AUSTIN, Texas — Austinites now have access to personnel files of the city's police officers as part of a voter-approved measure that was passed last year.
The G-files show records of police officers accused of misconduct. The records can range from minor offenses to offenses as severe as a deadly shooting.
Currently, only 11 documents are available and only date back as far as 2020. Council Members Vanessa Fuentes and Chito Vela are hoping to find resources in order to get more documents prepared and released. In a memo, the two expressed the need to get more G-file materials released.
In terms of the first batch being made available, city leaders have expressed gratitude.
"I'm glad to see that we are beginning to take the steps that voters asked for," said Austin District 5 leader, Ryan Alter. "I think it's going to help us get more information about how various either incidents or just behavior at the department has been going or has occurred in the past."
As far as getting those documents out as fast as possible, Alter said the goal is to potentially break up the larger files, and work through which portions can be released. Some of the files are not digitized, which can further the delay.
"We just have to make sure of is whatever information is in there that we continue to ask questions and figure out what we as a council and the broader community might want to see related to whether as previous action or policies that need to be addressed," said Alter.
The release of the files was no easy feat. It came with a legal battle and represented a major sticking point in the city's long-awaited police contract, which is set to be signed off on Oct. 24.
However, there are lingering questions about the G-file moving forward, and the fiscal impact the contract could have in the city's already record-breaking budget.
"I think we owe it to our voters on making sure that we take careful consideration when voting on this police contract," said Austin District 9 leader Zo Qadri.
A work session will take place on Tuesday ahead of the contract signing to tie up any loose ends.
"I don't think we get past a lack of trust between the department and folks, you know, who call us and home without, you know, a light shining on, you know, these mystery G file documents," said Qadri.