San Marcos City Council to receive certification to repeal agreement between city, San Marcos Police Officer's Association

San Marcos City Council is expected to receive the city clerk’s certification of a petition to repeal the San Marcos Police Officer's Association’s Meet and Confer agreement Jan. 3. The agreement was ratified in September and lasts through Sept. 30, 2025.

Local grassroots organization Mano Amiga, which led the charge to decriminalize marijuana in the city of San Marcos, and campaign counsel Andrew Cates partnered and submitted more than 1,000 signatures from the community to include the “5 Hartman Reforms” that address transparency and discipline issues within the San Marcos Police Department.

The Hartman Reforms was named after former SMPD Sgt. Ryan Hartman, who caused a car accident in Lockhart on June 10, 2020 that resulted in the death of Jennifer Miller.

Lockhart Police found a half-full beer can in his truck but Hartman denied drinking and driving, as previously reported by Community Impact.

Miller’s life-partner Pam Watts was also in the car but survived and is the individual who proposed the reforms.

The 5 Hartman Reforms are as follows:

• End the 180-day rule: repeals the statute of limitations on investigating wrongdoing by officers
• End delay of interviews for misconduct: repeals current conditions where officers are allotted 48 hours to prepare answers in interviews; officers also have the ability to review video footage, photos and other materials prior to giving an official statement
• Public transparency for personnel files: documented misconduct should be available to the community
• End third-party arbitration
• End vacation forfeiture as a substitute to suspension

Council will have 30 days to pass the petition or send it to an election.

Council will meet at City Hall, 630 E. Hopkins St., San Marcos, Jan. 3 at 6 p.m.