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Kelli Smith

@kellixsmith.bsky.social
779 followers 61 following 59 posts

Reporter covering safety, housing, healthcare and more for The Lab Report Dallas. Ex-public safety reporter @dallasnews.com. El Paso raised. 📩 Kelli@labreportdallas.com.

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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
For months, I’ve looked into Dallas' 14 adult specialty courts—diversion programs built to help vulnerable people. Research shows if they stray from best practices, they risk doing real harm. Today, we published the investigation. 🧵
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Elizabeth Henneke spent much of her childhood in Huntsville, Texas’ notorious prison town. She watched soap operas with detainees and observed their trials. Decades later, she launched a Dallas nonprofit working to reform juvenile justice statewide. Latest profile for @labreportdallas.bsky.social:
labreportdallas.com
She Grew Up in Jails, Now She Keeps Kids Out of Them - The Lab Report Dallas
Elizabeth Henneke’s Lone Star Justice Alliance spurred reforms of Dallas’ embattled juvenile justice system. Next comes the rest of Texas.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
Dallas has seen a fair bit of tough news lately—but also deserving of coverage is the work being done at places like Prosperity Park, where a vacant lot in a high-crime area was transformed. I spent some time watching the park burst to life. My dispatch from the Oak Cliff site now run by kids:
labreportdallas.com
The Kids Are All Right at Prosperity Park - The Lab Report Dallas
How a rubble-ridden lot in Oak Cliff became a safe place for children who do far more than play.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Dallas used pandemic relief funds to fix houses in Oak Cliff and elsewhere. But in the Tenth Street Historic District, promises remain broken. A story that’s worth your time, by @goodmoine.bsky.social:
labreportdallas.com
In the Tenth Street Historic District, a Home Repair Program’s Promises Remain Broken - The Lab Report Dallas
Dallas used pandemic relief funds to fix houses and upgrade infrastructure in Oak Cliff and elsewhere. Years later, some residents ask what went wrong.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Kelli examines the tension between service providers who are trying to house the homeless and the police department, which is increasingly detaining, ticketing, and arresting people in encampments. Her @labreportdallas.bsky.social dispatch from the messy conclusion of a six-week services blitz:
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Since a Dallas police homeless team was created nine months ago, more than 300 people experiencing homelessness have been detained citywide. Thursday illustrated the challenge of this approach for service providers. 🧵
labreportdallas.com
They Spent Weeks Housing the Homeless, Then Police Showed Up - The Lab Report Dallas
Service providers launched a new initiative in South Dallas to provide apartments to people in encampments, but that didn't stop police from making arrests.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Eight months ago, Dallas PD created a new team for homelessness enforcement. We were curious how its work squares with recent efforts to connect people in encampments to housing/treatment/shelter. Kelli found two very different approaches, which shows how complicated this issue is on the ground.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
281 detentions. $500 fines. A mounting pile of warrants. Records show a new Dallas PD team has zip-tied unhoused people across 61 locations in a pivot toward enforcement. My latest on the city’s new approach to homelessness—and the concern it’s stirring amongst service providers:
labreportdallas.com
How Dallas Police Ramped Up Homeless Enforcement - The Lab Report Dallas
The January storm was on its way, but the cops came first. Police approached a clearing filled with tents less than a mile south of Deep Ellum that winter morning, confronting nearly four dozen people...
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
Dallas' juvenile justice system seemed to reach a crisis point in 2023. Researchers found many kids who didn’t need to be jailed, but spent months detained only to get probation or a short sentence. A report shows that’s begun to change—and conditions inside the jail are shifting, too. More here:
labreportdallas.com
Dallas’ Juvenile Justice System Was Broken. Have County Leaders Fixed It?
Kids were spending months incarcerated when their cases shouldn’t have reached a judge in the first place. A new analysis points toward progress.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
"A 'priority two,' which is considered the second-most serious and can include domestic violence incidents, took officers an average of 32 minutes to get to in 2020. In 2025, that average was about 179 minutes." Kelli investigates officer staffing decisions and their impact on response times.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
I spent the last few weeks analyzing where Dallas allocates patrol cops with a question in mind: How do police manage staffing for perception vs. risk? I dove into lots of data and spoke with police chiefs, elected officials and criminologists to try to make sense of Dallas’ changing priorities:
labreportdallas.com
Where Did the Patrol Cops Go?
In 2021, after Dallas shifted its attention to curb violent crime, patrol numbers fell and response times skyrocketed. Those trends are changing, and so are the police department’s priorities.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
The stats are in, and they confirm a big trend: Dallas ended 2025 with 141 murders, a *10-year low.* To put that in perspective: 📉 43 fewer people murdered than in 2024. 📉 Dallas' 4th lowest murder count since 1995. A significant drop that has largely flown under the radar.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
This weekend I met a boy who saw his mother for the first time since he was 9 months old. A family praying for a mother’s release from prison. And a woman whose life was near collapse before she saw her daughter. My latest @labreportdallas.bsky.social features the program changing their lives.
labreportdallas.com
When Mom Can't Come Home
Last year, a program that attracted national attention for reuniting incarcerated mothers with their kids faced closure. Angelica Zaragoza helped it expand instead.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
Dallas will likely end 2025 with its fifth straight decline in violent crime, in part by focusing on tiny geographies that account for most of it. What's that look like in practice? And what can't the cops solve? @kellixsmith.bsky.social on Volara in Oak Cliff: labreportdallas.com/p/the-stubbo...
labreportdallas.com
The Stubborn Story of a Challenged Apartment Complex
Volara in Oak Cliff, once the most violent apartments in Dallas, last year became a tale of success. In 2025, police say it has returned to its old ways. What happened?
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 03/12/2025
In 2024, Dallas' most violent apartment complex became a tale of success after police appeared to lead a dramatic turnaround. Then, this year, violence began rising again. For @labreportdallas.bsky.social, I looked into what Volara's volatility tells us.
labreportdallas.com
The Stubborn Story of a Challenged Apartment Complex
Volara in Oak Cliff, once the most violent apartments in Dallas, last year became a tale of success. In 2025, police say it has returned to its old ways. What happened?
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Txnewsprincess @txnewsprincess.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
And here is the link to that piece about the City Council briefing on the 287(g) program. www.dmagazine.com/frontburner/...
dmagazine.com
ICE Came to Dallas City Hall. It Did Not Go Well for ICE.
Mayor Eric Johnson’s insistence that the City Council discuss whether the police should be involved in a controversial federal immigration program may have had an unintended consequence: a fractious b...
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Sharon Grigsby @sharongrigsby.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
It's official: A Starbucks will open next door to he restored Forest Theater in South Dallas. My latest story for The Lab Report looks at why Forest Forward decided this was the right call for the project—and its neighbors. labreportdallas.com/p/why-starbu...
labreportdallas.com
Why Starbucks is Coming to South Dallas
The story of how Forest Forward came to understand the significance of inviting a national chain into its ambitious redevelopment of the Forest Theater.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 15/10/2025
Headlines in the last month portray the city of Dallas in chaos. We've had killings outside an ICE facility, a nightclub, a shopping center, a beheading at a motel. A story that isn’t being told: Dallas is on pace for one of its lowest murder tallies in a decade. I dug into the data in my latest.
labreportdallas.com
The Perception and Truth Behind Violence in Dallas
Despite numerous high-profile murders and violent crimes, the city is on pace for its largest decrease in homicides since well before the pandemic.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 02/10/2025
What does the government shutdown fight have to do with Dallas hospitals? For @labreportdallas.bsky.social, I break down how planned health care cuts could hit the county’s safety net—with $130M already on the line. “There’s going to be some rough seas.”
labreportdallas.com
Deep Medicaid Cuts Come for Parkland
The steepest reduction in the program’s history has the leaders of the county's safety net system preparing for the unknown. Here is where things stand.
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Sharon Grigsby @sharongrigsby.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
With the fight over healthcare shutting down the federal government today, The Lab Report's @kellixsmith.bsky.social looks beyond the political bickering and digs into the real-life implications across North Texas, especially within Parkland Health. labreportdallas.com/p/deep-medic...
labreportdallas.com
Deep Medicaid Cuts Come for Parkland
The steepest reduction in the program’s history has the leaders of the county's safety net system preparing for the unknown. Here is where things stand.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
A woman had a theory: could small teams deployed after a drug overdose or poisoning save lives? Three years since the fentanyl crisis struck North TX, deaths are declining. My latest spotlights a 33-year-old at the center of the fight.
labreportdallas.com
The 33-Year-Old Architect of the Region’s Fentanyl Response
Becky Devine had a theory: could outreach teams, deployed days after a drug overdose or poisoning, save lives? Three years later, deaths are declining.
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Sharon Grigsby @sharongrigsby.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
ICYMI: While the dominant public safety conversation in Dallas was about adding more cops, violent crime fell 48% across 150 sites in just six months. Police officers had very little to do with it. From @labreportdallas.bsky.social's @kellixsmith.bsky.social labreportdallas.com/p/dallas-bli...
labreportdallas.com
In Dallas, Reducing Violent Crime Goes Beyond Policing
They aren’t cops. But this specialized team of city employees is showing how improving neighborhoods and addressing blight can reduce violence.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
For my latest story, I feature Dallas' City Action Strike Team — a trio that targets urban decay with an ambitious goal in mind: Could improving these spaces help reduce violence? So far, we've found, the results are promising. More here:
labreportdallas.com
In Dallas, Reducing Violent Crime Goes Beyond Policing
They aren’t cops. But this specialized team of city employees is showing how improving neighborhoods and addressing blight can reduce violence.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
Dobie Pre-K will soon be a hub for services in Esperanza. To understand the significance of local government finally paying attention here, @kellixsmith.bsky.social spent weeks with residents to learn about resilience and community in this pocket of North Dallas. labreportdallas.com/p/esperanza-...
labreportdallas.com
In North Dallas, a New Future in a Shuttered School
County officials are finally paying close attention to the Esperanza neighborhood in Far North Dallas, beginning with a new vision for Dobie Pre-K.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
In my first story for The Lab Report Dallas, I spent weeks in Esperanza, a neighborhood once called "mayhem" where a third of households live on less than $25,000 a year. After a school shuttered, officials stepped in — and residents turn to resilience.
labreportdallas.com
In North Dallas, a New Future in a Shuttered School
County officials are finally paying close attention to the Esperanza neighborhood in Far North Dallas, beginning with a new vision for Dobie Pre-K.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
The full website goes live in the fall. We’ve hired @kellixsmith.bsky.social, one of Dallas' best reporters, as a staff writer. Email newsletters go out every Wednesday. We want to help Dallas understand what’s working, what’s not, and why. Join us! (Also it’s free.) labreportdallas.com/subscribe
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
🧵 Fourish months ago, @sharongrigsby.bsky.social and I holed up in essentially a glass-doored closet and talked at each other until we could see the shape of a new publication. The Lab Report has a ways to go—website (the design rips), social accounts (yikes)—but we’re now running stories.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
🧵Our first stories are out at The Lab Report Dallas! Leading up to our website launch, we're publishing a new piece every Wednesday to offer a look at the solutions-based journalism you can expect from us. Our first two by @sharongrigsby.bsky.social and @goodmoine.bsky.social are must-reads. 👇
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
For my last @dallasnews.com story, I sat down with new Chief Daniel Comeaux and community and police leaders to ask how the ex-DEA leader can succeed amid a torrent of challenges here. “Dallas is gonna have to deal with me because I’m not going anywhere.”
dallasnews.com
Dallas police face a torrent of challenges. How can new Chief Daniel Comeaux succeed?
Dallas' new police chief gave himself 90 days to learn before making changes. Still, since his start April 23, he’s had to contend with wide-ranging issues.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
Today is my last day at @dallasnews.com and it's still hard to believe it snuck up. Words can't express my gratitude for DMN's chance on me when I was a breaking news fellow. I'm leaving after ~4 years covering Dallas PD, which has been an incredible opportunity to work on important stories.
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Brandon Friedman @brandonfriedman.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
Not a great situation tonight at Dallas city hall. The city attorney's interruption was a surprise to all board members who had questions prepared for the police chief. We are not done with this.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
New: Dallas police oversight members arrived at their meeting tonight expecting to speak with the city’s top cop about a topic on many minds: immigration. There was one catch: They weren’t allowed.
dallasnews.com
City attorneys bar Dallas police chief from speaking about immigration
The directive came minutes after Dallas police Chief Daniel Comeaux introduced himself to the Community Police Oversight Board.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
Chief Daniel Comeaux opens his remarks at Dallas’ Community Police Oversight Board by addressing yesterday’s protests. He said he’s sad officers had rocks and bottles thrown at them, but he’s proud of their strength and only one person was arrested. Watch: dallastx.new.swagit.com/views/113/dc...
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
Tonight’s Dallas protests appear to be the most tense DPD/protester interactions since 2020 George Floyd demonstrations. DPD trained a specialized group after those to better handle mass protests. They also come one day before Chief Comeaux is set to address Dallas’ police oversight board.
dallasnews.com
Dallas rally to show solidarity with LA protesters turns tense as crowd takes to street
Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge plays host Monday for those who aim to “stand in solidarity” with L.A. following immigration enforcement operations, protests.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
We are very pro things-that-are-good-for-Dallas: labreportdallas.com
labreportdallas.com
The Lab Report Dallas
Helping the city understand itself.
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Matt Goodman @goodmoine.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
We're building something new over here, and I'm so excited to have Kelli with us. If you care about compelling local journalism that isn't boring, we're launching this for Dallas later this summer. Sign up here: labreportdallas.com
labreportdallas.com
The Lab Report Dallas
Helping the city understand itself.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
🧵 Life news!: I’m leaving The Dallas Morning News after 4.5 great years, but I’m not going far. I’m thrilled to announce I’m joining @sharongrigsby.bsky.social and @goodmoine.bsky.social at The Lab Report Dallas, an independent newsroom powered by the Child Poverty Action Lab. ✍️
labreportdallas.com
The Lab Report Dallas
Helping the city understand itself.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 28/05/2025
New: An effort to seal unsustained cop misconduct records across Texas failed after a challenge in the TX House. The bill was supported by Dallas PD but raised transparency and accountability concerns. "If you can’t get the record, trust suffers.”
dallasnews.com
Bill endorsed by Dallas PD would’ve sealed unsustained cop misconduct records from public
The bill could’ve shuttered access to scores of misconduct investigations in Dallas and elsewhere.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 21/05/2025
Dallas police want 130 officers downtown by midsummer — its highest staffing level there in a decade. The effort is meant to address public safety and fear of crime. But how DPD will get there amid a staffing crisis is complicated.
dallasnews.com
Dallas police want 130 officers downtown in the next few months. How will the city do it?
The enforcement boost would raise downtown police staffing to one of its highest levels in recent years, officials said.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
Silvester Hayes was detained after Dallas cops mistook him for a man with a similar name. After realizing their mistake, police still jailed him. He lost his job and home. Now, a judge has tossed his suit — saying the cops had probable cause because Hayes didn’t use a turn signal and resisted.
dallasnews.com
Judge tosses excessive force suit against Dallas cops who mistook man for someone else
A federal judge tossed a lawsuit by a former security guard who alleged Dallas police officers used excessive force after mistaking him for a family violence...
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 07/05/2025
A Dallas officer who was fired, then reinstated, was arrested again. Carlos Almeida faces public intoxication. He'd previously been accused of family strangulation, which was dropped in 2023.
dallasnews.com
Dallas police officer who was fired, then reinstated, is arrested again
Former Dallas police Chief Eddie García fired Carlos Almeida in 2022, but he was reinstated this year.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 26/04/2025
After our investigation revealed DPD’s chief medical officer has a history of sexual harassment allegations spanning at least a decade, Dallas PD Chief Daniel Comeaux told us he’s actively looking into Alexander Eastman. “I’ll be making a decision as soon as I can gather all the facts.”
dallasnews.com
Dallas SWAT doctor Alex Eastman has years of acclaim — and sexual harassment allegations
A Dallas Morning News investigation found Alexander Eastman has a history, spanning three employers and at least a decade, of alleged inappropriate behavior...
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 26/04/2025
Dallas PD Chief Daniel Comeaux is making at least $310,000 a year. I asked how long he plans to stay Dallas' chief. "If I can work 10 more years, that’d be amazing,” Comeaux said. “I want everybody to understand that I plan on staying here.”
dallasnews.com
Dallas police Chief Daniel Comeaux to earn at least $310,000 annually, offer letter shows
Daniel Comeaux's offer letter shows he can receive an additional $30,000 a year through retention and performance bonuses.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Dallas SWAT doctor Alex Eastman has been influential for years and is now in a national role at DHS. We spent more than a year looking into him — and found that as he earned acclaim, he also had a history of alleged sexual harassment spanning 3 employers over at least a decade.
dallasnews.com
Dallas SWAT doctor Alex Eastman has years of acclaim — and sexual harassment allegations
A Dallas Morning News investigation found Alexander Eastman has a history, spanning three employers and at least a decade, of alleged inappropriate behavior...
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 23/04/2025
Dallas gave each news outlet only 5 minutes to speak with new Chief Daniel Comeaux as he began his first day. In his brief remarks, he made his top priority clear: recruiting. “There will definitely be some changes.”
dallasnews.com
Daniel Comeaux begins first day as Dallas’ new police chief with focus on recruiting
Daniel Comeaux, Dallas’ new top cop, started in the role Wednesday, about two weeks after City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert announced he beat four other...
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
Breaking: Dallas’ next police chief is Daniel Comeaux, a federal law enforcement leader from Houston who has specialized in drug enforcement for three decades. Comeaux beat four finalists, including interim Chief Michael Igo, to become DPD's 31st leader. t.co/vjtD5JaZnJ
t.co
https://www.dallasnews.com/news/public-safety/2025/04/11/daniel-comeaux/
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 28/03/2025
It’s been almost a year since Kansas City Chiefs WR Rashee Rice caused a major collision on a Dallas highway and left, leading police to file 8 charges against him. Since then, we found, very little has changed — as the case has yet to be presented to a grand jury.
dallasnews.com
A year ago, Rashee Rice caused a major crash on a Dallas highway. What’s happened since?
The Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver is still waiting for eight criminal charges to be presented to a Dallas County grand jury.
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The Dallas Morning News @dallasnews.com · 22/03/2025
The last thing Anyelo Sarabia told his sisters before he was deported was that he loved them. On March 16, his sisters saw a video showing migrants who were sent to El Salvador under a wartime measure President Donald Trump had signed. One of the men looked directly at the camera. It was Sarabia.
dallasnews.com
An Arlington man was deported to El Salvador. His sisters deny he’s with a Venezuelan gang
Anyelo Sarabia's two older sisters believe President Donald Trump's administration deported him to El Salvador, accusing their brother of being a member of...
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 21/03/2025
Breaking: Dallas is considering five people as the contenders for the city’s next police chief — including a North Texas police chief, two commanders already inside the department and two people with federal law enforcement experience.
dallasnews.com
Dallas releases list of finalists for next police chief. Here’s who made the cut
Dallas released a list of finalists vying to become the next police chief.
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Kelli Smith @kellixsmith.bsky.social · 20/03/2025
New: High-risk domestic violence victims might not have been offered services because Dallas PD didn’t fill out all required data, an audit found, noting cops may not understand the importance of completing forms without continual training.
dallasnews.com
Missing Dallas PD data might’ve kept domestic violence victims from shelter, services
A new Dallas Police Department report found advocates and investigators were not always made aware of high-risk victims of domestic violence because of...
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