SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio District 6 Councilman Greg Brockhouse is asking the city to consider passing a good Samaritan policy to protect people who break into vehicles during emergency situations to save the lives of children or pets left unattended during inclement weather.
Brockhouse submitted a Council Consideration Request to take a look at what the problem looks like in the city and how other cities and states are handling the problem.
Last legislative session, Texas lawmakers failed to pass House Bill 401 and Senate Bill 69, both addressing the issue of children and pets left unattended in vehicles. The bills had also sought protection for good Samaritans.
The staff will gather data and it will be presented before several committees, which will shape it into a policy that can then be heard before City Council.
Brockhouse said the idea for the policy came out of his own experience of seeing pets in distress during the cold winter months.
“If that happened to you in a Walmart parking lot, the best thing you can do is go over there and bust a window and perhaps face the consequences for that,” Brockhouse said. “What we're trying to do is make sure we don’t create a rogue environment where we have a bunch of people running around busting into cars to protect animals and children. What we're trying to do is make sure is we have protection and clear guidance in place.”