Crime Updates

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner presented updated crime statistics at yesterday’s January 11, 2023, city council meeting. The implementation of One Safe Houston has helped lower violent crime rates throughout Houston over the past year, but we still have work to do before murders and aggravated assaults reach pre-pandemic rates. See below chart for 2019 to 2022 crime statistics: 

The chart below breaks down crime stats by month in 2021 and 2022:  

Since 2016 the city has trained 34 cadet classes, adding a total of 2,026 new officers to the force. HPD is paying a $10,000 hiring incentive, funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, for cadets who graduate from the police academy and become probationary officers. The first cadet class to graduate this year added 61 new officers who were among the first recipients of this incentive.  

Although we’ve seen an overall decrease in violent crime, some non-violent crime, especially auto thefts, theft of auto parts, and thefts from vehicles has increased. In 2021, 3,700 guns were stolen from cars. In 2022, this number grew to 4,140.  Often, these stolen firearms are then used in other crimes. The city also saw over 15,000 cases of catalytic converter theft in 2022, a 15% increase from 2021. City council passed an ordinance last May, banning the business-to-business reselling of catalytic converters and requiring anyone in possession of a cut catalytic converter to show proof of ownership. The city will also advocate at the state level during this legislative session to expand this ordinance statewide and increase penalties for stolen parts.  

Regarding the increased kidnapping numbers, Chief Finner stressed that most of these cases deal with direct family members of the child, usually a parent or grandparent removing the child without the consent of all guardians.  

HPD is committed to driving both violent and nonviolent crime stats down in 2023. Chief Finner pointed specifically to these priority initiatives: 

  • Continuation of Mayor Turner’s One Safe Houston initiative to address violent crime 
  • Recruitment and retention of officers 
  • Increased use of technology including FLOCK systems, license plate readers, and gun detection 
  • Reducing DUIs and enforcing speeding and other traffic laws  
  • Investing in mental health programs 
  • Improving officer health and wellness 
  • Building community partnerships