Houston police union reacts to 264K reports going uninvestigated due to HPD's lack of personnel

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The Houston Police Officers' Union is reacting to the new information that 10% of reports filed in the last eight years have been left uninvestigated because of a lack of personnel and coding issues.

HPOU First Vice President Ken Nealy said through all this, the union's focus is on the men and women of the police force now facing a mountain of work.

"We're not in a position to say who ultimately needs to be held responsible for this," Nealy said.

And while names were not dropped, a statement from Mayor Pro Tem Amy Peck says "patrol officers and specialized units work tirelessly" and that their work is "being undermined by leadership who authorized this suspension code."

"She's entitled to her opinion. And again, the stance of the Houston Police Officers' Union, our concern is for our officers who will be assigned to investigate these cases," Nealy said.

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Nealy said, to his understanding, the "lack of personnel" code could only be applied to reports by investigators and investigator supervisors. He said a lack of personnel is the unfortunate reality for many police departments across the country. He also acknowledges the new workload these more than 250,000 cases place on officers.

"Unfortunately, this is the case that we just do not have enough people. We would love to have more people help investigators," Nealy said.

ABC13 asked Nealy, while investigators got a lot of work out of this, what would he say to the victims who feel forgotten and betrayed by this process? This was his response:

"The men and women of the Houston Police Department put safety as the utmost priority for the citizens that we took an oath to provide safety and security for. All the cases, although unfortunately some have been overlooked, I can pretty much assure you that we will do everything possible to investigate those thoroughly," Nealy said.

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Nealy also told ABC13 that through a strong relationship with the mayor and council, they've been allocated to bring in five additional police academy classes over the next year, and he's hopeful this will make a positive change in the current personal situation.

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