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A Travis County judge ruled that the city of Austin and Austin Police Department have “unlawfully” maintained a secret police personnel file known as the “G file” that was outlawed by the Austin Police Oversight Act.

“[City Manager T.C.] Broadnax and [Police Chief Lisa] Davis have unlawfully failed to perform their mandatory duty to end the City of Austin’s use of the ‘g file’ in violation” of the APOA, District Judge Maria Cantú Hexsel wrote in a hotly anticipated ruling issued late Friday afternoon, Aug. 30. The ruling followed a hearing in the lawsuit filed by Equity Action, the justice advocacy organization that wrote the APOA and sued the city over failure to fully implement it, before Cantú Hexsel in June.

The ruling is unprecedented in Texas and a major victory for police accountability and transparency, Equity Action said. Police accountability advocates have maintained, for years, that Texas cities opting to maintain a G file do so at their discretion. Now, a court has agreed. “This is a momentous day for Austin,” Alycia Castillo, Equity Action board chair, said. “We hope the sunlight offered through the full, forthcoming implementation of the APOA will bring about the meaningful deterrent to police misconduct and brutality our city voted for back in 2023.”

Now, the city will have to stop using the G file or appeal the ruling. A city spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment before publishing this story.

Part of the purpose of the G file is to keep unsubstantiated complaints against officers from harming their reputations. But critically, the G file can include complaints that were substantiated but that officers were not disciplined for. APD says when this happens, it’s because the officer in question agreed to terms in lieu of formal discipline from the department (like resigning or participating in additional training). Equity Action says the department allows this to happen to shield officers from accountability.

The G file has also been a key part of negotiations between the city and the Austin Police Association over a long term labor contract. Previously, the city and APA had agreed to keep some disciplinary investigation records locked away in the G file as one piece of the new contract, which is still under negotiation. It is unclear how Cantú Hexsel’s ruling will affect those negotiations.

This is a developing story.