Deep Ellum news

Law enforcement to beef up in Deep Ellum following Halloween shootings

Law enforcement efforts will increase in Deep Ellum following shootings in the district on Halloween.

Photo by Scott Rodgerson on Unsplash

Law enforcement will beef up its presence in a Dallas entertainment district where several deadly shootings occurred over the weekend, federal authorities announced Monday, November 2 as they joined elected officials nationwide in decrying gun violence in popular public places.

Across the country, numerous mass shootings on Halloween weekend left at least 10 people dead and dozens more injured. In Dallas, three shootings in Deep Ellum, a neighborhood of music and restaurants, left four people dead and 15 injured over the span of an hour and 15 minutes early Sunday.

“Everyone deserves the freedom to walk down the street, to celebrate a fun night out during our nation’s holidays and to simply exist in public without fear for their safety or their children’s safety,” Ryan Raybould, U.S. attorney for the northern district of Texas, said at a news conference.

Many shootings occurred around gathering spots during the confluence of what might be one of the last spells of warm weather this year that drew large crowds outside on Halloween, which this year happened to fall on a weekend.

As investigators continued to look for suspects and the motives behind the shootings, word spread of even more mass violence over the weekend. Two separate shootings occurred in Birmingham, Alabama, after the annual “Magic City Classic” college football game Saturday night. And police in college towns reported shootings in their nightlife districts where annual Halloween gatherings are popular, including in Fayetteville, Arkansas; Newark, Delaware; Bloomington, Illinois; and Bloomington, Indiana.

'The violence has to end'
Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux said police are pursuing leads on possible suspects in the Deep Ellum shootings, which he called “senseless” and the result of arguments. It's undetermined if the shootings were related.

Comeaux and Raybould were joined by others at a news conference to announce “Operation Deep Cover,” a federal and local law enforcement response to gun violence in Deep Ellum.

Raybould said one man who allegedly wore a ski mask and pointed a loaded gun in the direction of a crowd in Deep Ellum was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

The entertainment district experienced deadly violence earlier this year. Two people were fatally stabbed outside a nightclub in February, and a security guard was shot and killed while trying to break up a fight inside a nightclub in May. Among nonfatal shootings, five people were wounded outside of a sports bar in May, police said.

“The violence has to end, and it will end,” Raybould said. “I’m tired of reading the news stories.”

Operation Deep Cover
Both uniformed and plain clothes police will cover Deep Ellum, according to a release from the U.S. Department of Justice. The DOJ says uniformed officers will provide a visible presence to deter violence, while the others blend in with the public but will operate alongside them. Those who would commit crimes will not know when they're being watched or who is watching.

Operation Deep Cover, according to the DOJ will:

Increase resources: Devote more federal, state, and local law enforcement resources to Deep Ellum.
Strengthen coordination: Establish a direct line of communication with DPD for crimes in Deep Ellum, with monthly meetings led by the Chief of Violent Crime.
Prosecute aggressively: Pursue drug and firearm offenses aggressively.
Prioritize federal prosecution: Bring cases federally wherever the facts and law support federal charges.
Review past cases: Review cases from 2024 to the present and charge federal offenses where the evidence supports charges.
Dedicate intake team: Work with Dallas County through an intake team led by Assistant United States Attorneys Jeremy Fugate and Caroline Poore from the Violent Crimes Section to help ensure that no eligible case is overlooked.

Operation Deep Cover will involve FBI, ATF, DEA, the U.S. Marshals Service, Texas Department of Public Safety and the Dallas Police Department.

deep ellum crime

Living Well

Plano rises through the ranks as 4th best U.S. city for veterans in 2026

Female U.S. soldier wearing 2023 OCP uniform saluting in front of american flag

Getty Images

Plano is the 4th best city in America for veterans to call home.

Dallas neighbor Plano has soared into the top 10 best U.S. cities for veterans to live, a new WalletHub report says.

To assess the best and worst places for veterans to live, analysts compared the 100 largest U.S. cities across 19 relevant metrics, such as the share of military skill-related jobs, veteran income growth, the availability of VA health facilities, among others.

Plano ranked as the No. 4 best city for military retirees in the nation this year, taking a big leap from its former No. 11 rank in 2025.

Plano offers the 10th best quality of life for veterans out of all 100 cities in the report, and the city ranks 25th for its "health" rank — determined by the number of VA benefits administration and VA health facilities per veteran population and the quality of VA health facilities.

Plano's employment rank for veterans is the 28th best in the U.S., and the suburb boasts the 29th best economy for former service members based on WalletHub's analysis of veteran housing affordability, median income and income growth, educational opportunities, and the share of veterans living in poverty.

Local veterans are being honored with Veterans Day deals and discounts all across the city this; find the list here.

"When veterans return home from serving our nation, it’s important for them to live in a place that provides good education and employment opportunities, along with access to quality care for their physical and mental health," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo. "The best cities for veterans have all these characteristics, plus added bonuses like large veteran populations for community support, plus many restaurants and entertainment venues that offer veteran discounts."

Meanwhile, Dallas proper ranked as the No. 22 overall best U.S. city for veterans to live in 2026, moving up the list after ranking 25th for the last two years.

This is how Dallas stacked up across the study's four main categories:

No. 16 – Health
No. 32 – Economy
No. 36 – Quality of life
No. 66 – Employment

The Veterans Association reports nearly 17.2 million veterans live in the U.S., and many of them struggle in some way with transitioning from military to civilian life, including homelessness.

"While the government has pledged to support veterans with health care, housing, employment and education benefits, not everyone returning from service is able to access the care, work or housing they need," the WalletHub report said. "Veterans do have a relatively low unemployment rate of 3.6 percent, compared with 4.2 percent for the overall population. Still, homelessness remains a major concern, with over 32,000 veterans experiencing homelessness."

Elsewhere in North Texas, Fort Worth ranked as the 5th overall best city for veterans, Garland ranked 24th, Irving came in 33rd, and Arlington ranked as No. 34.

Austin's livability leads the nation
Austin was once again declared No. 1 best place in the U.S. for veterans to live in 2026, continuing the city's long-running streak leading the nation for its livability for former service members.

Austin offers veterans the fifth best quality of life in the U.S., the study found, and the city's economic standing for veterans is the 11th best in the country.

"Austin, TX, is the best city for veterans, in large part because it has the best colleges for veterans in the country, along with the ninth-highest median annual income for veterans, at over $66,000," the report said.

Austin also ranked 25th and 44th, respectively, in the health and employment categories, showing that the city provides high-quality VA health facilities and local employers provide great job benefits for service members.

"It's also good for veterans to live in a place where they can form a community of support with others who have gone through similar experiences," the report said.

Other Texas cities that earned spots in the report include San Antonio (No. 25), Laredo (No. 28), Lubbock (No. 32), Houston (No. 51), Corpus Christi (No. 58), and El Paso (No. 67).

The top 10 best U.S. cities for veterans to live are:

No. 1 – Austin, Texas
No. 2 – Madison, Wisconsin
No. 3 – Scottsdale, Arizona
No. 4 – Plano, Texas
No. 5 – Fort Worth, Texas
No. 6 – Virginia Beach, Virginia
No. 7 – Gilbert, Arizona
No. 8 – Raleigh, North Carolina
No. 9 – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
No. 10 – Irvine, California

veterans day veterans wallethub reports livability