Brownsville Police Department hosts State of Department address

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Brownsville Police Department highlighted some positive trends from the year during its third annual State of the Department address.

The department began hosting the annual address three years ago to improve transparency with the community.

Police Chief Felix Sauceda said the transparency includes discussing the bad and the good.

“There’s a need for us to remain transparent, there’s a need for us to remain accountable, there’s a need for us to be able to speak of not only the good, but the bad as well," he said.

This year, Sauceda said there was a lot to be proud of.

The department was invited to send officers to Washington, D.C, to assist with the 47th presidential inauguration.

“That’s historic," Sauceda said. "Never happened before in our city, and that’s something that we’re so very proud to be able to accomplish. It comes with the brand we built, and it is recognized not only locally and at the state level but now nationally.”

The department also opened its own police academy in 2024. They began training the first class of cadets last June.

Among the accomplishments of the police department, the state of the department address also included a presentation that emphasized crime statistics that have gone up in the last year.

While the murder rate in the city has decreased, other violent crimes such as rape, aggravated assault and robbery have increased since 2023.

The city saw 58 rape cases in 2024, which is over 61% higher than the 36 cases in 2023. Aggravated assault cases increased by over 26% from 545 to 692 and robbery cases increased from 109 to 116.

Sauceda said the department's goal is to better serve the community.

“It’s our collective goal and objective to continue to serve with excellence and service from the heart and continue to meet the needs – the ever-changing needs of the community," Sauceda said.