SAN ANTONIO – KSAT 12 has gotten the first look at some recommendations to improve public safety from Bexar County and San Antonio’s top police and court officials.
District Court Judge Ron Rangel recently gave his analysis of changes he believes are needed to improve public safety in Bexar County.
The long list of proposed changes comes after five officers were shot by suspects within two weeks this summer.
The incidents sparked a heated debate between Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales and San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.
Six pages of recommended changes issued by Rangel boil down to a need for better communication between agencies, more manpower or retention of employees and improved technology.
“I think people are starting to look at the system in a way, recognizing that there’s a lot of different things that we can do to work together,” Rangel said.
Rangel is a part of a committee put together by Mayor Ron Nirenberg and County Judge Peter Sakai.
In his analysis, Rangel lists recommendations by department, saying all areas need some kind of improvements.
“A lot of the issues are these systems, software systems that the county has or the agencies have that the city have don’t communicate,” Rangel said. “They don’t effectively operate in a way where we can get information.”
KSAT 12 has been asking for the list of these recommendations for weeks now. The letter from Rangel to Sakai was sent Oct. 26.
Sakai couldn’t say why it has taken so long for KSAT to get a look at this letter, but he did agree with a lot of Rangel’s input.
“What we want to do is make sure that group of people that we consider violent offenders, threats to our community, are dealt with in the most effective and efficient manner.” Sakai said.
Range’s letter is just one piece of a final report that is expected by the mayor and county judge sometime after the Thanksgiving holiday.
Public Safety Recommendations (1) by Julie Moreno on Scribd