Dallas City Wire

Former Texas state Rep. Stefani Carter (R-Dallas) knows what it’s like to break the mold.

A decade ago, Carter was the first Black female Republican elected to the Texas House of Representatives. She is a gun owner, a member of the National Rifle Association and a proud conservative.

Carter also is an opponent of calls to defund police departments and other law enforcement agencies. It just doesn’t make sense to her.

Former Texas state Rep. Stefani Carter (R-Dallas) | File photo

“I do not support defunding the police,” she told Dallas City Wire. “Cutting the funding of those who protect innocent civilians is just asking for a bad result – it would disincentivize current police officers from working more and eventually reduce the number of new recruits from entering the policy academy. Cutting their funding would also mean a less-secure Dallas, which is something nobody wants.”

But Carter says that does not mean there is not a need to consider changes and reforms.

“I think another option is redirecting some of the current funds to more specialized training of police officers,” she said.

Carter says that media reports critical of Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson for supporting full funding of the Dallas Police Department — specifically by Sharon Grigsby of the Dallas Morning News and Peter Simek with D Magazine — seem wrongheaded. Johnson has eyed cuts to other parts of the city, which also has drawn editorial heat.

“I don’t support their comments,” Carter said. “Cutting the funding of the police while keeping bloated city bureaucracy salaries sounds irresponsible. We need to reduce administrative waste, where possible, and to ensure that our police officers have what they need to keep our citizens safe.”

Some observers suggest racism might be a factor in stories and columns calling for defunding law enforcement agencies.

“It could be,” Carter said. “I do not know which specific reporters are supporting it and which aren’t, but I do think many reporters are quick to sensationalize actions, even when taken for the right reasons. Take the actions of former Dallas Chief of Police Renee Hall — our first female police chief, who happens to be Black. Chief Hall took a relatively strict law-and-order stance during the riots, which equated to the safety of Dallas citizens. Despite her worthy efforts, many reporters criticized her for her strictness. As a former prosecutor and former Dallas-area state legislator who oversaw criminal jurisprudence matters, I don’t believe their criticism was valid.”

Carter says she has no tolerance for racist comments, be it in private or public settings, including the media.

“Racism has no place anywhere,” she said. “We are all Americans – which we are reminded of every Sept. 11 – and that should unite us toward a common goal.”

Carter, 42, attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she graduated with highest honors with a bachelor of arts degree in government and a bachelor of science degree in journalism. She did an internship at the White House during the Clinton administration.

Carter went on to earn a juris doctor degree from Harvard Law School. She also obtained a master's degree in public policy from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. 

After completing her formal education, she returned to Dallas, where she changed her party registration to Republican and worked as an assistant district attorney in Collin County before seeking a seat in the Legislature in 2010. Carter represented District 102 in the Texas House of Representatives from 2011–15, defeating Democratic incumbent Carol Kent in 2010 and running unopposed for a second term in 2012. 

After considering a bid for the Texas Railroad Commission on the advice of consultants, Carter instead ran for a third term in the state House, but was unseated in a runoff after a four-way race in the 2014 GOP primary.

In December 2016, she was named to the Department of Justice transition team by then President-elect Donald Trump.