Richardson – The Other Side Dallas

May 25, 2022May 26, 2022

Berkner High School On Lockdown

Sources say Berkner High School went on lockdown this morning just one day after a gunman in Uvalde, Texas murdered more than twenty including nineteen elementary students.

Per one tweet a gunman was detained at the North Dallas area high school earlier this morning.

A school district spokesman said both the high school and Springridge Elementary were put on the lockdown status because of reports of an armed man in the neighborhood.

Berkner High School Details

The incident was initially described as an active shooter by some on social media, but that appears to have been completely false with no reports of gunfire or injuries.

Reportedly two armed individuals were walking into a local store near the campus which prompted the lockdown.

Richardson Police has not revealed any information about suspects or information on the person or persons detained. There is no word on change to school schedules in light of these events or those in South Texas.

There are questions if the subject arrested is tied to a number of recent antisemitic events in the area including Spring Valley Elementary.

Other Side Dallas will update as more information becomes available.

May 23, 2022May 26, 2022

Spring Valley Athletic Antisemitism

Youth ball in Richardson took an ugly turn this weekend as Spring Valley athletic antisemitism took the field at Spring Valley Elementary this past weekend.

Other Side Dallas has independently watched video of a baseball game at the Richardson Independent School District campus where parents of a youth baseball team stated “1/2 the [other] team needs to be put in ovens” referring to a youth baseball team with a number of Jewish players.

Other Side Dallas has reached out to both Richardson schools and Spring Valley Athletic Association for comment who leases the fields from the North Dallas suburb.

Some parents have said they are shocked that this happens in the open, but others said this is what happens when bullies are allowed to act with impunity.

Officials will not get in the middle of these events and are too timid to address racism or other hateful language directly.

One parent was particularly blunt saying, “they can barely handle their job with eight year olds. they’re not going to take on adults too.”

Antisemitism On The Rise Locally

Richardson has been the focus of a number of antisemitic events recently including the distribution of antisemitic flyers.

Additionally, the City of Dallas had one of their parking garages painted with swastikas two years ago. To date there have been no prosecutions.

Spring Valley Athletic Antisemitism More Bad Baseball In North Texas

There has been an uptick in local sports violence including players attacking one another and assaults on youth sports fields.

The video above is from the North Central Texas College/Weatherford baseball game which did not have racial or other hate overtones, but demonstartes poor game management by officials and school site administrators.

These same issues plague recreational and travel sport events across the country and are becoming more common both in Dallas, but also across the country.

March 19, 2022March 22, 2022

Richardson Police Sue Richardson Police

Two officers with the City of Richardson Police sue Richardson Police and the City of Richardson over allegations that they have been illegally requiring them to follow a ticket quota system.

Officers Kayla Walker and David Conklin filed the lawsuit against the City of Richardson. Walker was seen last year speaking before Richardson City Council stating an illegal ticket quota system was occuring for years.

They lawsuits also allege senior officers retaliated against them after they made public statements to the Richardson City Council and media outlets in 2021. They also allege retaliation after they filed criminal reports with outside law enforcement authorities.

Richardson Police Sue Richardson Police – The Case

The lawsuit claims an outside legal investigation confirmed the city was acting inappropriately, but also stated that the policy was not illegal “because it was part of a broader policy that included components that were not unlawful.”

A Dallas District Court judge is being asked to “declare the ticket quota policy in violation Section 772.002 of the Texas Transportation Code that prohibits all formal or informal ticket quotas, order the Richardson Police Department to stop the illegal policy, and compensate the officers for the violations of their First Amendment right to free speech.”

July 23, 2021July 24, 2021

Laura Jordan Convicted

Former Richardson Mayor Laura Jordan, and her developer husband Mark Jordan, were found guilty Friday, July 23 of bribery and tax evasion.

Prosecutors said the former mayor accepted cash, vacations, and home renovations from Jordan and had sex with him in exchange for her votes to change the city’s zoning on land fronting Central Expressway. She also voted to approve hundreds of apartments that Jordan wanted to build there.

Early in the trial, prosecutors told jurors that the Jordans “corruptly convinced the city of Richardson to approve a multi-million dollar real estate deal.” Prosecutors also said that they “used their adulterous affair and subsequent marriage to cover up corruption and get away with this.”

But the Jordans’ attorneys told the jury that the former mayor voted for the project because it was in the best interest of the city, and that a majority of council members approved the project too.

The conviction comes just weeks after the conviction of Ruel Hamilton on similar charges.

Laura Jordan

Laura Jordan was the Mayor of Richardson, Texas from 2013 to 2015. She had previously become the first woman elected to the post of Mayor Pro Tem in the City’s 57-year history as a home rule city.

Laura Jordan, then Laura Maczka, was initially elected to the Richardson City Council, Place 4 in May 2011, defeating Karl Voigtsberger by 74.97% to 25.03%. She is believed to be only the 6th woman elected to the city council in the last forty years.

In 2013, Maczka was elected mayor in the first direct election of the mayor since the city became a home rule city in 1956.

April 21, 2021April 21, 2021

Richardson Police Admit Illegal Quotas

A Richardson Police Department officer admitted the department was engaging in an illegal quotas practice under the guide of productivity. The practice of quotas is illegal under Texas Transportation Code Sec. 720.002.

The full video can be viewed here:

The officer’s allegations have significant importance to both the department’s own compliance with federal and state law and an ongoing lawsuit against the City of Richardson.

Richardson Police and Texas Transportation Code 720.002

Richardson Police Also Face Federal Police Brutality Lawsuit

In 2018, Neco Bonham, who is Black, was pulled over for a broken tail light which was later proveb false. In that case, the Richardson officer’s body cam video showed Officer Parker Winn escalating the situation fifteen seconds into the incident.

Bonham is now suing the two white police officers as well as the city of Richardson in a federal civil rights lawsuit, alleging racial profiling and excessive force. He claims Winn contrived a bogus reason to stop him in order to search the pickup for drugs simply because he was a “young Black man with a hoodie.”

Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot has complained that some police continue to improperly use “pretext stops” against minority motorists searching for marijuana.

This testimony in open city council working session indicates police issues exist outside just the City of Dallas and Reneé Hall.