Texas Officials: Spillover Violence Underreported

Posted: 1:52 pm MDT May 11, 2011

WASHINGTON -- Texas officials testifying in Washington say crime rates along the border underreport the extent of spillover violence from the Mexican drug war.

Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw on Thursday told a congressional panel that statistics don't reflect "what's going on to the ground." Crimes rates in many Texas border cities are generally low and on the decline, but McCraw said that data doesn't take into account incidents such as extortion and attempted kidnappings.

Since January 2010, DPS has linked at least 22 murders and 24 assaults to what the agency considers spillover violence.

The testimony came during a U.S. House subcommittee hearing on homeland security. Federal officials and Democrats on the panel disputed the perception of the Texas border as violently unsafe and wrought with danger.

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