Missed this when I was finishing up this earlier post about Ray Jones: The 14th Court of Appeals has spoken, and it has said No to Jones.
Justices Richard Edelman, Charles Seymore and Leslie Brock Yates rejected his argument that the city unfairly denied his application because he left a section of the notarized document blank.
Jones has contended that a member of Mayor White’s staff told him his application was complete on the day of the filing deadline. But that employee disagreed in a sworn affidavit attached to Jones’ petition [PDF]. The appeals court doesn’t resolve fact questions, so the justices decided the dispute could only be decide by a “hearing on the merits.”
It’s always a little amazing to see the courts move this quickly, but beyond that there’s no surprise here. I thought the city was going to win based on what was presented. I also think they’d have a pretty good shot at winning on the merits, if it comes to that – Jones may yet appeal to the Texas Supreme Court.
Again, none of this is to say that Jones doesn’t have a point from a fairness perspective. I don’t see him getting relief through the courts for that, however.
That is fast, but not unusual for an election mandamus. If there’s a disputed question of fact, the appellate court will waste no time denying it.