La Marque police highlight expansion of community watches and declining crime at Safe City update

Chief Randall Aragon briefed the La Marque City Council on July 14 on the department's multi-year Safe City initiative, saying the program has expanded neighborhood coverage and added staff and data tools.

Aragon said the department has grown community watches from the nine planned in 2024 to 12 and aims for a watch in every neighborhood across the city's 14.2 square miles. "I envision sometime next year, our entire city of 14.2 square miles is gonna have a community watch and a personal community policing officer serving that community," Aragon said.

The presentation emphasized three technical and personnel additions: a CompStat-style monthly analytics meeting, a grant-funded crime analyst position and a formal accreditation pursuit. Christina Garza, identified in the meeting as the department's grant-funded crime analyst, was credited with assembling data briefings and presentations that drive the monthly reviews. Aragon said the department has completed 119 of 173 standards for the Texas Police Chiefs Association Best Practices Accreditation Program and expects an assessment next year.

Aragon also outlined a growing gang‑operations capability. He said his team recorded 49 documented gangs and 113 gang members in a prior report but that the situation has eased. "We're not as worried about gangs as we were, but we're not resting on our laurels," Aragon said, adding the department now has four trained gang‑operations officers.

On staffing and grants, Aragon described a recent award of a COPS hiring grant covering additional officers: "We got a no match COPS grant for 2 officers'. We already have one [grant] with six officers, and we just got this one for two more." He said the grant-funded officers are being used for targeted crime‑suppression and do not take routine calls, which supports proactive policing.

Other programs Aragon described included proposals for an Explorer Post for teens; a TAPS (Teen and Police Services) program that places officers in high‑school classrooms for weekly sessions; and a special response team (SRT) that Aragon said has run more than 1,700 missions since February 2022 with neighboring agencies participating under mutual aid.

Aragon reported crime statistics: "Over the last three years, violent crime has been down 8 percent, property crime has been down 18 percent, and overall crime has been down 17 percent." Council members and the mayor praised the department's community policing work and asked for follow‑up information about convenience‑store outreach and demographic breakdowns in future packets.

Council and staff also discussed lighting upgrades tied to crime prevention. Shannon Breaux of public works described renewed coordination between police and public works on reporting and repairing nonworking street lights and said 31 solar LED lights will be installed using ARPA funds; locations were to be published in an upcoming council packet.

Ending

Aragon said the department will continue the Safe City work and return to the council with updated data and locations for new lighting and community‑watch coverage. Council members thanked Aragon and his officers for the reported declines in crime and for community engagement programs that they said have improved public confidence in policing.