SAN ANTONIO – Confronted by what he describes as a “spike in violence” on San Antonio’s East Side since the first of the year, Police Chief William McManus said his soon-to-be revealed strategy will include enforcement and outreach.
“Just enforcement doesn’t always work, doesn’t work in the long term, just like outreach doesn’t always work,” McManus said.
East Side violence needs more than a 'bandaid'
He said spikes like this typically end when people are killed in gang disputes or they’re finally arrested.
That’s how McManus described the situation for the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, chaired by Mayor Ivy Taylor and Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff.
By the time they gathered Monday at City Hall, McManus had already met with about two dozen officers and staff members, who also came together Sunday morning to finalize plans for handling the ongoing situation.
In addition to three shootings Friday, culminating a week that began with two murders, San Antonio police over the weekend responded to several reports of shots fired from vehicles, but no one was hit.
Taylor said she was aware that with each death and each shooting, the community grows more anxious.
“They look to the city and officials to do one thing. There’s not one thing we can do to address this,” Taylor said, especially if it’s drug-related.
The mayor, who lives on the East Side, said when she represented the area on City Council, she remembered another spike in violence around the holidays in 2011.
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Taylor said back then it took a push by law enforcement as well as input from the community, such as reviving the midnight basketball program, to help bring that situation under control.
“What we need to do is improve our neighborhoods, have additional patrols and provide real options for young people that are growing up only seeing this type of activity,” Taylor said. “They’re thinking this is what they should aspire to.”
She said they need better options through mentoring, after-school programs and summer jobs.