The Houston PD's Cite-and-Release program is short sighted, leaving #victims of crimes wondering if the criminals were taken to jail or just released back onto the streets. How is it possible to feel safe in these circumstances? This is a very short-sighted policy that is not in the public's best interests.

Under the cite-and-release program, theft under $750 means that the perpetrator could be released without being detained. Perhaps when compared with millions of dollars, this is not a large sum of money, but for some small businesses $750 is the difference between staying in business or going under. Letting criminals simply walk away with a citation, free to do the same thing again (only this time, not get caught) is ridiculous! 

Yes, people say that there will eventually be #punishment. But this requires the police and the courts to follow up on citations for those who just ignore them. If the goal is to prevent the police from being tied up with arrests and having them patrol the streets more frequently, this is not the right way to go about it. It will inevitably backfire as they have to spend their time following up on all of these citations. This will tie up the resources of the Houston Police Department even further.

And what about more invasive crimes? A “peeping tom” can be charged with loitering, which is a Class C misdemeanor. In San Marcos, this could potentially be considered a cite-and-release offense. I cannot even imagine the instability and mental scarring that can occur if that individual was immediately released, leaving the victim to feel paranoid and unsafe. They were the victim of a crime, should they not be protected by law enforcement?

Houston should not take part in a cite-and-release program for violators of the law. This sacrifices the security and the safety of the victims by not taking the perpetrator to jail. It leaves that criminal free to roam the streets and reoffend. This is incredibly shortsighted and can only lead to more crimes being committed.