Former HPD Chief Larry Satterwhite — now the Director of Houston’s Office of Public Safety and Homeland Security — speaks to Westchase District property owners.
HPD Chief Larry Satterwhite moved into a new office immediately following his recent retirement from the Houston Police Department. After serving as the interim Chief of the department under Mayor John Whitmire, Satterwhite moved into the City of Houston’s Office of Public Safety and Homeland Security.
Satterwhite is no stranger to Westchase District. He previously served as Westchase District’s liaison to HPD and the officers who work for the Westchase District Patrol. He returned to Westchase District recently to speak to the community about his new job.
Coordinating with law enforcement
Satterwhite acknowledged the HPD officers in attendance at the Public Safety Alliance event and noted that, “Now, I work for them.” Satterwhite’s new role includes working with HPD and all area law enforcement agencies to combat terrorism, managing the Houston Emergency Center (the 9-1-1 call center) and the Office of Emergency Management.
“We focus on planning and prevention,” said Satterwhite. “That includes flood mitigation, the water supply, the supply chain and how to get resources to people in need.” Satterwhite’s office pursues grants and other funding sources to buy equipment for area law enforcement agencies. That could include everything from a high-water vehicle to boats to vests and helmets. “We buy the equipment so they can better do their jobs,” said Satterwhite.
Satterwhite is a strong advocate of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program, which trains citizens to help themselves and their neighbors when disaster strikes. More than 70,000 Houstonians have received the CERT training since 2010 and Satterwhite wants to grow that number. “The more people we can train to be self-sufficient, the fewer people are at risk of becoming a victim,” said Satterwhite.
He notes that most resources aren’t available for 72 hours after a disaster. “In the meantime, plumbers, electricians and people who can handle a chain saw are needed to help themselves and their neighbors out of crisis mode,” said Satterwhite.
Helping the homeless
Larry Satterwhite (second from right) poses with HPD officers who were formerly in his command when he served as Chief of the Houston Police Department.
Most recently, Satterwhite was tasked with leading the City’s efforts to combat homelessness. He said the most recent count of unhoused individuals in Houston totaled 3,200 individuals. Generally speaking, those who still live on the streets are the hardest group to find housing for because they have mental health or substance abuse issues. “They don’t even recognize their own perilous situation,” noted Satterwhite.
At the request of Mayor Whitmire, Satterwhite is leading a partnership with the Houston Housing Authority, the Coalition for the Homeless and The Harris Center for Mental Health to help these individuals find permanent housing.
“Different tactics work for different people,” noted Satterwhite, who has plenty of experience dealing with homeless individuals from his days on HPD Patrol. “We may never eradicate homelessness, but we’ll put in our best effort to reduce it and help people gain permanent housing.”
Satterwhite’s department is already preparing for the World Cup to come to Houston in 2026. The Republican National Convention will be here in 2028. The upcoming election is also a cause for concern because there’s so much emotion attached to it. Satterwhite follows the Department of Homeland Security’s Threat Assessment and makes sure that the local law enforcement agencies are kept in the loop on possible threats. “There are definitely people that are unhinged and we take that very seriously,” he concluded.
