'They're taxed': APD detectives busy after recent rash of homicides
AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin police held a news conference on Tuesday after at least four homicides happened in city limits within a week.
While officers said that count is a little higher than the same time last year, the crimes are keeping homicide detectives especially busy.
Police Chief Lisa Davis said hours earlier at a breakfast with downtown leaders the staffing situation "would be stabilized" in about two to three years.
"When we start recruiting, we talk about how fantastic this town is and what makes it unique," Davis said. "People are going to start coming."
At a news conference at 11 a.m., detectives gave updates on four homicides in the city, all within days of each other.
"This [homicide detective] unit bears the responsibility to investigate and hold those people accountable and responsible," Lt. Sheldon Askew said.
A workload that quadrupled in a matter of days.
"[The homicide detectives] are taxed. Often times these people are in the office before I get to the office, they're there after I leave the office, they're there on the weekends, they're there all hours of the day and night, so it's taxing," Askew explained. "There's not question about it."
Despite the crunch, Askew said there was no backlog of cases.
"It's a burden upon the unit," he said. "The dedication and professionalism of these folks is what truly gets us to where we are, which again, is solving these crimes and holding people accountable."
The chief has said she is committed to hiring more officers and staffing remains a top priority. She estimates there are around 318 opens right now.