Williamson County Constable sends warning to residents who illegally dump trash
WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas - Williamson County Constable Precinct 4 Constable Paul Leal has a clear message to the person who illegally dumped a large pile of trash south of Taylor.
In a video message on social media, Leal asks the suspect to contact their office and clean up the mess, or they get a warrant for their arrest.
The dump site in question is located south of Taylor off County Road 483. FOX 7 Austin spoke with the Constable’s office on why they post videos like this on social media.
"What we want is for people to stop doing this," said Lieutenant Mike Pendley.
Illegal dumping has been a plague in rural Williamson County. At this recent location, FOX 7 Austin's crews saw an old TV, laundry hampers, and dressers among other things all tossed into a nearby creek.
"What people need to understand is this is someone’s neighborhood. It may be a little more spread out but this is property where they live and it needs to be respected," said Lieutenant Pendley.
Lieutenant Pendley said these videos where they call out illegal dumpers serve multiple purposes. The first is to give the chance for whenever did it to make things right.
"We give them the opportunity to clean it up. They’ll take it to the landfill with the weight that we’ve determined it to be, they’ll provide us with a receipt to show the dumped the appropriate amount at the landfill. Instead of filling those felony charges we’ll give a reduced charge," Lieutenant Pendley said.
The other reason for these videos is to also show the community they are out investigating, and they will find out who did it.
"We get down in the ankle deep water with the snakes and dig through all the trash. The guys we have working for us they’re going to do it because they are as bothered by it as the community is so they are going to get down there they’re going to get dirty and dig through the trash and find what we need to hold these people accountable," said Lieutenant Pendley.
Penalties for illegal dumping depend on how heavy the trash is and can range from a hefty fine to a felony.
The constable's office said these videos are being well received in the community and even help in locating other problem areas.
If you have someone take trash from you your property, the constable's office recommends you have them give you a copy of the landfill receipt that way you know your trash was probably disposed of.
The Williamson County Landfill is located at 600 Landfill Road in Hutto and is open Monday-Friday 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.