Dallas police Chief Daniel Comeaux said Thursday that Gov. Greg Abbott was off base in blaming AT&T’s planned move from downtown on city leaders’ public safety decisions, saying instead that conditions were improving from stepped-up patrols and renewed focus on the area.
“It’s not a true depiction of what’s going on in Dallas,” Comeaux said of Abbott’s remarks in an interview with The Dallas Morning News. “Crime is down, recruiting is at an all-time high, and our retention is better this year for officers. The morale is up.”
The pushback — paired with an unsigned department statement issued Thursday touting increased patrols, the work of its downtown task force and a new focus on a downtown patrol division — sharpens how AT&T’s planned headquarters move to Plano is being pulled into a broader fight over public safety and homelessness downtown.
It may also signal a dispute over local control. Abbott, who is ramping up his campaign for a fourth term, said the state could take a closer look at the city’s prior decisions relating to police funding.
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An Abbott spokesperson, Andrew Mahaleris, declined to comment Thursday on the chief’s statement and deferred to the governor’s Tuesday remarks.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott speaks during a press conference at Heritage Ranch Golf & Country Club in Fairview on Friday, Sept. 12, 2025.
Juan Figueroa / Staff Photographer
The responses are the latest in a clash set off by Abbott’s comments blaming Dallas leadership for AT&T’s decision at a political event in Fort Worth, where he accepted endorsements from Republican elected officials in Tarrant County and a number of Texas police unions, including the Dallas Police Association.
City and police spokespeople on Wednesday declined to rebut Abbott, instead pointing back to the city’s earlier statement that AT&T’s decision was a change in corporate preference rather than an indictment of Dallas.
An AT&T spokesperson also declined Wednesday to comment on Abbott’s remarks or say whether public safety was a factor in the company’s decision.
Downtown Dallas Inc., the nonprofit tasked with downtown’s upkeep, launched a public safety-focused initiative in May. The organization said Thursday the impacts it has seen so far were encouraging.
“This work continues in 2026 and beyond,” the nonprofit said in a statement on behalf of its public safety coalition. “We have built a permanent and sustainable model to best address safety, homelessness, and other quality of life challenges. Importantly, that includes working closely with our law enforcement partners daily to ensure Downtown remains safe and vibrant.”
AT&T headquarters building Whitacre Tower pictured in downtown Dallas, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026.
Elías Valverde II / Staff Photographer
Organizational change with more officers downtown
In recent months, downtown leaders have pointed to recent gains in public safety and addressing homelessness, though they have acknowledged the area started from a troubled baseline.
A Boston Consulting Group study commissioned by Downtown Dallas Inc. found that from 2019 to 2023, downtown saw a 34% increase in crime.
That finding and others informed the launch of Safe in the City, a public-private initiative rolled out in May to improve the quality of life downtown.
Comeaux said the efforts included internal changes at the department, including making the central business district a dedicated patrol division. The district covers the loop created by the Woodall Rogers Freeway, Interstates 35E and 30, U.S. Highway 75 and Interstate 345.
That change, made by Michael Igo, the interim chief who retired after Comeaux was tapped as chief last year, resulted in a police major directly overseeing the area and additional officers assigned to patrol it, according to department records.
The department’s statement Thursday said the division was created to “focus on the unique concerns in a large city’s urban core.”
“Being in the heart of downtown,” the statement reads, “it was a priority to have a consistent and visible presence — using our Mounted Unit, bike officers and foot patrols, officer presence contributes greatly to the year-over-year reduction in crime downtown.”
Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux laughs while speaking with Jennifer Scripps, Downtown Dallas president and CEO, during the 2025 State of Downtown event Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, in Dallas. Comeaux spoke on changes the police department has made.
Christine Vo / Staff Photographer
Police data covering Jan. 1 through Dec. 28, 2025, shows that total reported violent crime in the central business district was down 11% while reported nonviolent crime was down nearly 10% compared with the same period the year before.
Not all crime categories were down in the district: reports of burglary of a motor vehicle, for example, were up 22% in the same period.
Efforts on downtown homelessness
At the Fort Worth event, Abbott also said city leaders had failed at addressing homelessness and that it was the city’s responsibility to ensure people living on the streets were not “endangering their citizens.”
Alongside the Safe in the City rollout, city leaders declared what they called an “effective end” to street homelessness downtown. Sleeping in public spaces, they said, would no longer be permitted, and outreach teams would steer people toward shelters and services.
The city and private partners concurrently moved to close downtown homeless encampments and housed more than 250 people, according to Housing Forward, the region’s lead agency serving unhoused residents.
A Dallas Marshal’s Office unit works at Pegasus Plaza on Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Dallas.
Smiley N. Pool / Staff Photographer
Sarah Kahn, Housing Forward’s chief executive, said the downtown effort has shown progress but would require sustained support to keep it from slipping backward.
“Everyone would agree that two years ago, when we had 250 tents lining the public library and city hall, that was a major wake-up call,” Kahn said Thursday. “The old way of doing business wasn’t working.”
The City Council recently approved $10 million for Housing Forward to provide rental assistance and supportive services to free up beds in existing shelters.
Comeaux said he does not feel downtown was neglected before, but said the department has taken a different tack under his leadership.
“It’s an approach that was needed for the city,” the chief said. “Every downtown in the United States should be a focal point for any city … It’s the core of the city.”