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Houston city officials considering creating a database to track gun violence

ByPooja Lodhia KTRK logo

Friday, July 21, 2023

City officials considering creating a database to track gun violence

The City of Houston is considering creating a database to track gun violence from trauma centers and police records.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Houston officials are taking a different approach to fighting crime.

The city is considering creating a database to track how people are injured in shootings.

"In a sense, we were failed by the system because there's a 9-year-old little girl in a grave, and there's been nobody charged," April Aguirre, whose niece, Arlene Alverez, was shot and killed while sitting in the backseat of her family's truck, said.

Arlene, her parents, and her younger brother were on their way to get pizza when a bullet, police say was meant for a robber, hit Arlene in the head.

Since then, her family has been frustrated with the city's criminal justice system.

"When it's not part of your life and crime hasn't affected you, you assume everything is working so well," Aguirre said.

City officials are discussing creating a first-of-its-kind database combining data from local trauma centers and police records.

There are still questions on how much it would cost, but this would be the first time city officials tracked gun violence on a larger scale.

"We hear on the news sometimes that people have survived injuries, and we kind of feel better, like, 'Oh, they survived,' you know? But how did they survive? What are the repercussions of this injury that was inflicted on them and it's very sad," Aguirre asked.

Data from Level 1 Trauma Centers and the Medical Examiner's Office shows gun violence in the Houston area went up sharply from 2018 to 2020.

There was a 76% increase in pediatric firearm injuries and death and a 67% increase for adults.

Vulnerable Populations: