This month’s newsletter is an important one. First you will see our Self-Care 469Tip of the month focused on dealing with stressful events. Second, we will go over the 2020 Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County Year End Report! We’ll then talk about Adolescent Self-Injury Awareness Month, St. Patrick’s Day, and end with another noteworthy Crime Stoppers Featured Story of the Month. As always you will see the necessary information about training requests, school contact info, print material requests, and social media links at the end. Thanks for reading the newsletter this month!
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Self-Care 469Tip of the Month |
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Dealing with Stress & Trauma After a Year of COVID-19
As is obvious to all of us, COVID-19 has created an extremely intense burden on us as individuals and a society in many ways. One of the most significant burdens has been the individual and collective trauma we have lived through together. As the anniversary of the WHO declaring COVID-19 a pandemic (March 11, 2020) comes around we want to provide you, and those you work with, some tips on coping with stress/trauma1:
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Take care of your body: exercise regularly if possible, get plenty of sleep, avoid excessive alcohol consumption.
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Make time to unwind: read a book, watch a movie, meditate.
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Continue to safely connect with others: talk your feelings out, share achievements and upsets.
We wish you, your family, and those you work with a Spring that is full of happiness, good health, and good memories. Thank you for working hard to keep your community safe by continuing to do your part to slow the spread of COVID-19.
For those concerned about someone who is experiencing a mental health crisis, please call and leave an anonymous tip through Friends for Life at 817-469-8477. If you are experiencing depression, anxiety, a mental health crisis or need mental health resources, please call or text MHMR at 817-335-3022 at any time to receive help. For emergencies, please call 911.
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We’re happy to provide you with the 2020 Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County Year End Report! This report is important to us because it allows us to share with the community—our main stakeholders—what this program has done over the past year. As we all know, 2020 was a rough year for everyone and it made day-to-day activities change in drastic ways. However, at Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County we have amazing program staff members, call taker staff, board members, school and law enforcement coordinators, and community members who worked hard and continue to work hard to make sure this program can be the best it can be in this time of difficulty.
Like many organizations, agencies, and businesses over this past year we have also met hardship when it comes to our program being able to realize it's full potential. Despite this setback, Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County has taken this challenging year in earnest. Below are some of the significant measures to mention from this year’s report:
Crime Stoppers Community Program
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3,317 anonymous tips were received through the Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County community program.
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228 individuals were arrested and 607 cases were cleared as the result of anonymous Crime Stoppers tips.
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$84,050 was paid out in rewards to community members who left anonymous tips that lead to arrests or closed cases.
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$1.4 million was recovered in the form of stolen property and narcotics; one of the highest ever in the history of Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County.

Campus Crime Stoppers/Friends for Life Program
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603 anonymous tips were received through the Campus Crime Stoppers/Friends for Life program.
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Most campus tips were related to suicidal tendencies and bullying reflecting the hardship of this pandemic on our community's students.
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20 arrests made, 73 administratively disciplined, and 130 cases cleared.
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$6,300 in rewards were paid out through the Campus Crime Stoppers and Friends for Life programs.
We encourage you to click HERE to read through the rest of the 2020 Year End Report. You will be able to see more details about work done by the Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County program this past year. Details include comparisons to previous years, school districts, and law enforcement agencies along with a breakdown of the types of tips received. Once again, we thank all those who were involved with the Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County program over the past year and who continue to help us work towards reducing crime and the fear of crime in Tarrant County. Thank you and here’s to a bright future in 2021!
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Adolescent Self-Injury
Awareness Month
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March is Adolescent Self-Injury Awareness Month. This month is all about centering education on self-harm including what self-harm is, who is most likely to self-harm, and how you can help.
Self-Injury, otherwise known as self-harm, is not a mental health disorder, rather it is a behavior that people use to cope with intense, negative emotions.2 Individuals most susceptible to self-harm are those 12 to 24 years of age with approximately 15% of teens and 17% of college students reporting some form of self-harm.2,3 Without proper help, self-injury can become a destructive cycle where the individual self-harms in order to cope, yet the relief gained is only temporary leading the individual back to the perceived need to self-harm.3 Provided below are general warning signs of self-injury3:
- Unexplained frequent injuries including cuts and burns.
- Low self-esteem.
- Difficulty handling feelings.
- Relationship problems or avoidance of relationships.
- Poor functioning at work, school or home.
It is important to note that those who self-harm are NOT necessarily suicidal. Two things are important to note: (1) those who self-harm are looking for relief and usually do so to avoid suicide; (2) self-harm can lead to suicide by accidentally inflicting more harm than intended, or loss of control over the self-harm behavior leading to suicidal attempts.2,3
For those who would like to learn more about self-harm please visit our website’s page on Suicide & Self-Harm by clicking here.
Friends for Life is a program of Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County that is equipped to take anonymous reports on self-harm. If you or those you work with know someone who is self-harming and are worried for their safety, please leave an anonymous tip through Friend for Life by calling 817-469-8477, going to www.469tips.com, or using the “CCS FFL” mobile app. Friends for Life is NOT a crisis line. For individuals experiencing self-harm or the thought of self-harm please call the MHMR hotline at 817-335-3022.
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Ways to Promote Adolescent Self-Injury Awareness Month:
- Talk about Adolescent Self-Injury Awareness Month on social media.
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Educate yourself on the signs and symptoms of self-harm. You can start by visiting our website’s page on suicide and self-harm.
- Check-in on those you may be worried about this month.
- Be willing to talk to someone who is comes to you expressing negative emotions or showing intense stress.
- Have resources ready for those you work with, especially if they are in the high risk age range (12-24 yrs old).
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Resources:
- 3840 Hulen St., North Tower, Fort Worth, TX 76107
- Text or Call 24-Hr Crisis Line:
817-335-3022
- Crisis Line: 1-800-273-8255
- Deaf & Hard of Hearing: 1-800-799-4889
- Call 1-866-488-7386
- Text START to 678678
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Happy St. Patrick’s Day from Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County! This time last year we were starting to realize the gravity of COVID-19. This year we are starting to see the impact that vaccines, smart public health practices, and various community efforts are having in carefully bringing us back towards a sense of normalcy.
With hard work, compassion, and a sprinkle of luck, our community has shown resilience in this time of difficulty. We hope your St. Patrick’s day is safe, happy, fun, and full of GOOD LUCK!
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Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County's
Featured Story of the Month
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Euless PD Makes a Huge Narcotics Bust
On February 9, 2021, Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County received a tip on drug activity occurring at a residence in Euless, Texas. The Euless Police Department conducted an investigation and were able to make arrests that SAME day.
As a result of this anonymous tip information, officers made two arrests where each individual was charged with Manufacture/Delivery of Controlled Substance (Psilocybin), Manufacture/Delivery of Controlled Substance (Amphetamine), Manufacture/Delivery of Controlled Substance (LSD), Manufacture/Delivery of Controlled Substance (THC), Manufacture/Delivery of Controlled Substance (MDMA), possession of marijuana, and two counts of prohibited weapon possession. In addition to the arrests, five guns, $1,462 in cash, and $131,548 worth of MDMA, LSD, Amphetamine, Marijuana, THC, Psilocybin, THC Edibles, THC Pens, and Alprazolam were seized. The tipster who helped lead the Euless PD to this arrest will receive the full Crime Stoppers reward of $1,250 for their anonymous tip information.
Thank you to the Euless Police Department for their quick response! We value our law enforcement partners and appreciate all of their efforts in keeping our communities safe here in Tarrant County.
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Training Requests, Contact Info, and Print Material |
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While this school year looks different, the service provided by Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County to help you and your students, parents, and staff through the Campus Crime Stoppers and Friends for Life program remains the same.
- Print materials are available upon request and delivered to locations that are open for visitors.
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Digital resources for this school year may be downloaded from our website here.
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Follow Us!
Please feel free to follow us on all of our social media!
If your organization, school, or agency has social media pages please have them follow us and we will be sure to follow back!!
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If you know of any other individuals, teams, or organizations that would like to be a part of this newsletter please do not hesitate to have them contact either Rachel or Julian so that they can be added to the email list.

If you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns regarding Crime Stoppers of Tarrant County and our various programs please feel free to reach out to us at any time and we will respond in a timely manner.
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Best regards,
Rachel Gilbert
Director, Special Programs
&
Julian Rangel
Engagement and Outreach Specialist
1100 Hemphill Street
Fort Worth, Texas 76104
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