Texas gives police agencies $4M to fight gangs

The Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Police departments around Texas will get an extra $4 million to combat gang activity, a growing concern as drug cartels get increasingly visible along the Texas-Mexico border.

Gov. Rick Perry announced Wednesday that federal grant money will be distributed to the departments for officer overtime while he pushes the state Legislature to allocate $24 million for anti-gang measures.

"We had always held out hope Washington would do their appropriate jobs, but that has not been the case so far," he said at a news conference here. "We can't sit around and wait for Washington to do its job."

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said the $557,000 in grant money his department will receive allows it to keep steady pressure on gangs in the city.

"What these gangs do is nothing short of domestic terrorism," he said.

In addition to San Antonio, the other cities that will get a portion of the $4 million are: Arlington, Austin, Brownsville, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Garland, Houston, Irving, Laredo and McAllen.