Earlier this week, a deranged gunman went on a deadly shooting spree in my city, Austin, Texas, killing four people after having already murdered his parents in San Antonio. One of the victims was shot less than 15 minutes from where I live, which means this particular atrocity hits closer to home.
I have lived in Austin since 2012 and have grown to love the city, despite the politics. But over the past four years, I have noticed what many others have: A disturbing rise in crime.
Violent crime and property crime have become a more pressing issue in Texas’ capital city.
Putting the police budget on the chopping block did nothing to help a city that, in the last six years, has lost around 800 officers. In April, a WalletHub study showed Austin's homicide rate as the 15th highest in the nation. It's no wonder that Thomas Villarreal describes a police department stretched extremely thin.
Villarreal said:
I've got about 1,475 officers in our police department and, you know, we're moving in the wrong direction. There's less and less and less resources to go out and do the job. I've got detectives who are pulled away from their caseload to just help answer 911 calls because we just don't have the resources to adequately police the city.
Even further, Austinites who call 9-1-1 are often placed on hold due to shortages in staff. Austin is still nowhere near as bad as places like Chicago, Baltimore, and others. But if the trend persists, my city could be one of many that is often in national news for heightened crime rates.
What this situation underscores for people like myself is the ever-apparent reality that law enforcement cannot always be there to protect us. It is one of the reasons why I became a gun owner in 2021. I saw what was happening in Austin, and today’s crimes make the matter even more pressing.
I recently wrote about an incident that occurred in October, in which a homeowner in Austin shot and killed a burglar who was invading his home. This was Austin’s 56th homicide in 2023, which is the same number we experienced in 2022. It vividly illustrated the critical role that firearms often play in personal safety. Gun ownership empowers responsible Americans faced with violent criminals.
This is not to undermine the role of law enforcement. But one of the first things I was taught when training with my firearm is that when seconds count, police are only minutes away. In cities with higher crime rates, it is even more important for people to possess the means by which they can defend themselves.
In fact, I have been working on my mother, who also lives in Austin, trying to nudge her in the direction of gun ownership for over a year. Being from Southern California, she was nervous about the prospect, but she has finally come around. Crime rates, and the potential for terrorist activity arising from the Israel-Hamas conflict, have pushed her over the edge. Now it is just a matter of scheduling the appointment at the range!
While it is tragic to see Austin dealing with more crime, there is a silver lining. Perhaps it will prompt more people to exercise their Second Amendment rights. It might go a long way toward showing people that their protection is their own responsibility before it is the government’s duty.
Hopefully, the crime rate will decline all across America. I’m hoping that people replace government officials who are more concerned with protecting the bad guys than safeguarding the civilians under their jurisdiction. But even if that happens, the right to keep and bear arms remains sacrosanct from where I sit. When confronted with a dangerous situation, you are your own first line of defense.
