Dallas Declares War on Itself: Police Pay, Lawsuits, and Pool Closures
Back in 2023, Dallas decided to hit the panic button harder than a Windows 95 shutdown, led by Pete Marocco of Dallas HERO, who warned city council of a new wild west of 'bloodthirsty criminals, drugged maniacs, and roving mobs.' They pushed for Proposition U, mandating a police force of 4,000 officers with beefy pay raises, narrowly passing alongside Trump's 2020 re-election. Meanwhile, another ballot baby, Proposition S, made Dallas the first U.S. city to lose governmental immunityâbecause who doesnât love suing their own government? Fast-forward to 2024, and Dallas is dropping college requirements for cops, boosting the force by 350 officers like theyâre assembling an Avengers squadâstill not close to the 800 needed though. Libraries and pools get the chop to fund the police expansion, which sounds like a choose-your-own-adventure of dystopia. Fun fact: local GOP mega-donor Monty Bennett backed this $3 million police upgrade party but clams up about his exact count. Meanwhile, Frederick Frazier, a Trump-endorsed ex-cop pondering if Dallas is 'The Experiment,' wonders if this chaos parade is a blueprint for other cities. Spoiler alert: Nothing says community safety like suing your own government and saying goodbye to splashy public pools.
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Dallas convinced voters to pay cops more, cut libraries and pools, and pioneered suing their own cityâall because Pete Marocco said 'bloodthirsty gangs' are everywhere. Itâs like a pizza party where the cops get the toppings and the kids get the box.
Dallas heroically discovered the solution to crime is making police college optional and swapping libraries for badge upgrades. That city council budget meeting felt a lot like a Black Friday sale at the Apocalypse Mart.
Who needs government immunity when you can sharply increase lawsuits over church game courts? Dallas just turned self-sabotage into an art form, with Monty Bennett quietly funding the chaos but refusing to spill the beans on the tab.
Source: Propublica | Published: 10/14/2025 | Author: by Rebecca Lopez and Jason Trahan, WFAA
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