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Hard Work Pays Off in South Texas Crime Prevention
Programs
Ron Cutlip, Community Relations Officer, Southern
District of Texas
Strong alliances: A crime prevention team in South Texas
includes members from the Federal Bureau of Investigation,
Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, Border Patrol, Texas National Guard, Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Marshals Service,
and the U.S. Attorney's Office. |
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We
know that we cannot continue to incarcerate every convicted
felon who comes through our criminal justice system, but what
if we could make a difference in the next generation of potential
criminals? What if we could go to the schools and connect with
just one youth and change his or her life? And what if we were
able to set up youth courts to allow young men and women to
adjudicate their own Class C misdemeanors and perform community
service in lieu of having their parents pay a fine? And, what
if we were able to do all that I just mentioned without spending
a dime?
A couple of years ago, a new U.S. Attorney took charge of
one of the largest district offices in the country and began
leading a staff of more than 300 men and women. Although no
stranger to Texas, this U.S. Attorney was something that we
had not seen before—arriving at 6:30 a.m. every day and
leaving long after everyone else had gone home. He carries
two backpacks to work (one says "Go Navy") and very seldom
has time for lunch. It is common to see his car at the office
on the weekend. This person, Michael T. Shelby, is the man
responsible for change, direction, and leadership in southern
Texas.
When Mr. Shelby started, he knew that he had an opportunity
to do something that very few federal prosecutors ever get
a chance to do—realign the office to accomplish the priorities
of the Attorney General. What is important for folks who are
involved in crime prevention and law enforcement is that your
boss supports what you are doing. In our office, Mr. Shelby
tells you how much he appreciates what you are doing. I often
think of our office as having one arm in the community conducting
the prosecutorial affairs that we are charged with by the Attorney
General, but the other arm is carefully reaching around with
a crime prevention program. On any given day, an Assistant
U.S. Attorney might be trying a case and later on that evening
he or she may be explaining the USA PATRIOT Act as the
guest speaker at a high school. Another might be chairing the
Weed and Seed committee to ensure that it stays on track and
that its meetings are productive, while another might be presiding
over a teen court in Brownsville, Corpus Christi, or Houston.
We have
built a strong alliance not only with our federal law enforcement
partners, but our state and local police agencies as well.
We have not limited our association with traditional police
departments but instead invited other agencies to be part
of a huge intelligence sharing program called the Anti-Terrorism
Advisory Council. With terrorism as the number one threat
in America, we can no longer depend on traditional methods
of gathering information. When our federal law enforcement
partners are not busy investigating, detaining, and arresting
alleged criminals, you will find them assisting our office
with community outreach programs—such as Red Ribbon, Career Day, DEFY
Camp, and Reading in School—and teaching classes at the
Law Enforcement High School.
Our office is totally committed to community policing. Our
police force must be partners with the community to solve community
problems. Wherever we have bike patrols in Weed and Seed sites
throughout South Texas, crime has been reduced. It takes a
special breed of cop to work bike patrol, and those patrols
are making contact with local residents, not just the criminals.
I would like to feel that we are making a difference down
here in South Texas. As Mr. Shelby likes to say, "remember
what's important."
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