SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio police officer was hit with a 25-day suspension without pay amid allegations he exposed himself to a woman in his patrol car while on duty last fall.
The suspension came to light in documents obtained by The Defenders from the city's civil service commission.
San Antonio police Officer Harold Thomaston agreed to a 25-day suspension without pay in February for violating department rules.
He was originally served with a contemplated indefinite suspension in January.
Thomaston hit with the disciplinary action following a complaint made against him last October.
According to the civil service commission documents, Thomaston agreed to meet a woman he knew through an online dating site while he was on duty.
The meeting happened in the parking lot of a strip mall located off of Poss Road in Leon Valley.
Click here to read all the SAPD officers and SAFD firefighters suspended in February and March.
Three days after the meeting, the woman told an SAPD special victims detective Thomaston "exposed himself to her inside his patrol car while he was in full uniform." The woman also alleged the officer "touched her breast and legs without her consent."
An administrative investigation confirmed through GPS that Thomaston's patrol car was at that location in Leon Valley for a half hour, establishing he "devoted his on-duty time to non-police activity."
Thomaston wrote a detailed account of the events and admitted to touching the woman's leg but nothing else.
The case was handed off to Leon Valley police to investigate if any crimes were committed but no charges were filed.
According to the Bexar County Criminal District Attorney's Office, the case was rejected in February because "the encounter appeared to be consensual and the woman did not wish to have the case go forward."
According to SAPD, Thomaston has served his 25-day suspension and has returned to regular duty.