SAN ANTONIO – BREAKING NEWS:
District 10 Councilman Clayton Perry on Monday said that he will not resign from office and instead plans to request a sabbatical “so that I can heal.”
“I am human and made a bad decision, a huge one,” Perry said during a brief statement from his district field office.
Perry said he hopes his council colleagues have compassion for him and not rush into what he calls a “rash decision.”
The council will meet in a special session at 1:30 to vote if they should call Perry to resign and if they will issue a vote of “no confidence” against him.
PREVIOUSLY:
District 10 Councilman Clayton Perry said he would return to the city council after being released from custody Thursday for his alleged involvement in a hit-and-run crash. But some of his colleagues will vote next week if he should resign.
This follows Mayor Ron Nirenberg’s call for Perry to resign earlier this week, if the allegations against him are accurate.
The city council will meet at 1:30 p.m. Monday for a special session to vote if they should call Perry to resign and if they will issue a vote of “no confidence” against him.
“Councilmember Perry’s actions and pending criminal case have negatively impacted his and the City Council’s ability to conduct its business leading to the City Council to lose confidence in his ability to act as an effective representative for his district and colleague on City Council,” the meeting agenda reads.
CONTEXT: Everything we know so far about San Antonio Councilman Clayton Perry’s arrest
Perry has been charged with failure to stop and provide information after a crash on Sunday, resulting in damages to a vehicle over $200, a Class B misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine.
On Friday, SAPD announced it will file a DWI charge against the councilman with the District Attorney’s Office.
Currently, Perry’s term is set to end next year. He’s served on city council since 2017.
If the council approves the no-confidence vote, it wouldn’t affect Perry’s ability to vote on agenda items or remain on council.
Councilmembers do not have the power to remove another member, barring certain criminal convictions.
In other words, unless Perry is convicted, he’d have to voluntarily resign from his District 10 seat. If he does resign, the council said it will begin the process of appointing an interim District 10 councilman.
If Perry doesn’t resign, voters can petition for a recall election.
The councilman turned himself into the Bexar County Courthouse Thursday afternoon, but was released after posting a $1,000 bond. He’s suspected of crashing his Jeep Wrangler head-on into a Honda Civic before speeding away from the scene.
According to the SAPD’s body cam footage that surfaced online Thursday, an officer found Perry lying in his yard, smelling of alcohol, and the Jeep was parked in his driveway, still running after the crash.
City Council Special Meeting mini packet by David Ibanez on Scribd