The head of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) pointed to Sunday’s Lakewood church shooting in Houston, highlighting the toll in metropolitan areas affected by the movement to defund police. .
At a press conference Monday afternoon, TABC President Kevin Lilly joined Houston’s mayor and law enforcement officials to provide an update on the Joel Osteen megachurch shooting.
“Folks, public safety is one of the most important things we have,” Lilly said. “I say this to the elected officials who are trying to defund the police: They are doing so at their own political risk. The thin blue line protects men and women. We need to come together as a community.”
Lilly thanked the law enforcement officers who responded to the shooting, calling them “the embodiment of heroism and courage.”
The Lakewood church shooter has been identified as Genesee Yvonne Moreno. “Palestine” written on a gun
Emergency vehicles lined the feeder road outside Lakewood Church Sunday afternoon as police responded to the shooting. (Kirk Side/Houston Chronicle, via AP)
Two off-duty police officers working as security guards at the church are believed to have stopped the female shooter.
“They were the walls between worshipers and terrorism, between religious freedom and murder,” said the TABC president. “We should all keep in mind the sacrifices that the men and women of law enforcement make every day. This is the most honorable profession.”
Lilly’s comments come as major cities including Chicago, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Portland, Oregon, and Austin, Texas, have taken action in recent years to defund their police departments.
Austin Police Department’s staffing crisis continues as police are understaffed and some calls are on hold for hours
Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission Chairman Kevin Lilly took the opportunity to praise law enforcement for acting quickly to stop Sunday’s mass shooting at a Lakewood church. He highlighted the damage caused in areas where police departments have been defunded. (live stream)
The Austin City Council and former Mayor Steve Adler voted to cut APD funding by about one-third in August 2020, leading to a rapid exodus of officers. The Texas Legislature passed a law the following year that effectively forced the city to restore that funding. However, defunding and cancellation of cadet classes left the department well below recommended staffing levels.
Lilly said that while he doesn’t always agree politically with Houston Mayor John Whitmire, the mayor has always respected law enforcement and public safety.
Authorities identified the Lakewood church shooter as Janece Yvonne Moreno, a Hispanic woman who used both a female and a male name. Police said she entered the church with her 7-year-old son and opened fire on her off-duty officers with an AR-15.
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A 57-year-old man was shot but survived. Moreno’s son was shot in the head and seriously injured.
The motive for the shooting is unknown.
At a news conference Monday, FBI Director Doug Williams praised the actions of the officers who stopped the shooter.
“There is no question that their heroic actions saved lives,” he said.
