Street Racing Isn’t Criminal Enough To Police Per Chad West

Chad West says street racing is a problem, but you can’t “police your way out of it.” This statement has made some local residents angry.

“Number one call in my district is speed racing and it has been before COVID and it actually got worse,” District 1 City Council Member Chad West said.

He said right now a task force is working on long term solutions. Temporary speed cones have been placed on Hampton to take it from three to two lanes of traffic in each direction. They’re currently asking residents what they think.

On West 12th, between Hampton and Edgefield Avenue, the road has been permanently reduced from two lanes of traffic in each direction to one. However, even with the changes, residents still want to see more done.

“What I would like to see is for them to have speed bumps on this side of 12th street which is south of Hampton,” Emilio Urbina said.

The father of three said even on his small residential street there’s speeding.

Gabriel Gonzales said he thinks more police enforcement is needed.

“You can’t stop them when you don’t see them,” he said.

“One of the challenges is that Dallas has a no chase policy,” West said. “Our officers, unless the speed racer has committed a felony or has a felony warrant or a misdemeanor that involves violence, they can’t chase them. Where as every city around us has chase policies. They can chase speed racers.”

Council Member West appears to recognize that other departments do policestreet racing by police enforcement – including chasing suspects – and that the department is tying its own hands by not following suspects.

Street Racing Issues

As recently as August street racing caused a fatality accident in Dallas.

On Christmas Eve, an off-duty Dallas police officer, Joseph George, died after he lost control of his 2015 Ford Mustang while racing with another car, according to police. He was a four-year veteran of the department.