San Marcos City Council has added cite and release for misdemeanor possession to their agenda for the upcoming meeting on March 3, 2020.
The posted agenda includes discussion on Criminal Justice Reform Committee reports and draft legislation on Cite and Release Program. The latter will provide direction to the City Manager. Implementation of cannabis reform has been difficult in San Marcos. This has been primarily due to Hays District Attorney Wes Mau being in support of prosecuting suspected hemp/marijuana cases.
If the resolution passes, San Marcos will join the like of cities such as Austin, El Paso and San Antonio.
The city council resolution states there are circumstances where San Marcos officers find it necessary to arrest a person suspected of having committed an offense. This is only if any of a set of circumstances are present. Situations such as not providing personal identification to allow for a citation. Another is not being a resident of Hays county. This excludes an individual who lives, works or goes to school in Hays county. Those individuals will be deemed a resident.
If there’s reason to believe that the safety of persons (including the subject) is imminently endangered by the release of the subject, the officers are to arrest. Several factors play into making this assessment. It’ll be considered whether the subject has the physical\mental capacity to endanger the safety of themselves or the public. Consideration will be made for whether the subject is unlawfully carrying a weapon. As well, if the subject has made immediate threats against other individuals in the area will factor in.
In cases in which the subject appears to suffer from mental illness and/or addiction, a referral to appropriate medical and/or psychiatric services in lieu of arrest shall be considered in accordance with SMPD policy.
If the suspect demands to be taken before a magistrate, officers will be required to arrest them. This will apply to any suspect that has an outstanding arrest warrant. Individuals suspected of having committed offenses in which the process is not allowed by state law will face arrest.
City Council has noted that in determining whether a subject’s capable of providing satisfactory personal identification. It will be acknowledged that not all persons are able to produce a government-issued ID. The City will accept other forms of identification, regardless of the expiration date. These forms include any state or federally issued ID, utility or rent bill, student ID, or other forms of identification that include an individual’s name and address, as well as photos of the aforementioned forms of identification.
On a county level, Judge Reuben Becerra informed Texas Cannabis Collective that resistance has been shown with the Hays County Commissioner’s Court over policies for countywide cite and release programs, along with laboratory testing funding. But, no official vote has taken place on the topics. The Hays County Commissioner court is currently split between 2 Democrats and 3 Republicans. The commissioner’s court seats up for election this cycle are precinct 3 currently held by Lon Shell (R) and precinct 1 held by Debbie Gonzales Ingalsbe (D).
