“Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has imposed a mandatory curfew in the city from midnight to 5 a.m.,” abcnews.go.com reports, “in an effort to prevent potential looting.” Copy that. With multiple thousands of submerged, abandoned homes in upscale neighborhoods, the Bayou City is ripe pickings for amphibious bad guys. Something up with which HPD Chief Art Acevedo will not put . . .
The curfew is a “tool to assess the intentions of the people who are out there,” Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said, warning residents to stay off the streets during the curfew unless “absolutely necessary.”
The Houston Police Department is going to stop assisting in search-and-rescue missions to focus on “going after criminals and keeping the good people of Houston safe,” Acevedo said . . .
“This is the state of Texas. We’re a welcoming city, but we are not going to tolerate people victimizing, especially committing armed robberies in our community,” the police chief said. “We’re going to catch you, and I promise you this: We are going to push hard — I’ve talked to the district attorney — to seek the fullest prosecution possible available for any crime that is committed.”
The police chief added, “Secondly, we’re going to urge juries and judges to give you the toughest sentence that you can possibly get.”
“So word to the wise: Don’t come to Houston,” he said, “because you’re going to be caught. And I guarantee you when you take advantage of people and prey on them in these circumstances, that’s despicable behavior and we’re all going to push hard to make sure you don’t see the sunlight anytime soon.”
You may remember Chief Acevedo as the former Chief of Austin; a gun rights averse law enforcement politician officer who demonstrated his anti-gun animus by loudly and publicly opposing licensed open carry (which passed anyway).
So it’s no surprise that the tough-talking cop placed all his faith in his officers and forgot to mention the thousands of armed Texans protecting life and property — law-abiding men and women exercising their natural, civil and Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms.
A practice that will make itself known in Houston soon enough, as and when residents return to their homes. And maybe before. But not at the shelters, where our man Taylor reports firearms are strictly prohibited. No one’s being frisked mind you. At least not yet . . .