Dallas County District Attorney says the shrinking federal government could lead to rising crime in his county and across Texas.
DALLAS — The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by tech mogul Elon Musk, wasted no time reshaping the federal government through firings, “deferred resignations,” and the freezing of federal grants.
The agencies impacted range from the Defense Department and Department of Veterans Affairs to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service.
Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot has certainly taken notice.
“We’re going back to shock and awe, which is a war term, right? Here we are practicing shock and awe on the American people, our system of governance and the money that flows from Washington to various and sundry initiatives around the United States,” Creuzot told us on Inside Texas Politics.
Creuzot fears that many of the efforts his office has taken to address violent crime are threatened by the federal cuts. And he says he’s spoken to many of his colleagues across Texas who feel the same way.
The Dallas County D.A.’s office currently receives $6.2 million in federal grants that help fund seven different crime-fighting units: sex assault, cold cases, AIM court, postconviction DNA testing, elder abuse, focused deterrence and behavioral health services for inmates and suspects with mental illness.
Creuzot says when programs such as these are successful, it leads to more funding in the future. And that success also spreads to other areas of the state, as everyone is always looking for an approach that reduces crime.
To lose that funding, he tells us, would have a major impact on public safety.
“$6 million is next to nothing in Washington. However, when we talk about fighting crime, holding people accountable, finding out who murdered somebody, that’s a big deal right here,” explained the district attorney.
While none of the programs have been specifically threatened yet, Creuzot is taking a proactive approach and sounding the alarm, nonetheless.
And he makes clear that cuts are needed sometimes, and cost savings can be beneficial, but only after study, so the ramifications are clear.
“What this is, is, like I said, just taking a hatchet to things and just whacking away at them without any thought as to what the implications are,” he said.
