In recent days, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus has been asked about the reasons for the spike in violence, and he has appeared to be confused about why. However, many law enforcement experts say the street chaos is primarily due to soft-on-crime SAPD policies encouraged by liberal city leaders.
The crime and violence have gotten so bad that SAPD has asked several federal, state, and area law enforcement agencies for help. According to sources, a recent meeting between SAPD and other law enforcement agencies to address the crime and violence on the East Side resulted in them telling SAPD Chief William McManus that they would help on the condition that SAPD allows police officers to be more proactive in serving warrants for drugs and wanted criminals.
Police work in San Antonio has become difficult and dangerous in the last three years. For example, while “no knock” warrants are incorrectly described and vilified by the liberal news media and politicians, SAPD executed them successfully in the past.
“No knock” warrants were rarely used, only with dangerous, high-risk warrants to avoid violent confrontations and the destruction of evidence. They required prior approval with detailed investigative documentation. They had to be well-planned and executed, too.
The standard practice was to “knock and announce” and enter the property. SAPD detectives executed a legal warrant signed by a judge that detailed just cause based on credible evidence that drugs or a wanted criminal were at that property. These proactive police actions removed dangerous people from the streets before they could commit further crimes.
However, the current recommended course of action is that SAPD officers cannot arrest someone in a house unless granted permission to enter by the subject they are trying to apprehend. When SAPD officers breached doors to arrest gang members, searching for drugs and wanted persons would also result in seizing illegal firearms.
Instead of running search warrants to look for drugs, guns, and murder suspects, SAPD detectives are “strongly encouraged” to use a “knock and talk” approach to engage with these criminals. Incredibly, if the criminal does not answer the door, the police must wait until he comes outside or leaves. Furthermore, if the criminal flees in a vehicle, SAPD has a “no chase” policy that prevents officers from pursuing them.
SAPD leaders may argue that officers can make decisions in the field, but so many officers have been disciplined that there is a hesitance to be proactive. This has created a terrible morale problem among SAPD officers.
Other law enforcement agencies are now critical of the SAPD because their policy does not allow the police to enter a house. This concerns the other agencies because they do not want their officers harmed in serving a warrant while the SAPD stands back and away. Specifically, other agency leaders want Chief McManus to allow SAPD officers to participate when law enforcement officers breach doors to serve arrest warrants.
The liberal politicians and leftist community leaders have forced the SAPD to stop serving warrants unless the suspect is outside and in public. This “knock and talk” policy has given the most violent criminals an advantage and endangered the officers.
San Antonio is experiencing a major crime wave like every major city nationwide. Over the past 3-4 years, liberal law enforcement policies have restrained police officers and emboldened criminals. SAPD must be “freed” to fight crime with all the legal tools available.
In conclusion, this is not the first time there has been a plan to address crime and violence on the east side of San Antonio. In January 2016, Then District 2 Councilman Alan Warrick held a crime awareness meeting to strategize with businesses and residents on a plan to tackle crime and violence. However, the crime and violence are worse seven years later.
More recently, in June 2022, current city councilmember Jalen McKee-Rodriguez (D2) opposed the city pursuing a grant of up to $6.25 million through the U.S. Department of Justice, which would help pay for up to 50 new police officer positions. He raised concerns about whether adding officers would help reduce crime and only increase SAPD’s budget. Eastside residents and businesses should ask about his interest in addressing crime and violence in his district.
There are many reasons for the rise in crime, including a liberal District Attorney, leftist anti-police community leaders, and biased local news media. City leaders, including the police chief, employ police tactics based on fear of something going wrong rather than stopping crime.
And so, chief, if someone does not discipline their children in 3 years, should they be shocked when the school calls and complains about their unruly behavior? When you excuse and tolerate major and minor crimes, you encourage more and worse ones.