Chief Eddie García retiring from Dallas PD: A timeline of his tenure

Police Chief Eddie García is leaving the Dallas Police Department after more than three and a half years to become the assistant city manager in Austin.

Here’s a look at some of the notable events during García’s tenure with the Dallas Police Department.

2020

Dec. 23: García, a lifelong Dallas Cowboys fan, beat six other finalists to become Dallas’ 30th police chief and the first Latino to lead the department. His predecessor, U. Reneé Hall, had announced in September 2020 that she would leave at the end of that year. “I literally feel like a kid at Christmas,” García said in a phone interview in December 2020. “It feels so right.”

Dec. 28: García said his goals were reducing violent crime and gaining the community and staff’s trust. “I know that there are high expectations,” he said. “I know that we have to work quickly, but we have to work smartly as well.”

2021

Feb. 13: Just 10 days into García’s tenure, Officer Mitchell Penton is fatally struck by a car while directing traffic after an accident on north U.S. Highway 75 near Walnut Hill Lane.

March 2: García announces he’ll direct officers to make fewer arrests for possession of less than 2 ounces of marijuana and instead have them issue citations for the offense. The policy change recognizes that people carrying that amount typically don’t plan to sell it.

June 3: García overturns disciplinary decisions against former officers of a vice unit that Hall had disbanded. He rescinded two of the original 29 allegations against the officers and reduced most of the disciplinary measures.

July 24: García formally apologizes to Bessie Rodriguez, the mother of Santos Rodriguez, the 12-year-old murdered in 1973 by a Dallas police officer who played Russian roulette with the child over the theft of $8 from a vending machine. It was a first for a Dallas police chief, Rodriguez’s mother said during a memorial at Oakland Cemetery observing the 48th anniversary of Santos’ murder.

Sept. 13: 90 days after the implementation of García’s crime-reduction plan, it’s announced that violent crime — which includes murders, robberies and aggravated assaults — was down about 6.3% across Dallas from January to July 2021. The plan focused on increased police visibility in 47 small geographic areas — or grids — where violent crime is prevalent across Dallas. ”There’s going to be good days, chairman and council, and there’s going to be challenging days,” he said told the city’s public safety committee. “But we have to celebrate the positive times because we know that there will be challenging times.”

Oct. 11: García, the mayor and other city leaders unveil a plan to reorganize the department’s family violence unit to confront an increase in domestic aggravated assaults. The strategy includes resuming visits to the homes of vulnerable survivors and increasing collaboration between homicide and intimate-partner violence detectives.

Oct. 12: The City Council is briefed about a plan to warn supervisors about officers whose actions strayed from typical personnel patterns in an effort to help officers become more productive without punishing them, and to restore community trust by identifying officers who may need leadership supervision before they become a cause for concern.

2022

Jan. 5: García calls on council members to require sexually orientated businesses to close by 2 a.m. and open no earlier than 6 a.m., saying it would fall in line with the city’s goals to reduce violent crime.

March 1: García testifies before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, advocating for federal prosecutions, resources for law enforcement and more funding and grants to combat violent crime nationwide.

Aug. 23: García orders employees to wear their body cameras at all approved off-duty jobs. Previously, officers were allowed — but not required — to use their assigned body cameras at off-duty jobs. The policy shift came two days after an off-duty officer fired at two suspected gunmen outside a north Oak Cliff club and didn’t have his body camera.

Oct. 10: García is elected president of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, an organization of police executives from across the United States and Canada.

2023

March 22: After two hospital workers are fatally shot at Methodist Dallas Medical Center, García testifies before Texas lawmakers in support of legislation that would criminalize removing or disabling an ankle monitor in Texas. García said his department had arrested nearly 50 people in three years who were issued ankle monitors.

June 20: The Dallas Police Department announces it will mandate residents report a slew of low-priority calls online. Mandatory online reporting aims to reduce the time it takes police to reach high-priority calls, as well as lessen officers’ workloads.

Nov. 29: The Dallas Police Department announced a plan to start enforcing the city’s sexually oriented businesses ordinance, which could result in criminal charges if strip clubs or other sex-based stores that are open between 2 a.m and 6 a.m. Police and city officials argue it will help curb violence.

2024

May 16: García commits to staying in the city until at least May 2027 in “an addendum” to the chief’s offer letter. As part of the agreement, García’s was to get a retention bonus of $10,000 every six months, on top of his $306,440.40 salary. “To live and work in Dallas is to love Dallas,” García said in May. “This is the right place to complete my service, and I know your police officers are honored to serve Dallas residents.” He also agreed to help the city find a new chief when the time comes, the release said.

Aug. 29: Officer Darron Burks is killed while sitting in his patrol vehicle in Oak Cliff. Senior Cpls. Jamie Farmer and Karissa David responded within 10 minutes and were shot and wounded.

Sept. 19: Law enforcement officials tell The Dallas Morning News García is leaving the Dallas Police Department to become assistant city manager in Austin.

Staff researcher Spencer Bevis contributed to this report.