HFD and HPD talk to city council about the way departments handle vehicle crashes

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- At Tuesday's City of Houston Public Safety Committee meeting, fire and police officials presented an overview of what happens within their department when one of the vehicles is involved in a crash.

This comes just months after the City of Houston lost a rare civil case in which an HPD officer hit a civilian car, killing the driver, 75-year-old Charles Payne. The city recently appealed the $13 million ruling.

SEE ALSO: Jury rules in favor of family in civil trial involving deadly crash in 2021 involving HPD officer

Officer Christopher Cabrera was found to be driving around 70 miles per hour in an area with a 35-mile-per-hour speed limit when the crash occurred. He was never criminally charged, but the trial found that the police department allowed their officers to speed and drive recklessly with no consequences.

On Tuesday, how the police and fire department react and respond when one of their vehicles is involved in a crash was center stage.

Only a broad overview was given, noting the chain of command followed and how consequences are determined.

ABC13 also learned how often crashes are happening.

Houston police said in 2025 their department recorded 552 collisions, with 231 at fault, though they did not note how many occurred while responding to emergencies.

The latest numbers from the fire department, from 2024, show 480 incidents, 266 of which occurred during an emergency run. This number was higher than last year, which saw 383 crashes, 202 of which happened during emergency runs. They did not note how many of those crashes were at fault.

"There is a subcommittee that is responsible for policy updates, so they send recommendations to the fire chief for driving, and any other guidelines, actually," HFD Assistant Chief Joe Trevino said.

ABC13 reached out to Councilman Fred Flickinger's office to learn if the presentation was routine or directly related to the Charles Payne lawsuit.

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