Policies, procedures of HPD's narcotic division being reviewed, Acevedo says

HOUSTON – One of the multiple reviews being conducted after last month’s deadly raid-turned-shootout is a look at the policies and procedures of the Houston Police Department’s narcotics division, according to HPD Chief Art Acevedo.

The chief’s remarks came Monday during the question and answer segment of the annual announcement about the department’s March on Crime campaign.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said last week that her office is reviewing 1,400 cases involving Officer Gerald Goines, who is accused of lying to obtain the warrant that led to the raid. Acevedo said that before her announcement, he had already started a review of Goines’ activities. 

“We have a lot of reviews ongoing, which includes what happened leading up to that raid, which includes before Kim Ogg even announced anything … which includes a broader dive into the narcotics division, our policies, procedures, systems, and to see if there are any other flags out there that we need to look at.”

Acevedo said reports that guns were not recovered from several cases in which Goines claimed a gun was observed by an informant just adds to his numerous questions about the officer.

“I don’t need any more cause for concern,” Acevedo said. “We have a lot of concerns over everything surrounding that.”

The chief did caution against rushing to judgment based on the inventory log of those cases.

“Just because a gun isn’t listed in one area doesn’t mean that one wasn’t found or wasn’t listed somewhere else,” Acevedo said. “So don’t draw any final conclusions until you look at the repository where that information can be.”

So far, at least one of the active cases involving Goines as an investigator has been dismissed.

Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas were killed and five officers, including Goines, were injured during the Jan. 28 raid. 

The FBI has launched a civil rights investigation into the botched raid.