San Marcos Police, along with the city/county SWAT team and hostage negotiators, flooded the Blanco Gardens neighborhood in March of 2018 when an attempted murder/suicide took place. Daily Record file photos by Rachel Willis
County to vote on interlocal SWAT
On Tuesday morning, the Hays County Commissioners Court will vote on a First Amended Hays County SWAT Team Interlocal Agreement, which will potentially create a county-wide Special Weapons and Tactics Unit.
In 1997, Hays County and the San Marcos Police Department joined forces to create the current SWAT team, which is an “elite tactical unit” that handles high-risk operations. According to the agreement, it would be inefficient to have separate SWAT units for the Hays County Sheriff’s Office, the San Marcos Police Department, the Texas State University Police Department, the Kyle Police Department and the Buda Police Department. Instead, the agreement requests a unified SWAT team called the “Hays County SWAT Team.”
The agreement cites the Interlocal Cooperation Act, Chapter 791 of the Texas Government Code, which allows local governments to contract with each other to increase effectiveness and efficiency.
In other business, the Court will vote to adopt a proclamation recognizing July 21-27, 2019 as the Pretrial, Probation and Parole Supervision Officers’ Week in honor of the Community Supervision and Corrections Department’s (CSCD) 50 years of service to Caldwell, Comal and Hays County.
If passed, the proclamation will recognize “the Community Supervision and Corrections Department serving Caldwell, Comal, and Hays for its 50 years of dedicated service, and encourages all citizens to honor these community corrections professionals and their achievements.”
Additionally, commissioners will vote on the acceptance of a $250,000 grant from the Texas Veterans Commission for the Hays County Veterans Treatment Court.
“The Veterans Treatment Court provides the opportunity of voluntary participation for defendants whose criminal cases are attributed to physical and/or mental injuries sustained during their tenure in military service,” stated the agenda item request.
The Hays County Commissioners Court meets at 9 a.m. on the third floor of the Hays County Courthouse, 111 San Antonio St.
