AUSTIN, Texas — The City of Austin Tuesday delivered a long-awaited apology to more than a dozen sexual assault survivors. Many individuals who felt they were wronged by former leaders received added reassurance that their voices are being heard.
“To all the survivors of this community, I’d like to apologize as to how your cases were handled,” interim Austin Police Chief Robin Henderson said.
Fifteen minutes before key members of the Austin Police Department and City Council discussed how they were moving forward to prevent the inaction of a time (2006-2019) when a slew of sexual assault cases were mismanaged, a key figure of that investigation, former APD Chief Art Acevedo, announced on X he would no longer be taking the interim assistant city manager position.
“Unfortunately, politics and power struggles have hindered our efforts to create real positive improvements for the people of this city,” Acevedo said in a statement. “I firmly believe that if we are to build a future together, we cannot afford to blame others and point fingers. This mentality has caused us to take a step back instead of building a better path forward together. That is why I have informed Interim City Manager Garza that I cannot accept this position and will pursue other opportunities.”
Acevedo was hired in a somewhat secretive decision Friday by interim City Manager Jesus Garza to help aid in bridging the gap between the city’s public officials and police department. Two key agenda items, including increasing staffing, retention issues and a new labor agreement that has been the subject of contention for several years. Council member Alison Alter was among those expressing concern on the controversial hire and believed the outcome was what the community wanted.
“I would call it reality,” Alter said. “We need to bring in people that have the skills that we need to address the challenges we have and address the community. I don’t think an ASM position over the police does that, regardless of who the person is.”
It was a sentiment shared by the 15 plaintiffs from the sexual assault lawsuit filed against the city and settled for millions of dollars in 2022.
“I think a lot of us coming into the public apology were ready to have words,” sexual assault survivor Kelly McWilliams said. “It was absolutely deplorable for the city to entertain the idea. I’m glad we made enough noise that he decided to step down.”
That noise has also led to significant improvements in Austin’s Sex Crime Unit, which is what the day was originally supposed to be focusing on. Funding has been set aside to help assist in massive reforms regarding reporting hotlines, increased training, DNA testing and accountability for those investigating these incidents.
“This tremendous effort is an indication of how much APD is committed,” Henderson said.
Some major improvements to an area of neglect and a noted subtraction highlighting a continuing conversation in the Capital City.