APD, SAFE Alliance and Travis County DA report improved sexual-assault data and prosecution; commission votes for quarterly reporting

The Public Safety Commission on Feb. 4 heard coordinated briefings from the Austin Police Department, the SAFE Alliance (sexual-assault response services) and the Travis County District Attorney’s Office about sexual-assault reporting, case handling and prosecution outcomes and voted unanimously to ask those agencies to submit quarterly case data for commission review.

APD detective leadership described improved data quality and increasing calls for service. Commander Deanna Lichter, who leads the department’s special-crimes unit, said enhanced review and a civilian data team from the collective sexual-crimes response model (CSRM) project have improved internal title coding and case accuracy. ‘‘Every case that comes to us is investigated,’’ Lichter said, while noting that an increase in 911 calls does not always equate to more formal reports once officers arrive.

SAFE Alliance forensic-nursing staff described victim-centered medical-forensic services, advocacy and patient options including medical care without making a police report. For December 2024 SAFE reported 64 unduplicated service contacts: 41 evidence-collection exams, five medical-only exams and 18 consults. SAFE’s December patient feedback (18 respondents) reported high satisfaction: respondents said staff ‘‘gave me enough information to make decisions about my care’’ and that they ‘‘felt a sense of regained control over this process.’’

Travis County prosecutors described rising conviction counts and improved case-level communication. A DA’s Office representative said that since criminal courts reopened after the COVID-19 pandemic the office has doubled convictions in sexual-assault-related cases compared with the six previous years, attributing the gains to embedded prosecutors, closer coordination and improvements in discovery and evidence flow.

Commission action and next steps: Commissioners moved and approved a recommendation that APD, SAFE Alliance and the Travis County DA’s Office submit sexual-assault case data quarterly to the Public Safety Commission for review. The motion — moved by Commissioner Smith and seconded by Commissioner Nguyen — passed unanimously, 8–0. The commission also asked the CSRM team to work with the city manager’s office, the SART and stakeholders to assess a permanent, cross-agency data home where discovery and outcomes could be cross-referenced for oversight and longitudinal review.

Context and limitations: APD staff emphasized the difference between calls for service and reports that enter investigative tracks; Commander Lichter said cases can be ‘‘paused’’ (suspended) for reasons including awaiting DNA results or for victim readiness. The DA’s Office cautioned that federal grant funding supports several victim-assistance positions and said proposed administrative actions by the Texas attorney general that would require confidential case-file handoffs could threaten victim privacy and undermine trust.

Ending: Commissioners said they plan to refine future quarterly reports to close feedback loops between APD and the DA’s Office and to use the commission’s review to surface data on underreported populations, language access, victims with unstable housing and nightlife/venue-linked incidents.