Torrent of people in Tarrant

Fort Worth stampedes to No. 2 among fastest-growing major U.S. cities

Fort Worth is just shy of 1 million residents now.

Photo by benedek/Getty Images

Fort Worth corralled a major gain in population from 2019 to 2020, according to new Census Bureau figures.

The estimates, released May 27, show the population of Fort Worth jumped 2.1 percent during that one-year period. Among major U.S. cities, Fort Worth ranked second for population growth from 2019 to 2020, landing at 927,720 people on July 1, 2020.

Yes, Fort Worth is just shy of 1 million residents now. It is now the 12th largest city in the country.

Only Seattle registered a bigger population bump (2.2 percent) during the same timeframe.

"It’s no surprise that it is one of the five fastest-growing cities in the U.S.," says a statement on the Thrive in Fort Worth page, a partnership between the Fort Worth Chamber and the city. “Fort Worth is known for warm greetings and hospitality, inviting neighborhoods, and a vibrant and rich culture.”

Of course, a bigger city means more complex issues related to infrastructure, policing, and more, which have been hot topics among the candidates running for mayor.

Joining Fort Worth in the top five was Austin. From 2019 to 2020, Austin’s population surged by 1.7 percent, Census Bureau estimates show. That earned Austin the No. 4 spot among major U.S. cities for one-year population growth. The Census Bureau estimated Austin’s population at 995,484 last July 1.

Taking into account births, deaths, move-ins and move-outs, Fort Worth picked up 19,229 residents from 2019 to 2020. During the same period, Austin added 16,721 residents.

Also in the top five were third-ranked Mesa, Arizona (1.9 percent) and fifth-ranked Tampa, Florida (1.6 percent).

Among other major Texas cities, San Antonio came closest to Fort Worth’s and Austin’s growth. From 2019 to 2020, Alamo City tacked on 19,862 residents (1.3 percent). Its headcount last July 1 stood at 1,567,118.

Meanwhile, the populations of Dallas and Houston barely budged from 2019 to 2020. Each city saw its population grow by less than 1 percent, with Dallas’ population inching up by just 74 people and Houston’s by only 400. On July 1, 2020, Dallas’ population was 1,343,266 and Houston’s was 2,316,120, according to the Census Bureau estimates.

The figures published May 27 by the Census Bureau are part of the agency’s annual population estimates, and are not from last year’s official every-decade population count.

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Death Penalty

Tarrant County man gets death for murder of convenience store owner

Tarrant County Sheriff's Office

Christopher Turner

A man received the death penalty for his 2020 cold-blooded execution of a convenience store owner.

According to a release from the office of Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney Phil Sorrells, a Tarrant County jury sentenced Christopher Karon Turner, 48, to death on November 20 for executing convenience store owner Anwar Ali during a robbery. Tarrant County Assistant District Attorneys Charles Boulware and Allenna Bangs represented the state.

On March 27, 2020, at around 6:15 am, Turner, a convicted felon, wore a surgical mask and a glove and entered the Super Big Country Mart in an unincorporated area of Tarrant County south of Fort Worth. There, he held a gun to the back of Anwar Ali, the 62-year-old store owner, and walked him through the store.

Ali did everything Turner demanded, including opening the cash register to give him money. And yet Turner forced Ali into the bathroom and onto his knees, and shot him in the neck. Ali was discovered, dead in the bathroom, about an hour later.

Turner fled the store in Ali's Toyota minivan with the money from the register and Ali's wallet. In the van, he found more than $50,000 cash in a black bag. Over the next few days, Turner went on a shopping spree, buying cars, jewelry, drugs, clothes, and more. He and others used cash and a credit card that belonged to Ali.

Turner fled to Colorado where U.S. Marshals arrested him. On his body they found a firearm which was determined to be the murder weapon.

"This was a premeditated, cold-blooded murder," Boulware told the jury. "From the moment he was charged with this crime, he has tried to escape responsibility."

Bangs noted that before this trial began, Turner obtained the names of jurors and their telephone numbers, and gave them to an inmate charged with murder. At the trial on November 20, as Bangs addressed the jury, Turner tried to hold up a sign to the jury but was handcuffed by Sheriff's deputies who removed him from the courtroom, while he yelled out "she lied."

Ali came to the United States from Pakistan decades ago to pursue the American dream. Ali's son, Hussein, spoke in the courtroom after the death penalty was announced. "Thank you for giving us justice," Ali said. "I hope there are no more devils like this person."