Criminal News

Dallas police crack down on illegal temporary license plate paper tags

Illegal paper tags are a Texas problem that has gone national.

DPD

In a multi-agency operation, Dallas police initiated a crackdown on illegal fake temporary license plate tags, seizing 42 fake paper "eTags," and making three arrests.

The effort was a first stab at fighting a problem that started in Texas but has now spread across the U.S.

According to a release from the DPD, on January 19, the Dallas Police Department Southwest Crime Reduction Team, South Central Crime Reduction Team, Speeding/Racing Task Force, Auto Theft Unit, Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV), and Homeland Security Investigations conducted a major interagency operation within the grid areas of the Southwest and South Central Patrol Divisions.

They made 149 traffic stops, confiscated 42 illegal fake tags, towed 11 vehicles, made three arrests, recovered four weapons, and two stolen cars.

"Vehicles using fictitious temporary license plates or improper temporary license plates, all referred to as eTags, are commonly used in crimes from auto thefts to homicides," the release said. "The operation was intended to interdict these vehicles, investigate the reason for the fictitious license plate, tow vehicles when applicable, and arrest the offender if needed."

The crackdown included multiple types of eTags including tags that were expired, tags that were fraudulently obtained, and illegitimate fake dealerships eTags.

Paper tags are supposed to be used on a temporary basis, while car buyers wait to receive their permanent plates.

But according to an investigation by NBC5, it's easy for someone to create a fake auto dealer entity and print the fake tags, due to poor screening by the DMV, which has inadvertently allowed even people using stolen identities to get a Texas car dealer license. NBC 5 found fraudulent tags all over Dallas.

Thanks to Texas, the problem has now manifested itself across the U.S. Fake Texas temporary vehicle tags have been showing up in crime scenes as far away as New York. In a 2021 investigation, the FBI found more than a half-million fraudulent paper tags, sold by just three people to buyers across the country.

Thanks go to Gov. Greg Abbott who in 2017 vetoed funding for law enforcement units that once fought fraudulent tags.

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Politics News

Dallas narrows down field for new city manager to 4 candidates

Photo by R K on Unsplash

This is an Dallasite's sign to launch that small business they've been dreaming of.

After six months without a city manager, the city of Dallas has narrowed down the field of replacements to four semifinalists including one serving as current interim city manager, plus candidates from Fort Worth, Michigan, and Georgia.

Dallas has been without a city manager since May, when previous city manager T.C. Broadnax left to take a job with the city of Austin. Since that time, Broadnax's former chief of staff Kimberly Bizor Tolbert has served as interim city manager.

The city retained Baker Tilly, a consulting firm, to recruit and compile candidates. (Baker Tilly famously erred in the brochure it created for the position by featuring a photo of the Houston skyline instead of Dallas; they've since replaced it with Dallas.)

A spokesperson for Baker Tilly did not respond to inquiries but according to D Magazine, an email listing the candidates has been sent to the Dallas City Council.

The semifinalists include:

Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, Dallas’ current interim city manager
William Johnson, an assistant city manager in Fort Worth
Mark Washington, the city manager of Grand Rapids, Michigan
Zachary Williams, a county chief operating officer in Georgia

All have more than 25 years' of public administration experience and have worked in similar capacities in their respective cities.

Before working in Fort Worth, Johnson was Baltimore’s transportation director and Atlanta’s deputy chief operating officer and public works commissioner.

Washington worked in Fort Worth and Austin before becoming Grand Rapids’ city manager.

Williams has mostly worked in Georgia at the county level, including serving as county manager in Fulton County and chief operating officer in DeKalb County.

Tolbert began working for the city in 1998, first as the city manager’s assistant and later in the aviation department. Broadnax hired her as his chief of staff in 2017.

Unlike the Mayor and the Dallas City Council, the city manager position in Dallas is not elected but is instead appointed by the city council, and is tasked with executing policies, overseeing the annual budget, and managing staff at city hall.

The council’s Ad Hoc Committee will choose finalists, introduce them to the public, and make an offer in early 2025.

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