August Luncheon - Panel of Speakers
Panel of Speakers
Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia
Director Christine Crossley, Office of Homeless Solutions
Director Kevin Oden, Office of Integrated Public Safety Solutions
Tuesday, August 20, 2024
11:30 Networking / 12:00 Luncheon & Program
Lakewood Country Club
6430 Gaston Avenue
$40 for Chamber Members/$45 for Non-members
Edgardo (Eddie) Garcia
Chief of Police
Chief Edgardo (Eddie) Garcia is the 30th police chief of the Dallas Police Department, the ninth largest police department in the country. With 32 years of law enforcement experience, Chief Garcia was appointed in 2021 and is the first Latino to serve in this position in the department’s 140-year history. Chief Garcia was recently elected president of Major Cities Chiefs Association, a professional organization of police executives from across the United States and Canada.
Originally from Puerto Rico, prior to coming to Dallas, Chief Garcia was with the San Jose Police Department for 29 years. In San Jose, in addition to working in Patrol, Narcotics, SWAT, and Fugitive Apprehension, he also served as a patrol sergeant, night detective, and homicide investigator. He was subsequently promoted to Captain, then Deputy Chief, then Assistant Chief, and was appointed Chief of Police in 2016.
During Chief Garcia’s tenure, he has implemented several policies, procedures, and initiatives helping reduce violent crime, build community trust and increase transparency, while embracing both constitutional policing and police proactivity.
Chief Garcia, who is bilingual in English and Spanish, places tremendous value on public safety and community engagement with the understanding that it is a shared responsibility and that police cannot do it alone. He is committed to making Dallas one of the safest cities in the country.
Kevin Oden
Kevin Oden is the current Director of the City of Dallas – Office of Integrated Public Safety Solutions (IPS). In this role, Kevin is responsible for leading innovative crime prevention and social service programs that serve the public. These programs include: RIGHT Care, a multi-discipline behavioral health responder unit, the City’s Crisis Intervention & Violence Intervention teams, and the City’s efforts around Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED).
Kevin joined the City of Dallas in 2010 in the City’s Office of Emergency Management where he led response and recovery efforts across a range of special event and natural and human-caused disasters. Kevin also served in the Dallas Police Department as a Public Safety Coordinator and as a former interim Director of the Office of Homeless Solutions.
Christine Crossley
Christine Crossley has served as the Director of the Office of Homeless Solutions since March of 2021. During her tenure with the City of Dallas, she has successfully solidified the City’s partnerships within the local Continuum of Care (CoC) and stood up several initiatives, including the Dallas R.E.A.L. Time Rapid Rehousing (DRTRR) initiative, which aims to house 2,700+ unsheltered individuals by September of 2023.
She previously served as the Division Director for several programs at Catholic Community Services of Western Washington, where she directed the largest rental subsidy and homeless services program, Housing and Essential Needs, in Washington State, for King County, the Low-Income Fare Transit program, and a Shallow Rent Subsidy pilot program, overseeing an annual budget of $22M+ and 2,000+ clients. Working with other state and local policy groups, Director Crossley developed strategies, delivered expert testimony, and lobbied for bills at the State level. Prior to this, Christine worked in New York City, where she focused on worker’s rights at the Cornell Worker Institute and women and children’s rights at the United Nations Population Foundation. Christine received a Master of Science degree in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science with a concentration in Human Rights and International Politics.