SAN MARCOS — On Nov. 10, 2022, DeVonte Amerson’s childhood friend and co-defendant, Cyrus Gray III, stepped outside of the jail walls for the first time in nearly five years. He let the sunshine hit his face and felt the warm embrace of his mother and father. Back inside the Hays County Jail, DeVont...

Staff Report Hays County – As part of its new Healthy Hays Forum Series, the Hays County Local Health Department (HCLHD) will host Immunization and Vaccine Community Forums on August 18 (in Spanish) and August 25 (in English) at Gemstone Palace at 1101 Bunton Creek Rd in Kyle.  Local pediatricians a...

Staff Report SAN MARCOS — San Marcos voters may soon have the opportunity to decriminalize marijuana in the city.  Local grassroots criminal justice group Mano Amiga, alongside voter-engagement and mobilization organization Ground Game Texas, held a press event at San Marcos City Hall on June 1 to a...

By Brittany Anderson HAYS COUNTY — Hays County is working to address the overcrowded jail system and thousands of taxpayer dollars  spent on inmates. But most importantly, ensuring criminal justice for all.  On May 24, the Hays County Commissioners Court unanimously voted to award a request for prop...

By Brittany Anderson HAYS COUNTY — According to the Hays County Jail dashboard, 80% of the county’s total jail population are pretrial detainees — legally innocent people who are unable to afford their freedom — that can expect to spend a minimum of 30 days in jail, costing county taxpayers between ...

By Brittany Anderson SAN MARCOS — Nearly two years after a car accident that resulted in the death of a woman and left her partner critically injured, the off-duty San Marcos Police Department (SMPD) officer responsible has been ‘indefinitely suspended.’ A letter from San Marcos city manager Bert Lu...

By Sahar Chmais HAYS COUNTY – Residents and community activists have been pushing for Hays County Jail transparency, and commissioners listened. The county has launched an online dashboard detailing who is in the Hays County Jail.  The dashboard, provided in partnership with the nonprofit Vera Insti...

By Anita Miller There’s a new avenue for pre-trial detainees – who make up the majority of those incarcerated in Hays County Jail – to be released from custody and returned to their families, without experiencing any financial impact. The community bond program was launched in the spring by the acti...

The plight of inmates in Hays County Jail during the pandemic, most of whom have not been convicted of any crime, was on the minds of several people who spoke up at Commissioners Court’s recently. The remarks came after jail officials acknowledged an outbreak of COVID-19 at the facility. Capt. Julie...

Hays County has taken significant strides in reforming its criminal justice system but more needs to be done. That was the general consensus of the county’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee, which met for the first time in six months last week, albeit virtually. District Attorney Wes Mau said...