7 March 2025, El Paso, Texas, Steven Zimmerman – [This article has been edited on 8 March 2025 to reflect the number of officers who have either retired or resigned. Prior to the edit, that number was twelve. Today, that number is fourteen.]
“They [Police Command] are putting the community last and helping themselves first. This has been going on for years and years,” says an Officer out of Five Points. “Command and Pacillas are hurting the department and the people, and they don’t care.”
“I know what the numbers show,” says a Detective with the El Paso Police Department, “but the reality is different.”
The El Paso Police Department has a problem with manpower.
“Even with the new officers coming in after graduation,” says the Detective, “we are still going to have a problem.”
The El Paso Police Department has begun directing Detectives to work graveyard shifts as patrol officers. This means that after Detectives work their usual shift, they have to go back in uniform to work nights. You would think this would be a positive use of manpower, but it is not.
“You will begin to see cases that we are working on suffer,” says the Detective we spoke with. “Even if we work just two graves, we will be exhausted. This is a disservice to the people of El Paso.”
According to an email we received, thirty-nine police officers will graduate from the El Paso Police Academy on 23 May 2025. Thirty-nine is a good number, but the department is not publicly focused on that number. They are internally focused on the fifty people who entered this current Class.
Congratulations to the 137th class for successfully passing their Basic Peace Officer State Exam! A huge thank you to the dedicated staff /adjunct instructors who taught and guided them through their first hurdle. This achievement wouldn’t have been possible without your hard work and commitment. The countless hours you invested in each recruit are reflected in the outstanding scores they earned. Well done, everyone!
Graduation Date: 05.23.2025
Class Size: 39
Respectfully,
Sgt. Jeremy Ontiveros #2152
Pre-Service Training Coordinator
El Paso Police Department Training Division
Email: [email protected]
Work: 915-212-5754
“Internally, we were told that it was the largest class we’ve ever had, which isn’t true,” says the Detective. “Once these officers graduate and enter the field, there will be promotions for other officers.”
Even though thirty-nine officers are set to graduate in May, the department lost fourteen this month to retirement or simply quitting the job.
“Even though we get new officers, we never really replenish our numbers,” says a Patrol Officer we spoke with. “Then there are also the promotions.”
Both the Detective and the Patrol Officer say that others will be promoted once new officers are on the streets.
“The numbers you showed me, the one showing the distribution of officers, is misleading, to say the least,” says the Detective. “We don’t have 1,119 officers on the street. That is a pipe dream.”
Out of 1,119 officers, you must remember that Lieutenant and above do not patrol the streets or answer calls.
“Giving you an actual number is going to be hard as the numbers are fudged,” says another Officer with the El Paso Police Department. “That number, that 1,119, cannot be accurate.”
Let’s look at Mission Valley. According to the 2023 El Paso Police Department Annual Report, 2023 is the most current report; it lists 103 sworn officers.
A Regional Command has the following
- TAC – a specialized unit which may or may not count toward the total number of officers in the Lower Valley;
- PAR – the officers who do presentations in the community and mediation;
- CID – detectives;
- Traffic – they cover the roadways – traffic enforcement, parade details;
- Patrol – officers who respond to 911 calls.
The total number of sworn officers in Mission Valley, and we are not counting the Sergeants or Lieutenants, 103, is divided among these units. Remember that patrol is the only unit responding to 911 calls.
“There are times,” says a Patrol Officer in Mission Valley, “that we will only have two cars for the whole Lower Valley.”
According to the Annual Report, the Lower Valley covers 29.73 square miles and has about 102,524 residents.
“We are leaving people to face dangers on their own; we are not there for them,” says the Patrol Officer, “and the optics on that look bad for all of us.”
“The most important thing the community needs to understand is that calls are not answered because the City of El Paso has turned its backs on the people to keep numbers up,” says an Officer with the El Paso Police Department. “When we [Police Officers] clear thirty or forty calls, because we do our best to clear them, it shows the City that we can do more with fewer officers on the street.”
I’ve heard from too many officers that they are stretched thin. The Chief of Police, Pedro Francisco ‘Pete’ Pacillas, doesn’t care.
“The Chief,” says an officer from Central, “is way out of his depth.”
Command, with the El Paso Police Department, knows they are exploiting their officers.
“I’ll tell you something that the public doesn’t know,” says a Patrol Officer, “and should rightly anger them when they find out.”
We were told that when there is a murder or an officer-involved shooting, you will not see patrol out on the streets. What happens is that the patrol is the first one to respond. Once everything is under control, a supervisor notifies Crimes Against Persons (CAP).
“CAP can take as long as they want to come out,” says another Patrol Officer. “We are there until CAP comes out, having to secure the scene, hold witnesses or suspects, and wait.”
That officer further stated that CAP will not transport suspects to a Regional Command or Downtown but will have patrol do that. Additionally, while CAP questions the suspect or witness, patrol has to stand around and wait, rather than be on the streets.
If Crimes Against Persons wants to search an offender’s home, patrol will have to babysit the house until CAP obtains a warrant, which can sometimes take hours or days.
“We [patrol] are burned out, and at the mercy of CAP,” says another Patrol Officer. “CAP will not transport anyone because they say they don’t have the equipment, like a cage, in their cars. This is another failing of Pacillas.”
“There are officers who hold a badge, have a uniform sitting at home, but will not utilize them because they are part of a special unit, Crimes against Persons, or have a God complex about their job,” says another Officer with the El Paso Police Department. “Why can’t they help.”
“I’m not complaining about doing my job,” says the Detective who contacted me about working graves and cases. I’m complaining that we have specialized units who wear uniforms, and they will not help patrol or respond to calls.”
“They [Police Command] are putting the community last and helping themselves first. This has been going on for years and years,” says an Officer out of Five Points. “Command and Pacillas are hurting the department and the people, and they don’t care.”