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San Antonio's top two crime fighters shook hands in public Monday night at a far West Side Catholic church following a well-publicized dispute over the root causes of a rash of shootings that have left five officers wounded and three suspects dead.
Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales told a crowd of more than 150 people at St. Rose de Lima Catholic Church that the two men had spoken privately on Monday after some reports placed the length of a silence between them at a month.
"The only thing we need to do that works is for us to work together, so we're going to work together," said Gonzales, who stuck his hand out across a stage to McManus. The two shook hands briefly, which was greeted by a round of applause.
While the two men may now be talking, differences remain over how to keep armed and dangerous individuals, like repeat offenders, off the streets.
McManus in recent weeks questioned some of the DA's crime-fighting efforts in the courts, while the DA questioned some of the chief's crime-fighting efforts on the streets.
In a gaggle with reporters not long after the handshake, McManus confirmed the two were talking. But he reminded the media a high-level meeting on how to reduce shootings, including him and the DA, and brokered by San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai, was still ahead. No date has been set yet.
"I'm not going to speak about what happened before this," the chief said. "I made my concerns very, very clear to everyone."
District 4 San Antonio City Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia called for the town hall meeting since some of the more well-publicized shootings occurred in her district. She said her constituents had expressed their concerns about public safety after the shootings. She believes they are part of an unfortunate trend.
"There's been a lot of animosity," she said. "There's a division between those in uniform and those not in uniform. It stems from not just local, but the animosity at the state, the animosity at the federal level. That's why it's important to remember that we're all one community."
Both men bemoaned the easy availability of guns in Texas. Both men also said they’re seeing a trend of more weapons involved in crimes that were taken from unlocked, unattended, or stolen vehicles.
McManus said overall crime was down. He said most victims of violent crime were engaging in "risky behavior" that would make them more likely to be targeted by criminals. Property theft, however, mainly theft from vehicles, remains a big problem.
Some in the audience criticized or even heckled the district attorney at times over a lack of progress in some murder cases involving loved ones. Gonzales said of the cases they raised, there was not enough evidence to prosecute in court.
He did encourage those who criticized his office to reach out to him. He said he speaks with the families of crime victims on a regular basis.
The DA and the chief are scheduled to appear together once again Thursday at 6pm at the Dolores Griffin Senior Center for a similar public safety town hallheld by District 7 Councilwoman Marina Alderete Gavito.
