District 10 Councilman Clayton Perry speaks with reporters shortly after he posted bond for his arrest for failure-to-stop charges. Credit: Michael Karlis

Police-reform activists and one of Councilman Clayton Perry’s own colleagues on the dais are calling him a hypocrite for opposing Prop. A despite receiving a lenient sentencing for a DWI hit-and-run incident.

Last week, Perry was sentenced to 12 months of probation and 24 hours of community service for charge stemming from a Nov. 6 car crash that grabbed national headlines. What’s more, County-at-Law No. 6 Judge Erica Dominguez also granted Perry deferred adjudication, meaning the incident won’t appear on his criminal record.

That apparently left a bad taste in the mouth of Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, who criticized Perry for continuing to oppose Prop A, which would codify cite-and-release for a variety of minor offenses, including graffiti and shoplifting.

“We love a second chance. Congratulations, Councilman Perry,” McKee-Rodriguez tweeted Friday. “I just wonder why we draw the line at graffiti but not drunk driving or hit-and-runs. This wasn’t a victimless crime, after all.”

McKee-Rodriguez wasn’t alone in pointing out the irony of Perry’s situation on Twitter.

Molly Cox, the former CEO of nonprofit SA2020,  wrote on Twitter that she “looks forward to seeing Perry’s support for Prop. A.” Meanwhile, Gabrien Gregory, who lost his bid to represent Perry’s District 10 during the 2021 election, wrote that “Black or Brown” people who committed the same offense as Perry would be in jail.

Indeed, McKee-Rodriguez, who represents District 2, is among the only council members who has been vocal in support of Prop A, which also would decriminalize cannabis possession and abortion.

On Friday, council members including District 9’s John Courage, District 8’s Manny Pelaez, District 6’s Melissa Cabello Havrda, District 4’s Adrianna Rocha Garcia and District 3’s Phyllis Viagran appeared at a press conference with members of San Antonio’s powerful police union to voice their opposition to the ballot measure, according to the Express-News.

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This article appears in Apr 5-18, 2023.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...