Mayor urges DPD police chief to set higher crime reduction goals, Gov. Abbott awards Jack Wilson Medal of Courage: Your Monday evening roundup

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson and other council members on Monday criticized the police department’s crime reduction plan and urged the chief to establish more aggressive goals after the city’s most violent year since 2007.  [Evening roundup]( 01/13/2020 By Narda Pérez Good Evening! Here is a look at the top headlines of the day. 🔎 Prefer the online view? It's [here.]( Gov. Greg Abbott, right, presented the Governor's Medal of Courage on Monday to Jack Wilson, front, who returned fire and killed an assailant who late last month attacked the West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, killing two worshippers. Standing behind Wilson, left to right, were state Sens. Donna Campbell and Brian Birdwell, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Rep. Charlie Geren. (Blocked from view was Sen. Jane Nelson.)(Ricardo B. Brazziell / AP) POLITICS [Gov. Greg Abbott awards medal to armed deacon who stopped church attack]( Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday bestowed the[highest civilian award a Texas governor can give]( on a deacon who last month returned fire against an attacker, ending a Sunday worship ordeal at a White Settlement church that claimed three lives. Jack Wilson of Granbury, who provided firearms training to members of the congregation and once operated the On Target Firearms Training Academy in Fort Worth, is "a hero" for risking his life to gun down the shotgun-wielding assailant, Abbott said. Also: Genevieve Collins and Colin Allred have [hauled in the most cash]( in the much-anticipated race for Congressional District 32. And: Democrat [Cory Booker dropped out]( of the presidential race Monday. ADVERTISEMENT  BUSINESS [Dallas investment firm explores buying TV channel that competes with Fox News]( A Dallas investment firm is [leading an effort to buy a conservative TV channel]( that competes with Fox News, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Hicks Equity Partners is exploring the acquisition of the parent company of One America News Network, according to the report. The right-leaning news channel was founded in 2013 and is owned by San Diego-based Herring Networks Inc., a TV programming company founded by Robert Herring Sr. His son, Charles Herring, now leads the company. It has a smaller audience and less distribution than its major rival, Fox News.  Also: Dallas data center company CyrusOne Inc. is[cutting 55 jobs]( as part of a plan to increase profitability.   And: Dallas-Fort Worth is one of the[country’s biggest industrial construction markets,]( with more than 23 million square feet of buildings on the way.  FOOD AND DRINK[HG Sply Co owner plans new restaurant on Lower Greenville in Dallas]( On Saturday, Jan. 11, a restaurant near Lower Greenville in Dallas called Feed Company Eatery & Bourbon Lounge closed. [But its operators have big plans for the neighborhood.]( D-FW restaurateur Elias Pope, of 8020 Concepts, partnered with Sameer Patel, of Alta Hospitality, and they intend to turn the former Feed Company into Standard Service, a restaurant Pope launched in Rockwall in late 2016.  Also: Fiesta Restaurant Group[closed 19 Taco Cabanas in Texas]( on Monday, of those, seven were in North Texas.   And: Whether you want a classic cup of Joe or a fancy latte, you can head to a[new coffee shop coming to downtown Arlington]( later this month.  ADVERTISEMENT (Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) PHOTO OF THE DAY The National Weather Service has [confirmed seven tornadoes across Texas]( as part of Friday night’s storms. Although some portions of North Texas saw small hail, flash flooding and gusty winds, the area overall was largely unscathed from Friday’s severe weather outbreak. The storms were part of a massive system that stretched from North Texas to South Texas, and continued then on Saturday in the South. EDITORS' PICKS - Curious Texas: Which question should we investigate? [Cast your vote here](. - Oscar nominations: [Texas was well represented]( in the Oscar nominations announced Monday. - Editorial: With a stroke of his pen, Gov. Abbott [offers hope and redemption to sex slaves in Texas](. FINALLY... [Dallas mayor urges police chief to be more ambitious on crime reduction goals]( Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson and other council members on Monday criticized the police department’s crime reduction plan and urged the chief to[establish more aggressive goals after the city’s most violent year since 2007.]( Police Chief U. Reneé Hall on Monday briefed the full council at the Public Safety Committee meeting, where the city’s elected officials peppered her with questions and criticized her strategy to decrease violent crime by 5 percent. In Southeast, Southwest and South Central patrol divisions, the goal is a 10% drop in murders and aggravated assaults. 👋 That's all for this afternoon! For up-to-the-minute news and analysis, check out [DallasNews.com](. Share the love! If you like this newsletter, please forward this email to a friend and [check out our other newsletters here](. Do you have feedback? Send your thoughts, questions, praise and corrections to [newsletter-feedback@dallasnews.com](mailto:newsletter-feedback@dallasnews.com?subject=). STAY CONNECTED WITH US [Unsubscribe]( | [Free newsletters]( | [Dallasnews.com]( | [Subscriber login]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact us]( Copyright 2020 - [The Dallas Morning News, 1954 Commerce Street, Dallas, TX 75201, United States](