00:00We're here today to announce significant steps in a violent crime initiative that I initiated
00:04earlier this year here in the Austin area. You know, Austin has this perception of being a go-along
00:11to get-along society, and it largely is for a lot of good people here in Austin. Unfortunately,
00:17it also has that perception and is attractive accordingly for many violent criminals, drug
00:24dealers, illegal aliens with extensive criminal history, all rely on these beliefs and the policies
00:30that follow those beliefs to operate under this idea that they can live basically with impunity in
00:37and around Austin. The reality is fewer good guys with guns equals more bad guys with guns,
00:43and we've seen that here in Austin, Texas. Despite these vacancies and understaffing, APD has engaged
00:51in some amazing police work, not just with this initiative, but at other times too. One shining
00:56example of this, of the overall preparedness of APD, is the 6th Street shooting back on March 1st.
01:03In the early morning hours of March 1st, police responded to shots fired on 6th Street. Within a
01:09couple minutes, they had neutralized that shooter, a shooter that had been radicalized by radical Islamic
01:15ideology, and was wearing a shirt that said, property of Allah. Their actions, their quick and decisive
01:22actions, saved dozens of lives in those early morning hours of March 1st. I met with two of those
01:28officers earlier this year to express our appreciation for their actions, for running towards danger when
01:35most people run away, for putting their calling and their duty over their comfort. In reality, this is
01:41what cops do every single day, and when they have the resources to do it, good things happen.
01:48Earlier this year, I tasked our AUSAs in Austin, led by Dan Guess, along with our federal, state, and local
01:55partners that are represented here, to target the worst of the worst in the Austin area, to get them
02:00off the street, get them detained, get them charged with federal crimes, get them convicted, and get them
02:07sentenced. We worked closely with these agencies and the Travis County DA, to identify those that were the
02:13ripest for federal prosecution. As a result, we have over 40 defendants charged, or approximately 40
02:18defendants charged, under various charges, including felon in possession of a firearm, drug trafficking, and
02:24illegal possession of a machine gun.
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