23 November 2024, El Paso, Texas, Steven Zimmerman-This has happened before: the police are not responding to calls.

“There have been times,” says one El Paso Police Department Officer who currently works out of the Northeast Regional Command Center, “that we’ve had one, or two units out and working a whole shift.”

On 27 March 2024, Public Information Officer Robert Gomez spoke with KFOX TV.

“Well, the number of officers does affect response times, but not just response times,” said Gomez during the interview. “It affects every area of the [] Department, investigations, operations, everything. Um, we’re at a critical level right now. We haven’t reduced services, but we don’t want to.”

While the El Paso Police Department admits the lack of officers has affected response times, it says it hasn’t reduced services yet.

“Gomez may say they haven’t reduced anything,” says an Officer out of the Westside Regional Command, “but the department is top heavy with brass and other units that don’t respond to calls.”

There is another side to this coin, with fewer officers on the street, some officers will not act.

“During the Del Valle homecoming, my mother was attacked,” says Astrid. “Right in front of a cop at 9234 Betel, and he did nothing.”

The lack of an officer does cause calls to remain unanswered.

Not too long ago, police officers never responded to multiple calls from my old Lower Valley neighborhood.

A car was parked outside a church on S Schutz. The man who was in the car began to beat his girlfriend and hit their child. The neighborhood responded, getting the man out of the car and then away from her as he charged her, hitting her again.

As a group of residents was keeping the man away from the mother and child, another group, myself included, called 911 several times, requesting service for an assault in progress. Again, not a single unit was dispatched.

When the man began to attack others in the neighborhood, calls were made to 911 again. Still, no one responded.

Priority One calls include homicide, rape, robbery, assault, larceny, theft and motor theft. 2016, the El Paso Police Department’s response time was twenty-one minutes. 2024, we have no idea that data doesn’t seem to exist.

Not responding to calls goes against what Chief Pacillas has written to officers, “EPPD is Dedicated to Serve El Paso to ensure the Constitutional rights of all within our community are protected.”

In 2022, PIO Gomez said he also attributed the shortage to the negative light shed on police officers in the last several years.

Let’s look at that claim and some of the many officers have been arrested recently:

• Officer Steve Romero
• Sergeant John Solis
• Dispatcher Yvette Valliere
• Officer Joseph Andrew Shreve
• Lieutenant John Surface
• Sergeant Adan Chavez
• Sergeant John Chavez
• Officer Guadalupe Sosa
• Officer Joshua Anthony Gallardo
• Officer Isaac Menchaca
• Officer Aaron Poblano
• Officer Enrique David Mendoza
• Officer Ruben Morales
• Officer Jessica Grijalva

The citizens of El Paso are paying for Cadillac service but they’re not getting it and the reason being is we are stretched very thin,” EPPD Public Information Officer Robert Gomez told CBS4 El Paso on 31 August 2022. “We probably need at least double what we have, at least 2000 officers to give the Cadillac service that the citizens deserve. Recruiting is down, people are not applying as they used to, to become an officer and we have to continue the effort, it’s only going to get worse if we don’t hire to maintain and also to increase.”

“I have not been with the department in El Paso all that long,” one Officer told us today, “but I am leaving to another department in Central Texas. You don’t get any support here from command, they don’t care about you.”

Another officer told us that the El Paso Police Department has too many officers who do not patrol the streets or answer calls.

“You have gangs, most Lt’s, some sergeants, other specialized units that won’t take a call, and that makes us look bad,” said the Officer who is stationed at the Pebble Hills Regional Command Center. “I don’t care what Gomez says; we make ourselves look bad.”

Gomez, the Chief, or any EPPD Commander may say police shortages are caused by the negative light shed on officers and the Department, but maybe the Department should clean up its act?

El Paso Police Chief Peter Pacillas sent the following email to all officers:

“All

“To all of those who carry the responsibility of the Oath of Office from the police officers on the beat or the service personnel in our country’s uniform; never forsake our oaths made to the Almighty.

“Since the first US Army under General Washington our military has honorably served and fought for our freedoms.

“Since the first American police office to today, those who donned the shield over their heart have carried the privilege to ensuring that all those in their jurisdictions enjoy the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

“EPPD is Dedicated to Serve El Paso to ensure the Constitutional rights of all within our community are protected.”

Chief Pacillas, it’s almost as if you don’t read or act upon what you write. Remember when you admitted you were short-staffed but just didn’t know what to do?

Chief Pacillas should put people out on the street rather than have them sit behind a desk. In fact, why doesn’t command staff grab a car and hit the streets?

The following is a list of all officers who have retired, quit, or were fired in 2024.