texas rangers law enforcement

							                                                              Agency Strategic Plan
                                                   Texas Department of Public Safety

                            TEXAS RANGER DIVISION

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


The Texas Ranger Division was recently tasked with overseeing and
coordinating border security efforts through five (5) Joint Operations Intelligence
Centers (JOICs) along the border, from El Paso to Brownsville. Division
personnel assigned to these duties coordinate efforts of federal, state, and local
law enforcement agencies through a unified command structure.                  This
reassignment of division personnel from criminal investigative responsibilities to
more specific Border Security operations has decreased the division’s workforce
and its ability to respond to continued investigative requests from local agencies,
both along the Texas/Mexico border region and in other areas of the State.
Should additional funding for border security become available, the division
would consider increasing its resources to meet these needs. As border security
operations continue, we hope to identify a viable performance measure for the
success of these border security operations.



The key responsibility of the Texas Ranger Division is to provide investigative
assistance to federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies within and
outside the State of Texas.

The mission of the Texas Ranger Division is to conduct criminal and public
integrity investigations, arrest criminals for violations of state and federal laws,
suppress major disturbances, protect life and property, and render assistance to
local law enforcement officials in suppressing crime and violence. The Texas
Ranger Division is continuing to assist federal, state, and local law enforcement
agencies in the investigation of acts of terrorism.

In pursuing the DPS mission, active deployment of various investigative and
forensic techniques will be developed and utilized for challenges in the 21st
Century. This includes the expansion of DNA technology, the use of the Violent
Criminal Apprehension Program (ViCAP) – a crime analysis tool, and the
application of the behavioral sciences of Psychological and Geographic Profiling.

The Texas Ranger Division includes seven (7) field ranger companies and the
Unsolved Crime Investigation Team (UCIT) which was restructured and
decentralized in January 2008, resulting in one UCIT sergeant being stationed
within each Texas Ranger Company. To streamline the administrative and
program functions, senior management has established specific geographic
areas of responsibility for each Ranger Company as well as standard operating
procedures for a uniform approach of work processes.


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                                                            Agency Strategic Plan
                                                 Texas Department of Public Safety


In September 2007, the division was tasked by the Department to provide
coordination of Joint Operations Intelligence Centers (JOICs) to enhance border
security issues. The JOICs are comprised of federal, state, and local law
enforcement personnel, located in El Paso, Marfa, Del Rio, Laredo, and McAllen.

The Texas Ranger Division currently consists of one hundred thirty-four (134)
commissioned officers, and twenty-two (22) support personnel. The chief,
assistant chief, a captain, and a lieutenant are stationed in Austin. A captain
commands each field ranger company and the Unsolved Crimes Investigation
Team member in that company. Fourteen (14) field ranger lieutenants supervise
109 ranger sergeants along with the field support personnel. The Texas Ranger
Company Headquarters are located in Houston, Garland, Lubbock, San Antonio,
Midland, Waco, and McAllen

      Accomplishments

      Since the primary responsibility of the Texas Ranger Division is to provide
      investigative assistance to federal, state, and local law enforcement
      agencies within and outside the State of Texas, the division has provided
      investigative assistance for the following list of offenses during the first
      eight (8) months of the current biennium (September 2007 through April
      2008):

      Homicide ................................ 551
      Robbery.................................... 98
      Burglary .................................. 147
      Sexual Assault/Assault ........... 455
      Larceny .................................. 277
      Forgery ..................................... 56
      *Other .................................. 1,413
         * To include Kidnapping, Arson, Threats, Drugs, Escape, Weapons
           Offenses, Public Order Crimes, etc.

      The 77th Session of the Texas Legislature authorized the creation of the
      Unsolved Crimes Investigation Team (UCIT) within the Texas Ranger
      Division. The texas Ranger Division secured a grant from the Office of the
      Governor (Criminal Justice Division) in FY 2002 to partially fund UCIT.
      The 78th Session of the Texas Legislature made UCIT a permanent part of
      the Department within the Texas Ranger Division. The team was initially
      established in San Antonio; however, in January 2008 UCIT was
      restructured from the centralized location in San Antonio and personnel
      were dispersed to have one UCIT ranger located within each Texas
      Ranger Company to enhance the productivity and fiscal responsibility of
      the unit.



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                                                      Agency Strategic Plan
                                           Texas Department of Public Safety

Plans

The Texas Ranger Division’s mission and duties include the investigation
of major crime scenes, and potentially the crime scenes at terrorist events.
The division is continuing its preparation and training to handle these
situations. Seven (7) Texas Ranger Division sergeants have completed
an intense course of Advanced Crime Scene Investigation at the National
Forensic Academy in Knoxville, Tennessee. Pursuant to this training, an
Advanced Crime Scene Protocol and Training Program had been
developed for the division to provide the necessary training for field
personnel to resolve these additional and unique crime scene issues. The
division has been in the process of training all Texas Ranger sergeant
personnel in these advanced crime scene search techniques. The
program will also be used in assisting local law enforcement agencies with
regular crime scene investigations. Prosecution of offenses associated
with these crime scene investigations will also be enhanced. As of May
2008, eighty (80) division personnel have completed this enhanced
training.

The Texas Ranger Division has established contact with the Department’s
Emergency Management Division and the Texas Army National Guard in
order that the division may receive specific training for Weapons of Mass
Destruction (WMD) situations, and be familiar with the specialized
equipment brought on site and utilized at these events.

Previously, the Texas Ranger Firearms Committee received specialized
training in building entry and search techniques from the Houston Police
Department and Dallas Police Department Special Weapons and Tactics
Teams. Since that time, the committee has developed a training program
for division commissioned officers. This training has been provided to a
large percentage of the law enforcement personnel within the division.
The Texas Ranger Division continues to train members of local law
enforcement in these entry and search techniques. The Texas Ranger
Firearms Committee has also received specialized training in tracking
techniques for use in escape and fleeing felon investigations. The
committee is in the process of training additional members of the division
and local law enforcement in these techniques. The Texas Ranger
Firearms Committee is presently making arrangements for all members to
attend an in-depth training of Recognition and Identification of
Unconventional Weapons and Improvised Explosive Devices through
contacts made with C.I.A. personnel. To date, two (2) members of the
Texas Ranger Firearms Committee have had this training. Plans are to
send the remainder of the committee members so they can then train
division and other commissioned Department personnel.




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                                                         Agency Strategic Plan
                                              Texas Department of Public Safety

Personnel of the Texas Ranger Division will continue their regular duties,
but will be vigilant regarding potential terrorist activities. The division will
continue to work closely with other divisions and services of the
Department, as well as local, state, and federal authorities in combating
terrorism and protecting the citizens of the State of Texas. In September
of 2007, the Texas Ranger Division dedicated five (5) lieutenants to act as
coordinators for Joint Operations and Intelligence Centers (JOICs) located
along the Texas/Mexico border in support of Operation Border Star. The
locations of the JOICs are: McAllen, Laredo, Del Rio, Marfa and El Paso.
These lieutenants are responsible for the coordination of border security
efforts utilizing a unified command structure with other federal, state, and
local law enforcement agencies to enhance efforts at disrupting and
dismantling illegal smuggling operations while preventing escalating acts
of violence in Mexico from spilling over into Texas.




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