Police in Houston are a joke. Probably because urban planning in Houston is a joke.
Many of you don't know this, but there are self-contained cities inside Houston. And these little cities have separate fire, police, and municipal government. Most of them are only like 1000 people, and have almost no sales tax base. Bush Sr. lives in one of these little cities. Anyway, the Houston police department has no jurisdiction in these cities. So there are holes in the landscape that Houston cops have to drive around.
That's only the beginning. Houston doesn't have any urban zoning requirements. Which means that you can have a house built between a grocery store and a pawn shop. Most parts of town have gotten together and independently implemented some sort of urban planning, either through deed restrictions or owners groups. In most cities, homes are in separate areas from businesses and industrial complexes, making neighborhood patroling easier. In Houston, any kind of patrol would have to pretty much drive up and down every street - no city can afford that kind of police presence.
There are also really large sections of Houston that are decrepit and scary. I was visiting a Hispanic friend in one of these neighborhoods (only Hispanics and Blacks live there), and we were playing music, me on guitar, and him on drums. One of the neighbors apparently called in a noise complaint. A few minutes later, we were sitting on the porch, having a smoke, when a Houston city cop car drove by, slowed to about 15mph, and shouted out the window "Hey, keep the noise down, we got a complaint". And that was that. They have so much else to worry about. And white people just don't stop in that neighborhood unless they are prepared for some hassle. I only got to go there because my friend was looking out for me, a fact that he was actually required to relate to some of his neighbors.
Anyway, Houston is a scary city, and 1984 cameras aren't going to help. Honestly, additional police resources aren't going to help either. City planning needs to be implemented, and social conditions need to be improved before Houston gets any nicer.
