Dallas police said they couldn’t find calls to the address in their system, but one neighbor said he called multiple times — and feared for his children’s safety.
DALLAS — The aftermath of a party at a short-term rental house in West Dallas led four armed men to hop a fence and traipse through neighbors’ backyards as partygoers scattered, video showed.
Neighbor Ernesto Martinez said he was awoken around 2 a.m. Sunday by a commotion next door and people running through his backyard — just feet from the bedroom where he, his wife and their two young children were in bed.
Then, he said, he heard gunshots.
“For four or five minutes there I was ready for somebody to try to break into our home and for the worst,” he said. “I was going to go confront them, but the dispatcher said don’t go out there.”
Martinez said he was glad he stayed inside when he later saw the video from a neighbor’s house showing the guns some of the people scaling the fences were carrying.
“We’re way past upset, we’re at the point of advocacy and actively trying to have these listings face real consequences,” he said.
Martinez said he called 911 twice that night — first to report the loud noise from the party around midnight, then to report the commotion and gunshots. He said DPD responded to at least the second call, but the department told WFAA it couldn’t find a record of the calls for service.
He contracted Airbnb too — and said they eventually told him they had terminated the stay of the people next door and were investigating the listing. Airbnb did not respond to WFAA’s request for comment, which was sent on the Memorial Day holiday.
Martinez said he and other neighbors have been in touch with their council member too — Laura Cadena told WFAA she had put them in touch with DPD.
Dallas tried to ban most short-term rentals like Airbnb and VRBO, but the ordinances are still tied up in court. The city’s lawyers have asked the Texas Supreme Court to weigh in, but the city is currently prevented from enforcing the new ordinances. “In the meantime, the city will continue enforcement of its existing ordinances governing minimum property standards, disturbing noises, and private nuisances,” the city said on its website.
Martinez said he wants accountability for the rental companies, the property owner and the people who caused the dangerous commotion.
“I feel like that kind of neighborly decorum has gone out the window. There’s no shame anymore,” he said.