5 Surprisingly Progressive Things the Dallas City Council Has Done in the Last 5 Years
Slowly but surely, ever since 2004's Democratic electoral wipeout, Dallas County has been getting bluer and bluer. Since 2006, only one Republican, frequent party switcher Susan Hawk, has been elected to countywide office.
The county that voted for George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004 pivoted to overwhelmingly supporting Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in the last three presidential elections. Dallas is a Democratic county now, so much so that a previously untouchable politician like U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions is facing a potential reckoning as a strong field of Democratic primary candidates battle it out to face him in November.
As Dallas County has become a no-go zone for the GOP outside of the Park Cities, the officially nonpartisan Dallas City Council has lurched to the left as well. Since the 2013 council election, when Adam Medrano and Philip Kingston joined Scott Griggs — first elected in 2011 — to form a progressive caucus around the horseshoe, the council has passed a series of reforms and policies that would've been unlikely, if not impossible, under previous city regimes. Here are five of the most important:
This nugget would be citeable-and-releaseable.
Roxana Gonzalez
1. The Dallas City Council passes cite-and-release.
In April, Dallas took a major step for criminal justice reform when the council, led by Kingston and former District 7 council member Tiffinni Young, passed cite-and-release for marijuana possession. Under the new policy, which went into effect Dec. 1, someone busted with 4 ounces or less of pot is eligible to receive a citation and court date, rather than spend a night in jail.
The policy isn't perfect — those cited and released are still subject to the same penalties as people arrested for the same crime — but it allows those who might otherwise lose their jobs or face other crises a fighting chance to keep their lives in order ahead of their court dates.
Read more: http://www.dallasobserver.com/news/dallas-city-councils-five-most-progressive-moves-10428066