Reporter covering safety, housing, healthcare and more for The Lab Report Dallas. Ex-public safety reporter @dallasnews.com. El Paso raised. 📩 Kelli@labreportdallas.com.https://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3mkns2yy3vc2i281 detentions. $500 fines. A mounting pile of warrants. Records show a new Dallas PD team has zip-tied unhoused people across 61 locations in a pivot toward enforcement. My latest on the city’s new approach to homelessness—and the concern it’s stirring amongst service providers: https://labreportdallas.com/criminal-justice/how-dallas-police-ramped-up-homeless-enforcement/29 Apr 2026 19:03 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkns2yy3vc2ihttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3miwutaf7ys2zDallas' juvenile justice system seemed to reach a crisis point in 2023. Researchers found many kids who didn’t need to be jailed, but spent months detained only to get probation or a short sentence. A report shows that’s begun to change—and conditions inside the jail are shifting, too. More here: https://labreportdallas.com/p/dallas-juvenile-justice-system-was-broken-have-county-leaders-fixed-it07 Apr 2026 22:56 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3miwutaf7ys2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3mepbb6on2226I spent the last few weeks analyzing where Dallas allocates patrol cops with a question in mind: How do police manage staffing for perception vs. risk? I dove into lots of data and spoke with police chiefs, elected officials and criminologists to try to make sense of Dallas’ changing priorities: https://labreportdallas.com/p/dallas-patrol-officers-staffing-analysis13 Feb 2026 00:37 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mepbb6on2226https://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3mbtzhyvuyc24The stats are in, and they confirm a big trend: Dallas ended 2025 with 141 murders, a *10-year low.* To put that in perspective: 📉 43 fewer people murdered than in 2024. 📉 Dallas' 4th lowest murder count since 1995. A significant drop that has largely flown under the radar.07 Jan 2026 17:45 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mbtzhyvuyc24https://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3m7nsk62uwk2lThis weekend I met a boy who saw his mother for the first time since he was 9 months old. A family praying for a mother’s release from prison. And a woman whose life was near collapse before she saw her daughter. My latest @labreportdallas.bsky.social features the program changing their lives. https://labreportdallas.com/p/janies-angels-incarcerated-mothers10 Dec 2025 19:35 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3m7nsk62uwk2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3m746q344ts2aIn 2024, Dallas' most violent apartment complex became a tale of success after police appeared to lead a dramatic turnaround. Then, this year, violence began rising again. For @labreportdallas.bsky.social, I looked into what Volara's volatility tells us. https://labreportdallas.com/p/the-stubborn-story-of-a-challenged-apartment-complex03 Dec 2025 19:25 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3m746q344ts2ahttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3m3anhkvb2s2nHeadlines in the last month portray the city of Dallas in chaos. We've had killings outside an ICE facility, a nightclub, a shopping center, a beheading at a motel. A story that isn’t being told: Dallas is on pace for one of its lowest murder tallies in a decade. I dug into the data in my latest. https://labreportdallas.com/p/the-perception-and-truth-behind-violence-in-dallas15 Oct 2025 16:18 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3anhkvb2s2nhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3m2adm6h3pk2eWhat does the government shutdown fight have to do with Dallas hospitals? For @labreportdallas.bsky.social, I break down how planned health care cuts could hit the county’s safety net—with $130M already on the line. “There’s going to be some rough seas.” https://labreportdallas.com/p/deep-medicaid-cuts-come-for-parkland02 Oct 2025 19:57 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3m2adm6h3pk2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lyimtoefq22yA woman had a theory: could small teams deployed after a drug overdose or poisoning save lives? Three years since the fentanyl crisis struck North TX, deaths are declining. My latest spotlights a 33-year-old at the center of the fight. https://labreportdallas.com/p/dallas-fort-worth-fentanyl-response10 Sep 2025 16:13 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lyimtoefq22yhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lxfvkp3nac2dFor my latest story, I feature Dallas' City Action Strike Team — a trio that targets urban decay with an ambitious goal in mind: Could improving these spaces help reduce violence? So far, we've found, the results are promising. More here: https://labreportdallas.com/p/dallas-blight-remediation-violent-crime-reduction27 Aug 2025 20:46 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lxfvkp3nac2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lwtvidccjc2iIn my first story for The Lab Report Dallas, I spent weeks in Esperanza, a neighborhood once called "mayhem" where a third of households live on less than $25,000 a year. After a school shuttered, officials stepped in — and residents turn to resilience. https://labreportdallas.com/p/esperanza-north-dallas-dobie-community-center20 Aug 2025 16:57 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lwtvidccjc2ihttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lu4gq3ziak2z🧵Our first stories are out at The Lab Report Dallas! Leading up to our website launch, we're publishing a new piece every Wednesday to offer a look at the solutions-based journalism you can expect from us. Our first two by @sharongrigsby.bsky.social and @goodmoine.bsky.social are must-reads. 👇16 Jul 2025 22:11 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lu4gq3ziak2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lrss2t22fs2dFor my last @dallasnews.com story, I sat down with new Chief Daniel Comeaux and community and police leaders to ask how the ex-DEA leader can succeed amid a torrent of challenges here. “Dallas is gonna have to deal with me because I’m not going anywhere.” https://www.dallasnews.com/news/public-safety/2025/06/17/dallas-police-face-a-torrent-of-challenges-how-can-new-chief-daniel-comeaux-succeed/17 Jun 2025 15:17 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrss2t22fs2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lrjlmr3gsc2qToday is my last day at @dallasnews.com and it's still hard to believe it snuck up. Words can't express my gratitude for DMN's chance on me when I was a breaking news fellow. I'm leaving after ~4 years covering Dallas PD, which has been an incredible opportunity to work on important stories.13 Jun 2025 23:27 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrjlmr3gsc2qhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lrcc4aj2zk2dNew: Dallas police oversight members arrived at their meeting tonight expecting to speak with the city’s top cop about a topic on many minds: immigration. There was one catch: They weren’t allowed. https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2025/06/10/city-attorneys-bar-dallas-police-chief-from-speaking-about-immigration/11 Jun 2025 01:49 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrcc4aj2zk2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lrbyl7ct5s2cChief Daniel Comeaux opens his remarks at Dallas’ Community Police Oversight Board by addressing yesterday’s protests. He said he’s sad officers had rocks and bottles thrown at them, but he’s proud of their strength and only one person was arrested. Watch: https://dallastx.new.swagit.com/views/113/dcn-95-live10 Jun 2025 22:58 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrbyl7ct5s2chttps://bsky.app/profile/kellixsmith.bsky.social/post/3lr7zve4xes22Tonight’s Dallas protests appear to be the most tense DPD/protester interactions since 2020 George Floyd demonstrations. DPD trained a specialized group after those to better handle mass protests. They also come one day before Chief Comeaux is set to address Dallas’ police oversight board. https://www.dallasnews.com/news/2025/06/09/protestors-in-dallas-rally-to-show-solidarity-with-la-demonstrators-amid-ice-crackdowns/10 Jun 2025 04:16 +0000at://did:plc:6thv7vk47jzynktbpfb2jmv5/app.bsky.feed.post/3lr7zve4xes22