On Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025, Montgomery County Pct. 4 Commissioner Matt Gray, local elected officials, and first responders honored the legacy of Patton Village Police Sgt. Stacey Baumgartner with the official dedication of the Sergeant Stacey Baumgartner Memorial Highway.
Nearly nine years after his passing, the portion of Texas 242 from U.S. 59 to FM 1485 will forever bear his name. The renaming was initially approved by the Montgomery County Commissioners Court in 2018, but the project stalled until Commissioner Gray took office.
Gray worked with the Texas Department of Transportation to ensure the dedication sign was installed, making the long-overdue tribute a reality.
“This dedication is long overdue, and my office is proud to have partnered with TxDOT to see it through to completion,” Gray said.
The portion of Texas 242 holds significant meaning, as it marks the location where Baumgartner lost his life in the line of duty. On Father’s Day, June 19, 2016, Baumgartner was involved in a high-speed chase at the intersection of FM 1485 and Texas 242.
A suspect fleeing from law enforcement caused a fatal collision between Baumgartner’s patrol car and a vehicle carrying members of the Hilario family.
Agencies in attendance:
- Constable Kenneth “Rowdy” Hayden, Pct. 4 Constable, Montgomery County, TX
- Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office- Sheriff Doolittle
- Jason Dunn, Montgomery County Justice of the Peace, Pct. 4
- Patton Village Police Department- Chief Chris Hernandez
- Texas Department of Public Safety
- Roman Forest Police Department
- Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office
11-year-old Adan Hilario, Jr, was killed in June 2016 by Sgt. Stacey Baumgartner following a crash on Texas 242.
DPS partly faults dead officer in Patton Village chase crash.
The report concludes Sgt. Baumgartner “……disregarded the red light…” and “…failed to slow…for safe operation…”as he entered the intersection. DPS says those were two of the contributing factors in this wreck.
Just as Sgt. Baumgartner was going through that intersection, a vehicle was traveling northbound on FM 1485 with a green light. That vehicle struck the squad car, sending it into a pole, killing Baumgartner.
The vehicle that struck Sgt. Baumgartner then flipped, ejecting several people inside. One of the occupants, Adan Hilario, Jr., 11, was killed.
His recklessness got himself and a child killed.