Reporter covering criminal justice, healthcare, housing and more at The Lab Report Dallas. @dallasnews alumna. El Paso raised. 📩 kelli@labreportdallas.com.
Dallas, TX
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For months, I’ve looked into Dallas' 14 adult specialty courts for @labreportdallas—diversion programs built to help vulnerable people. Research shows if they stray from best practices, they risk doing real harm.
Today, we published the investigation. 🧵
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After 47 people were connected to housing or treatment, a major South Dallas homeless camp was set to close Thursday via police and city crews.
Housing Forward, which led the initiative, says it didn't expect police to detain all 23 people they came across that morning. 🧵👇
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For weeks I analyzed where Dallas PD allocates patrol officers and what that says about its priorities. It raised a complicated question: How do top cops manage staffing for perception vs. risk in a big city like Dallas?
I tried to make sense of the data for @labreportdallas.
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The stats are in, and they confirm a big trend: Dallas ended 2025 with 141 murders, a *10-year low.*
To put that in perspective:
📉 43 fewer people murdered than in 2024.
📉 Dallas' 4th lowest murder count since 1995.
A significant drop that has largely flown under the radar.
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Dallas made No. 6 (!) on the @nytimes 52 places to go in 2026, with a note about the World Cup and the soon-to-be open Halperin Park. Plus a Fair Park shoutout.
Pretty cool seeing as the NYT scans worldwide for this annual list.
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This weekend I met a boy who saw his mother for the first time since he was 9 months old. A family praying for a mother’s release from prison. And a woman whose life was near collapse before she saw her daughter.
For @labreportdallas, I featured the program changing their lives.
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Headlines in the last month portray the city of Dallas in chaos. We've had killings outside an ICE facility, a nightclub, a shopping center, a beheading at a motel.
A story not being told is Dallas is on pace for one of its lowest murder tallies in a decade. @labreportdallas
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Today is my last day at @dallasnews and it's still hard to believe it snuck up so quickly. Words can't express my gratitude for DMN's chance on me when I was a breaking news fellow. I'm leaving after ~4 years covering Dallas PD, which has been an incredible opportunity.
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Board member Brandon Friedman writes they’re “not done with this.”
The oversight board isn’t scheduled to meet again until August. Members have already pitched calling a special meeting sooner to get answers. @dallasnews
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There are more audience members today than the usual monthly oversight meetings. Board member Ozzie Smith thanks those who came out to hear the Chief’s views and is outlining the topics they’d hoped to ask about.
“This is not the meeting that we had anticipated as a board.”
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Chief Daniel Comeaux opens his remarks at Dallas’ police oversight board by addressing yesterday’s protests.
He said he’s sad the officers had rocks and bottles thrown at them, but he’s proud of their strength and only one person was arrested.
Watch: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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I’m eternally grateful to @dallasnews, where I’ve grown as a journalist specializing in public safety. I'm honored to have reported on stories from DPD's loss of evidence in murder cases, to the unnoticed death of a man in hospital police custody and departure of our DPD chief.
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Dallas’ Community Police Oversight Board is meeting now to discuss independent investigations, complaints about officers, immigration enforcement and DPD’s tactical planning unit. 🚓
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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Dallas violent crime is down about 14% as of Sunday, according to DPD — with 20 fewer murders and 267 fewer aggravated assaults. That appears to be in line with nationwide trends.
Here's a recent @MjrCitiesChiefs report that analyzed the first quarter of 2025 in big cities.
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Dallas PD Chief Daniel Comeaux is at his first public safety council meeting talking about his top priority: recruiting. He says DPD is trying to get people who are already cops to transfer. Year to date, DPD lost 86 officers to attrition and hired 158.
dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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Silvester Hayes was detained after Dallas cops mistook him for a man with a similar name. After realizing their mistake, police still jailed him.
He lost his job and home.
Now, a judge has tossed his suit — saying the cops were justified because Hayes didn’t use a turn signal.
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Dallas’ new police chief, Daniel Comeaux, is officially sworn in. He pledged to “look, listen and learn” — and to “proactively attack violent crime.”
There’s pressure after 4 years of violence reduction, he said, but “we’re going to make it the 5th, 6th, 7th years in a row.”
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Honored to have won the @dallasnews Breaking News Reporter of the Year award! From a NFL player's hit-and-run to the departure of our DPD chief, this past year was a crazy one. Feeling thankful to work with so many talented and supportive colleagues. 🙂🎉
dallasnews.com/news/2025/04/…
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Dallas' Community Police Oversight Board is meeting now to discuss civilian complaints about DPD officers, independent investigations, arrest data and the RIGHT Care unit, which responds to mental health calls.
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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Dallas' Community Police Oversight Board is meeting now to discuss complaints about Dallas officers, independent investigations, arrest data and legislative briefings related to police and public safety. 👮
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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A report obtained by @dallasnews shows that at least 464 investigations into Dallas PD officer misconduct took longer than 90 business days, the standard spelled out in DPD policies.
That’s 32% of such investigations from 2018 to 2023.
At least 43 cases took longer than a year.
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Dallas plans to unveil a public transparency and accountability dashboard soon with data the oversight office collects, from complaints into officers to commendations. It got applause from the oversight board, which praised the office for progress under the new director.
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Interim Chief @DPDChiefIgo is here to introduce himself. He's asked how the board can get buy-in from the rank and file. He said DPD can work in silos at times and info isn't communicated from his level down.
He said he's willing to work with oversight to figure out a plan.
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Dallas' Community Police Oversight Board is meeting now to discuss independent investigations and complaints against officers, monthly police arrest data and a new public accountability dashboard.
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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Arash Farasat said Young Active Labor Leaders has carried out solidarity actions for fired dancers at Dallas Black Dance Theatre, and some officers tried to kick them out of public parks or sidewalks.
He wants consistent police training and understanding of organizers' rights.
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Dallas' Community Police Oversight Board is meeting now to discuss independent investigations, updates on vacant positions and state legislative proposals relating to civilian police oversight and officer discipline. 👮
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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New: The last Dallas cop known to face charges from force during the 2020 protests pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault for injuring a man who lost an eye.
Three other cops also pleaded guilty. All had to give up their TX officer licenses. @dallasnews
dallasnews.com/news/courts/2…
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Interim DPD Chief Michael Igo sent a memo to cops ordering them not to enforce possession of marijuana up to 4 ounces. Comes after voters passed Prop. R, making Dallas the largest Texas city to decriminalize small amounts of pot.
Story by @EvertonBailey: dallasnews.com/news/politics…
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We spent six months trying to get records, digging through hours of audio and conducting interviews.
For the first time, we were able to hear the perspectives of the fired officer and Tomiya Crenshaw — a 25 y/o who still is recovering from the blaze. @dallasnews
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Interim Dallas PD Chief Michael Igo is not expected to make statements until next week on the passing of Props. R and U.
R decriminalizes up to 4 ounces of marijuana.
U mandates the city hire 900 more cops and set aside 50% of excess yearly revenue for police and fire pension.
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Colin Allred said he called Ted Cruz to congratulate him on his victory.
“You can’t just be a patriot when your side wins. So tonight, we didn’t win, but we will continue to be patriots.”
He adds he’ll continue to fight to overturn Texas’ abortion ban. @dallasnews
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I’m at Colin Allred’s watch party in South Dallas, where supporters are watching MSNBC as they await results in the race for U.S. Senate.
Republican Ted Cruz is leading Allred in early unofficial results in TX with 53% of precincts reporting. @dallasnews
dallasnews.com/news/politics…
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DPD wanted standards reviewed in light of hiring struggles and competition for limited talent, civil service official said.
"We're not talking about any kind of job here ... we're giving someone a gun and the ability to kill other people," @caraathome said, voicing disapproval.
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Dallas' public safety committee was not happy with a proposal to let people with a high school diploma or GED apply for DPD if they have 3 years employment experience. DPD requires 45 college hours — stricter than Austin and San Antonio.
Proposal was kicked back for more work.
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Here is the 100-day plan monitor Michele Andre laid out for the oversight office as she settles in. She wants to fill staff vacancies; unveil a public dashboard for people to track the status of their complaints against police; attend 50 events; and hold 40 stakeholder meetings.
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Dallas' Community Police Oversight Board is meeting now to discuss recent complaints about officers, the new monitor's goals and updates on independent investigations, among other topics. @dallasnews
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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Chief García sent this memo out to his officers confirming his retirement. His departure has stunned his command staff and City Council members.
He’s leaving for Austin to become their top city executive over public safety. @dallasnews
dallasnews.com/news/public-s…
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New: Dallas PD Officer Brennon Wilkinson was arrested on an aggravated sexual assault of a child charge and two counts of indecency with a child. His attorney, who called it a "false outcry," said it's related to an incident about 10 years ago. @dallasnews
dallasnews.com/news/public-s…
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Dallas’ Community Police Oversight Board is meeting now to discuss recent critical incidents and civilian complaints about officers. This is oversight’s first meeting under new director Michele Andre, who came to Dallas from Albany.
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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Six years ago today, Botham Jean was fatally shot by an off-duty DPD officer who said she mistook his apartment for her own.
Re-sharing my Q&A with his sister Allisa Charles-Findley, who wrote last year about grief, reform and keeping his legacy alive. 📕
dallasnews.com/news/crime/20…
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We just got a briefing from Kristin Lowman, spokeswoman for DPD. She confirms an officer was fatally shot tonight and two other officers were wounded — one is listed as stable, and the other is in critical condition.
“Our department is hurting.” @dallasnews
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Dozens of Dallas police officers are standing quietly in two parallel lines outside the emergency room entrance of Methodist hospital, where one of the officers had been taken. The honor guard is at the entrance. @dallasnews
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Melvin Williams got 3 years probation and can't be a TX cop again. He avoids a conviction.
He was accused of injuring Vincent Doyle (pictured), David McKee and an unknown man in 2020.
He was fired in 2022 after he was seen punching a man in Deep Ellum a year after the protests.
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The board is asking questions about footage of an officer fatally shooting a man during a robbery call in July. @BFriedmanDC says he doesn’t want to cast blame on the officer because the encounter was really fast, but it appeared “he shot an unarmed man.”
youtube.com/watch?v=4f86SvKf…
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DyNell Lane, a disabled vet whose story went viral after officers laughed about how he soiled himself when denied the restroom, is here to listen to an update: The interim city manager determined the written reprimands + sensitivity training given to the officers was appropriate.
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Dallas’ police oversight board is meeting now to discuss complaints about police officers, independent investigations and an update on the city’s search for a new director, among other topics.
Watch live: dallastx.new.swagit.com/view…
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Chief Eddie García said officers shot an “armed suspect” who’d been inside a stolen vehicle in northeast Dallas. The person was taken to a hospital and is expected to survive. Two others were detained, and one is on the lam.
More info: dallasnews.com/news/crime/20…
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Kristin Lowman, DPD’s spokeswoman, said DPD responded to a disturbance about 6:45 p.m. and found a man with a knife and a woman in a tent in a wooded area. The woman left the tent, and as the man moved towards officers, they fired and fatally struck the man, she said. @dallasnews
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A Dallas Animal Services vehicle recently left the scene. Police are blocking off the entrance to the complex and are investigating near the White Rock Creek, which is adjacent to the apartment building. @dallasnews
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I’m at the Rock Creek Apartments in North Dallas where police are investigating an officer shooting.
We haven’t heard any details from police officials about what occurred and whether there were any injuries. We should be hearing from DPD shortly. @dallasnews
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