HOUSTON — During a news conference Thursday, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner revealed why thousands of sexual assault cases in Houston weren't fully investigated.
Finner explained that as many as 4,017 cases of adult sexual assault had been "suspended due to lack of personnel," which is a Houston Police Department code. Some of the cases are from as far back as 2016.
Speaking to the media, Finner said he first heard about the code in November 2021 and asked HPD's Special Victims' Division to stop using it, however, he learned this year, that the code continued to be used.
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"It was unacceptable then, it’s unacceptable now. Again, there will be accountability," Finner said. "Absolutely, we owe them (survivors) an apology ... and we got to make it right for them ... we don't want to victimize them again."
The cases first came to light when Finner posted to social media about a "significant number" of sexual assault cases that were suspended. At the time, he called the situation unacceptable.
"Sexual assaults are some of the most traumatic crimes for victims and their families," he said in the statement. "Regardless of staffing challenges, this should have never happened and will not continue. All victims and their families are important to me and deserve to be treated as such."
During Thursday's news conference, when KHOU 11 asked for a definition of the code and how much work had been done on the cases before they were suspended, Finner admitted that he didn't know. However, he did say he is launching an investigation into the issue.
Finner said he added 32 people to HPD's Special Victims' Division to help investigate the cases. According to the chief, the team has already reviewed more than 700 of the suspended cases. When asked how HPD would prioritize the cases, Finner said it takes work to find out what's there.
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"That’s to be determined ... the most important part is contacting (victims) because you can’t do anything until you really contact people, look into that investigation, open that report up," he said.
Anyone who filed a report between 2016 and 2024 who feels their case didn't get enough attention is asked to call HPD at 713-308-1180.
Finner said the number of suspended cases is "fluid" and could be updated in the next month or so. On Thursday, he explained that some cases could be duplicates or mislabeled. Finner said the "suspended due to lack of personnel" code could have affected other units and the internal investigation will determine if it did.
Advocates with the Houston Area Women's Center told KHOU 11 how they felt about Finner's announcement.
"If you’re a survivor listening to that press conference, you may feel like your case did not matter and that it got closed," Sonia Corrales said.
However, Corrales said that she was encouraged by how Finner addressed the issue and his solution for resolving it.
"Of course, we agree with Finner, this is a big problem. Every single sexual assault reported needs a full investigation," she said.
Earlier this week, Houston Mayor John Whitmire's office issued this statement:
"After being informed of the matter, Mayor John Whitmire is concerned that HPD suspended a significant number of adult sexual assault cases due to a lack of personnel. The mayor supports Chief Finner's plans to review the data and assign additional investigators to prevent this from recurring. Mayor Whitmire will carefully monitor the situation and looks forward to receiving an update from the police chief."