Paxton ordered to sit for deposition anyway

Posted on January 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Bwa ha ha!

A crook any way you look

A Travis County judge issued an order Friday for Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to sit for a deposition on Feb. 1 in the lawsuit brought by four of his former employees. However, some of those plaintiffs and their attorneys expect Paxton to appeal.

Judge Jan Soifer said Paxton will have to appear for and answer questions in an oral deposition at an Austin law firm on that day starting at 9 a.m. She said she reached this decision because his office failed to negotiate with the plaintiffs’ attorneys over times to schedule the deposition.

The order also set dates for three of Paxton’s top employees: Feb. 2 for First Assistant Attorney General Brent Webster; Feb. 7 for Chief of Staff Lesley French Henneke; and Feb. 9 for senior advisor Michelle Smith.

[…]

In their [previous] filing, Paxton’s attorneys emphasized his belief that he did nothing wrong, noting the Texas Senate acquitted him at his impeachment trial last year. They also argue what the former employees claims’ include are not protected by the state’s whistleblower protection law.

However, in the same document, they said Paxton’s office “hereby elects not to contest any issue of fact in this case” and “elects not to dispute the Plaintiffs’ lawsuit.”

That latter argument especially shocked Blake Brickman, a former deputy attorney general who’s now suing Paxton. He said he saw what Paxton wrote in the filing as “total vindication.”

“This is a total 180 that Ken Paxton has done. He is now saying he is not contesting our facts. The impeachment trial was based on our allegations, and now he’s saying what we said is true,” Brickman said. “The people of Texas really need to think about that. Conservative, rule-of-law Republicans really need to think about how disingenuous this attorney general is for him to say, actually, all these things are true now, right before he’s about to get deposed, after he went through the impeachment. It’s shocking. It really is.”

Brickman said he does anticipate Paxton to appeal the judge’s order. However, that last resulted in the Texas Supreme Court rejecting his request to avoid testifying under oath in the lawsuit.

If Paxton does eventually go under oath, though, he could invoke his Fifth Amendment right and not answer any questions. Mike Golden, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, said that could end up harming a defendant in a civil case like this.

“Here in a civil case, any witness, including the defendant or an employee defendant, can plead the Fifth Amendment and refuse to answer any particular question. That’s protected by the Constitution, and they can’t be compelled to answer those questions,” Golden said. “But the flip side is, in the civil case, their refusal to answer that question gets used against them in court. The plaintiffs can argue to the jury: he didn’t answer this question because he knew the answer will be bad for him, and he didn’t answer 77 questions because he knew the answers were going to be bad for him. That’s the huge difference between how a criminal case works and a civil case [works].”

See here and here for the previous updates. I agree with Brickman that Paxton will appeal – I’ve already stated my belief that he will do anything to delay this from happening. As plaintiff attorney TJ Turner says in the story, “the last thing Ken Paxton wants to do is put a hand on his Bible and tell the truth”. He might literally burst into flame if he tries.

I also like this quote from the updated Trib story.

State Rep. Andrew Murr, the Junction Republican who was the top House impeachment manager, claimed vindication after Paxton’s new filing, saying he has has “dropped all pretense of innocence.”

“He’s admitted to what many in the Texas House have known in our hearts to be true: he flagrantly broke the law, violated the Whistleblower Act and betrayed the trust placed in him by retaliating against his own team, those who bravely reported his illegal actions,” Murr said in a statement.

Indeed. And now all y’all need to take the next step and campaign against Paxton in 2026, both in the primary and (when he wins) the general election. Anything else and you lose any claim to the moral high ground that you now hold. Don’t blow it. NBCDFW has more.

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Is this the end of the DeLorean dream?

Posted on January 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe?

Bexar County Commissioner’s Court pulled the plug Tuesday on an incentives package for DeLorean Motors Reimagined, an electric-vehicle startup that pledged to create 450 jobs if it got tax breaks to locate its headquarters in San Antonio.

The commissioners didn’t discuss the deal’s termination during their weekly meeting. Instead, they voted 5-0 to approve the action as part of a package of routine agenda items.

The vote came after DeLorean Chief Operating Officer Bill Frazer sent a letter to the county asking it to end the incentive agreement, which would have included roughly $1 million in tax breaks, the Express-News reports.

[…]

DeLorean hasn’t yet avoided paying city and county taxes because it never hit benchmarks required for those abatements to take effect, according to city and county officials. Even so, some industry observers questioned the wisdom of extending such a package to an untried venture in difficult startup market.

See here for more on the rather colorful history of the rebooted DeLorean in San Antonio. The company is still in business, it just was never able to deliver on promises to create those jobs. That’s the way it goes. TPR has more.

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DOJ releases its Uvalde report

Posted on January 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It’s brutal.

Officers had many opportunities as the 2022 school massacre in Uvalde, Texas, was still unfolding to reassess their flawed response to the shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead, the US Justice Department concludes in a damning new report.

Bursts of gunfire, reports a teacher had been shot, then a desperate call from a student trapped with the gunman could – and should – all have prompted a drive to stop the bloodshed far sooner, the Critical Incident Review released Thursday says.

Instead, it took 77 minutes from when the 18-year-old shooter walked into Robb Elementary School until he was stopped. The carnage remains among the deadliest episodes in America’s ongoing scourge of campus shootings.

Critical failures in leadership among specific law enforcement officers who rushed to Robb Elementary are blamed by the Justice Department, whose 575-page report nearly 20 months after the massacre is the fullest official accounting of what happened, though much already was known largely through CNN investigation.

Ample problems also emerged after the gunman was killed, from getting students away from the school and reunited with families to how bereaved parents were told their children were dead, the release of information about what happened, and the provision of therapy services, the federal report finds.

“The response to the May 24, 2022, mass casualty incident at Robb Elementary School was a failure,” the Justice Department report concludes bluntly.

“Their loved ones deserved better,” US Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday of the victims, whose families he met with a day earlier.

“The law enforcement response at Robb Elementary School on May 24, 2022 – and then the hours and days after – was a failure that should not have happened,” he said in an afternoon news conference.

“Had law enforcement agencies followed generally accepted practices in an active shooter situation and gone right after the shooter to stop him, lives would have been saved and people would have survived,” Garland said.

[…]

The Justice Department report describes the quick arrival of law enforcement officers who ran toward the sound of gunfire, then almost immediately stopped once they got near the classrooms where the gunman was killing fourth graders and educators – a decision that ran counter to widely established active shooter response protocol, which instructs law enforcement to move toward and eliminate any threat.

“Officers on scene should have recognized the incident as an active shooter scenario and moved and pushed forward immediately and continuously toward the threat until the room was entered, and the threat was eliminated. That did not occur,” it says.

Instead, the intensity level dropped as responders began to treat the situation as a “barricaded suspect” operation that did not need immediate action, even as more officers arrived and the signals of ongoing danger multiplied.

That was the “single most critical tactical failure,” the team from the Justice Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services finds.

“For the span of more than 1 hour, between 11:37 a.m. and 12:49 p.m., there were at least 10 stimulus events, including at least six separate instances of gunfire totaling approximately 45 rounds in law enforcement officer presence, as well as officer injuries and the presence of victims. Any one of these events should have driven the law enforcement response to take steps to immediately stop the killing,” the report says.

“During that period, no one assumed a leadership role to direct the response toward the active shooter, provide situational status to responding officers, establish some form of incident command, or clearly assume and communicate the role of incident commander. Interviews with responding officers confirmed that there was confusion about who, if anyone, was in charge, what to do, or the status of the incident.

“Some officers were confused about why there was no attempt to confront the active shooter and rescue the children. Without structure, agency leadership was unaware of the facts surrounding the incident and therefore unable to challenge the repeated decisions not to make entry into the classrooms.”

There’s a lot more to the story, and there’s the full report if you really want to get into it. I just want to highlight one small bit from the Trib story:

The Uvalde report’s release comes two months after ProPublica, the Texas Tribune and PBS’ Frontline published an investigation into the response after gaining access to a trove of investigative materials, including more than 150 interviews with officers and dozens of body cameras. The material showed that the children at Robb Elementary followed active shooter protocols, while many of the officers did not. It detailed how officers treated the situation as a barricaded suspect rather than an active threat even as evidence mounted quickly that children and teachers were injured and with the shooter.

Emphasis mine. We already knew that information, from the cited previous reporting. We are not going to do anything in this state to try to prevent mass shootings as long as the current government is in place, so you would think that the very least we could ask them to do is to make sure that all of our thousands of police forces are up to date on active shooter training and protocols. Doesn’t seem to me like much to ask.

We might also want to ask what’s going on with the state and local investigations and why they are taking so goddam long.

Since the massacre, families and the media have fought for transparency and an explanation for why the police response was so delayed and chaotic.

But at least three separate investigations into the massacre have not yet been released, including records from the Texas Department of Public Safety, a criminal investigation from the Uvalde County District Attorney’s office and the City of Uvalde’s independent investigation.

More than a dozen news organizations — including The Texas Tribune — have sued the DPS, alleging that the state police have unlawfully withheld those records, which include body camera footage and emergency communications. A Travis County state district judge ordered last November that the DPS release the records within 20 days. Attorney General Ken Paxton filed an appeal on behalf of the agency on Dec. 8, so that case remains ongoing.

Part of that investigation was a medical analysis to determine whether any of those killed at Robb Elementary might have survived if police and medical assistance arrived sooner. Records obtained by The Washington Post, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica showed that communication lapses among medical responders delayed treatment for victims. Four victims had heartbeats when they were rescued from the school and died later that day.

DPS Chief Medical Officer Mark Escott, who also serves as EMS medical director for the City of Austin, said in a statement that the Uvalde DA’s office informed him last August that they were “moving in a different direction” and no longer wanted the medical analysis.

“At this time, I have no knowledge of what, if any, medical analysis will be included in the (DPS) report,” Escott said.

See here for the most recent update on that. If we had a state government that cared about more than staying in power and covering its ass, perhaps we’d get some answers to these questions. Until then, well, you know what my preferred fix for that problem is. TPR, Stace, and the Chron have more.

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Mayor Whitmire wants to add Metro cops to HPD

Posted on January 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

On its face this makes sense.

Mayor John Whitmire said he’s negotiating with Metro to combine its almost 400 public safety employees with Houston’s Police Department under Chief Troy Finner.

The transit group’s police department, with a budget in 2024 of around $40.8 million and a staff just shy of 399 could be a force multiplier, Whitmire said, with officers responding to where crimes occur, whether that’s on a bus or train or in surrounding neighborhoods.

Such a measure would take approval from Metro’s board. Representatives for the transit group did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the mayor’s plan. But Whitmire said he’s been negotiating with Metro and expected to have board buy-in soon.

“When I started in public service all those years ago, we had park and airport police,” Whitmire said. “We eventually placed those inside the police department. I think most people would tell you that really worked out well.”

The mayor’s comments Thursday are the most direct indication of his vision for adding additional resources to the city’s police department, but he has signaled since the campaign that he wanted Metro and the Houston Police Department to work together more.

“Metro, 280 officers, ought to be working with HPD,” Whitmire said at a debate. “We don’t need to take their money, although their money will follow them when they work in concert with HPD.”

[…]

In discussing plans to combine the police officers in both agencies, Whitmire said everyone in Metro police currently would retain their jobs under his plan. He said he hopes officers would shift to focus on more traffic enforcement, while it would also open up the possibility of current police officers patrolling on buses and railcars.

Whitmire said he was concerned about crime at Metro bus stations and on buses and cars, and law enforcement would continue focusing on that even when combined. But working as one unit would enable officers more freedom to respond to where crime occurs.

I mean, at the most basic level this would add a couple hundred more officers to HPD, which is an explicit promise Whitmire made during the campaign, so as far as that goes it makes all kinds of sense. I presume that the removal of the distinction between the two would increase flexibility, which also makes sense. It should be noted that Metro’s service area includes quite a lot of turf that isn’t in the city of Houston, which presents some obvious jurisdiction questions for which I have no obvious answers. I presume there are a bunch of other details that are not enumerated in this article, some of which may present additional obstacles or other challenges, and that would be something for the Metro board to consider as well as the Mayor.

From Metro’s perspective, the question is whether this makes sense for them. How would the finances of it work? What level of coverage on Metro buses and trains and at transit centers and park and rides would there be? It would be nice for Metro to cooperate, but not at the expense of their mission. If I were on the Metro board – and let’s be clear, the Mayor will get to appoint people to the Board, so this is a limited-time ability here – I might seek to get the Mayor on record about his plans for Metro before taking any action on this.

Anyway. Without knowing anything more, and modulo those “not in Houston” concerns, this sounds reasonable and sensible. Now I’d like to hear some more.

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Texas Freedom to Read Project

Posted on January 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good stuff.

A group of Texas parents has a mission: Let their kids follow their curiosity in school libraries.

The Texas Freedom to Read Project launched in December to counter the statewide surge in book challenges and removals in public school libraries in the state. Organizers said they hope Denton County parents will join the effort.

A Denton resident who is associated with the new organization declined to be named for this story.

Co-director Laney Hawes said she joined Austin resident and parent Frank Strong and Katy resident and parent Anne Russey in forming the grassroots nonprofit because she was angry.

Hawes has two children attending Keller ISD schools and was concerned when a statewide movement to label some young adult titles as “pornography” and pull them from school library shelves made its way to Keller.

Hawes joined the local fight when a group challenged roughly 40 books. One of them was the graphic novel version of The Diary of Anne Frank. In Denton ISD, more than 100 books have been challenged, resulting in volunteer committee reviews. On challenge forms, critics often left a box on the form asking if the person had read the entire work blank, and several book challengers have said during open sessions at board meetings that reading the entire book or work shouldn’t be a requirement for challenging the material. However, in order to verify that material meets or violates the state penal code that forbids making obscene material available to minors, those objecting to the material would need to have read the material completely to know whether the book has literary value.

When Keller ISD solicited volunteers to join committees charged with reviewing the titles, Hawes volunteered and was part of the group that reviewed Anne Frank. The committee decided the book was appropriate for teens, and returned the book to the library.

“A new school board came in, and they took a majority of seats on our board,” Hawes said. “And the first thing they promised to do was to overturn all of the book challenge committees that had happened in the spring because they claimed that the book challenge committees were stacked with liberals. They thought it was unfair, so they didn’t trust the decisions.”

[…]

Hawes said it’s important to acknowledge that not all books are appropriate for all students. She said that some high school students might not be ready to read All Boys Aren’t Blue, one of the most-challenged titles across the country. The book is a memoir by a nonbinary Black author, and the book includes descriptions of sexual awakening as a gay teen.

But some high school students are ready for that kind of book, and Hawes said the campaign to remove titles has targeted books that help teen readers understand consent around their bodies and sexuality.

Harrod said the challenges and HB 900 constitute censorship, and that restricting access isn’t about just the books.

“I mean, essentially, it’s a race to the bottom between Texas and Florida on who can ban the most books, who can restrict the most access,” he said. “And you know, we’re not just stigmatizing content. We’re stigmatizing readers. And it just seems to be ushering in a new sort of tribalism around information and books. And it’s really unfortunate.”

Hawes said the next step for Freedom to Read is to develop and train teams in every school district in the state. Volunteers can submit a form online. The nonprofit will partner with the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas and take legal action, if warranted.

“We don’t have a lot of money,” Hawes said. “But we have the commitment to students, to our children. We’re going to protect their First Amendment rights.”

Here’s the Texas Freedom to Read Project website again. The most important things to remember are that book bans aren’t popular, most people want kids to have access to books and libraries, and with that comes the power not just to fight back but to win. Make your voice heard – the power of the book banners comes from the fact that they are all very loud, which amplifies their small numbers – and help people understand in every election who’s on the side of reading and learning and who isn’t. You’ve seen me mention Frank Strong and his coverage of school board races from this angle. Now you can help him in that effort more directly. Go forth and be a force for literacy and freedom.

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Interview with Claude Cummings

Posted on January 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Claude Cummings

We wrap up our week of Harris County Tax Assessor candidates with Claude Cummings. Cummings serves as an Employment Development Manager with the Harris County Community Supervision and Corrections Department, where he connects individuals involved in the justice system with vital community partners and resources to reduce recidivism. His work includes facilitating access to vocational training, job readiness programs, and affordable housing. Here’s what we talked about:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15
Rep. Jarvis Johnson, SD15
Todd Litton, SD15
Beto Cardenas, SD15
Annette Ramirez, Tax Assessor
Danielle Bess, Tax Assessor
Jerry Davis, Tax Assessor
Desiree Broadnax, Tax Assessor

This was Tax Assessor week, and next week I will have interviews in CDs 07 and 18. I plan to have the candidates for County Attorney and District Attorney after that. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

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Judicial Q&A: Fran Watson

Posted on January 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am running a series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested Democratic primaries. This is intended to help introduce the candidates and their experiences to those who plan to vote in March. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information about Democratic primary candidates, including links to the interviews and judicial Q&As, can be found on Erik Manning’s spreadsheet.

Fran Watson

1. Who are you and what are you running for?

I am Judge Fransheneka “Fran” Watson and I am running to be the Presiding Judge of Harris County Probate Court 5

2. What kind of cases does this court hear?

Harris County Probate Courts oversee the validation of wills, the management of estates and the protection of guardianships (the financial and personal affairs of a minor or incapacitated person). Additionally, the Court presides over cases involving fiduciaries (i.e. Will and Guardianship contests, Fiduciary malfeasance, etc..)

3. Why are you running for this particular bench?

Assuming this role is a seamless transition for me professionally and for the people of Harris County. I have been presiding over cases since 2019 as an Associate Municipal Court Judge. Currently, I am a Staff Attorney for the Honorable Judge of Probate Court 2. Prior to working for Probate Court 2, I was in private practice with a strong focus on Probate and Guardianship. I believe my experience as a Judge and practitioner, knowledge and understanding of the Texas Estate Code, and service to families in Harris and surrounding counties have prepared me for this new Probate Court.

4. What are your qualifications for this job?

My qualifications for this job include:

• Associate Municipal Court Judge for four (4) years.
• Staff Attorney for Harris County Probate Court Two (2).
• Licensed and practicing Attorney for fourteen (14) years with a strong focus on Probate and Guardianship, and maintaining the required guardianship certification from the State Bar of Texas.
• Frequent appointments by Harris County Probate Court serving as an attorney ad litem and mediator.
• Frequent appointments by Harris County District Courts to serve as a guardian ad litem for minor plaintiffs.
• Frequent appointments by Harris County Courts at Law to serve as a mediator in civil cases.
• Frequent appointments by both Harris County District and County Courts at Law presiding over condemnation cases as a Special Commissioner.
• Provided training to attorneys working for Houston Volunteer Lawyers on probate and guardianship cases.

5. Why is this race important?

Studies show that Harris County is in need of additional Probate Courts. This is the first Probate Court established in decades. Thus, it requires a Judge who is accomplished, compassionate, and impartial.

6. Why should people vote for you in March?

I will bring experience, empathy, and equity to Probate Court 5. A vote for me would mean a vote for an experienced Judge with probate, guardianship, and courtroom experience who is ready to preside over cases on day one.

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Paxton will no longer fight the whistleblower lawsuit

Posted on January 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Kind of stunning, definitely a stunt, and also his latest and most desperate ploy to avoid being deposed.

A crook any way you look

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Thursday that his agency will stop fighting a whistleblower lawsuit by four former top executives who were fired in 2020 after accusing the attorney general of corruption.

In a District Court filing in Travis County, the attorney general’s office informed the judge that Paxton no longer wishes to contest the accusations by whistleblowers who argued that they were improperly fired for reporting their former boss to the FBI for his dealings with an Austin real estate investor now under federal indictment.

[…]

In a defiant statement, Paxton again referred to the whistleblowers as rogue employees and accused them of working to sabotage his agency’s opposition to President Joe Biden’s policies and priorities.

“I will not allow my office to be distracted by these disgruntled former employees and their self-serving sideshow,” Paxton said.

Whistleblower attorney TJ Turner said the legal team representing the four former employees was evaluating its next steps in the case. But he said the filing showed Paxton feared being forced to testify.

“There’s clearly no length to which he will go to avoid being put under oath, including confessing to violating the whistleblower act and opening up the state’s coffers to an uncontested judgment,” Turner said.

Whistleblower lawyer Tom Nesbitt called the filing “another desperate stunt by Ken Paxton to prevent the truth from coming out.”

He also insisted that the lawsuit is not over.

“Ken Paxton has never answered questions about his illegal and corrupt conduct. He is clearly terrified of doing so – even if it means taking a different position now about him breaking the law than he did at his impeachment trial,” Nesbitt said.

“The Texas Supreme Court ruled just last week that there is no settlement and that Paxton must be deposed. The people of Texas deserve the truth and our lawsuit will provide it,” he said.

In the court filing, the attorney general’s office argued that Paxton was fully vindicated by the Senate impeachment vote for acquittal, adding that firing the executives was justified because it removed “rogue insubordinate employees from senior positions.”

But, the agency added, prolonging the lawsuit would be an “unjustifiable waste of taxpayer resources and an intolerable distraction that risks compromising critical state business.”

“Thus, for the very same reason OAG agreed to settle the lawsuit in the Spring of 2023, OAG hereby elects not to contest any issue of fact in this case, as to the claim or damages,” the court filing said.

It will be up to the Legislature whether to fund, “in whole or in part,” any damages award determined by the court, the agency added.

See here for the previous update. You may recall that one part of that original settlement agreement, the one that was never approved and funded by the Legislature, involved Paxton apologizing for referring to the whistleblowers as “rogue employees”. He sure is a man of his word. The big question now is what happens next, and the immediate answer is we don’t know.

It’s not clear whether the Travis County judge hearing the case could reject Paxton’s request.

Don Tittle, a lawyer for one of the whistleblowers, estimated they are owed damages in the millions of dollars. Taxpayers would cover the cost, only after approval from the Legislature, which has balked at paying a previous request.

Tittle described the move by Paxton is “unprecedented,” and he and the other lawyers are still reviewing the filing.

“I’ve not really ever seen anyone pull a legal stunt like this,” Tittle said. “He’s completely waving the white flag and surrendering.”

He said the decision indicates how badly Paxton wants to avoid the deposition. Tittle said he was expecting to hear from Paxton’s legal team this afternoon about setting a date. The court-ordered deadline was Feb. 9.

The whistleblowers themselves say they’re not done fighting, regardless of Paxton’s apparent surrender.

The whistleblowers have said they are intent on having their day in court and want to see Paxton answer questions under oath.

“We are not going away,” one whistleblower, Blake Brickman, said at a news conference after Paxton’s Senate acquittal. “For us this case has always been about more than money. It’s about truth. It’s about justice.”

This is one of those times where I feel reasonably comfortable making a prediction, so here it is: The whistleblowers will file a motion opposing any termination of the suit; failing that, they will argue for the need to depose Paxton and his minions anyway in order to establish what the damages should be. Paxton., who I’m sure expects this, will oppose that, so there will need to be a hearing. Whatever the judge rules, the loser will appeal and we’ll go back to the Third Court of Appeals and then the Supreme Court. Your guess is as good as mine how long that could take, but Paxton will be happy to delay things for as long as he can. He’s got a very clear role model in that department. TPR has more.

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Interview with Desiree Broadnax

Posted on January 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Desiree Broadnax

One more candidate for Harris County Tax Assessor whom you’ve met before, and that’s Desiree Broadnax. Broadnax is the manager of the Intake division at the District Attorney’s office, which means she has responsibility for all incoming case filings. She has worked in the DA’s office for over twenty years, starting out as a typist on the evening shift and working her way up. She was a candidate for District Clerk in 2022, and you can find the interview I did with her for that race here. My interview with her for this race is below:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15
Rep. Jarvis Johnson, SD15
Todd Litton, SD15
Beto Cardenas, SD15
Annette Ramirez, Tax Assessor
Danielle Bess, Tax Assessor
Jerry Davis, Tax Assessor

As noted this is Tax Assessor week, and you will get to hear from all of those candidates. Next week I will have interviews in CDs 07 and 18. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

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Fifth Circuit upholds injunction in book rating lawsuit

Posted on January 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good news.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday blocked a new Texas law that requires bookstores to rate books for sexual content and prohibits any deemed “sexually explicit” from the state’s public schools.

A panel of three judges sided with Texas bookstores and national publishing groups that had argued the bill violated their freedom of speech and would be harmful to their businesses.

The state says the rating system is based on existing ones for movies or video games, and that it doesn’t violate the Constitution because the ratings are “purely factual and uncontroversial,” or similar to a “nutrition label.”

“Balancing a myriad of factors that depend on community standards is anything but the mere disclosure of factual information. And it has already proven controversial,” the court wrote in its decision.

The court went on to say that the law constituted “compelled speech” and that the bookstores and publishers were “irreparable” financial harm, including the possibility of Houston bookseller Blue Willow Bookshop going out of business as a result.

The ruling was on a preliminary injunction, meaning the decision goes into effect temporarily until the full case can be argued, but the court suggested the bookstores likely had a winning argument.

See here and here for some background, and here for a copy of the opinion, written by Trump appointee Justice Don Willett; two of the three justices on the panel were appointed by Republicans. The Statesman provides some further detail:

Several book sellers — including BookPeople in Austin — and library associations sued several state agencies in July, arguing that HB 900 is overburdensome and costly to businesses. The temporary halt will allow a hearing in which a judge will decide the law’s constitutionality to proceed. By granting the hearing, the appeals court affirmed its belief that the book sellers’ case is likely to succeed.

A U.S. district judge in September granted the book sellers’ appeal to halt the implementation of the law, a ruling the Texas Education Agency almost immediately appealed.

Under the law, book sellers would have had to send their ratings to the Texas Education Agency by April 1 to comply, a task many argued wasn’t feasible.

The plaintiffs had also argued that the law violated their First Amendment free speech rights, since the state can disagree with and edit a vendor’s rating.

The court rejected several arguments the state made objecting to the free speech claims, including that the task of rating books is simply ministerial, instead of an expression of opinion.

“Here, the statute requires vendors to undertake a fact-intensive process of weighing and balancing factors to rate library material,” the court wrote in its decision. “This process is highly discretionary and is neither precise nor certain.”

The ratings have already proved controversial, the court wrote.

“The statute requires vendors to undertake contextual analyses, weighing and balancing many factors to determine a rating for each book,” the court wrote. “Balancing a myriad of factors that depend on community standards is anything but the mere disclosure of factual information.”

[…]

Under the law — authored by Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco — vendors selling books to school districts would have to rate content that is sexually relevant or sexually explicit. HB 900 also states that schools are prohibited from buying books from vendors that don’t use the rating system and are not allowed to purchase sexually explicit books.

The decision was disappointing to Patterson, he said in a statement.

“Book vendors have an obligation to be aware of the content they are distributing, especially if that content is sexually explicit material into the hands of school children,” Patterson said.

The ruling doesn’t affect the state’s library standards, which ban sexually explicit books from school libraries, Patterson said. The State Board of Education adopted those new standards last month.

In addition to upholding the lower court’s decision, the appeals court dismissed from the case the State Board of Education and the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, two agencies the plaintiffs had included in the lawsuit.

Again, pretty good. The library standards part of the bill were not in the original temporary restraining order. The remaining defendant is TEA Commissioner Mike Morath, which makes sense since this is about the enforcement of standards for books being sold to and held by school libraries. I do expect the state to appeal this to SCOTUS, but with any luck they will have better things to do for now. The matter may come up again after the ruling on the merits down the line. Reuters, KXAN, and Publishing Perspectives have more.

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

HISD presents its longer-year calendar options

Posted on January 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

See if you have a preference.

After months of speculation over potential changes to Houston ISD’s academic calendar, district officials are considering four options for 2024-25 that would each move up the first day of classes and increase the number of days that students spend in school.

The proposals all include 180 class days, compared to 172 this year, and lay out three potential start dates: Aug. 7, 12 or 14.

HISD Deputy Chief of Staff Kari Feinberg sent the proposals to a district committee Thursday in an email obtained by the Houston Landing. Feinberg said the final calendar could be one of the four proposed options or a new version based on staff feedback. HISD officials have said they plan to present a final calendar choice Feb. 8 to the district’s board of managers, which must approve the schedule.

District leaders have said they plan to ask families to provide their opinions about starting the school year earlier as soon as next week.

[…]

The four versions of the academic calendar under consideration increase the number of workdays for staff by between eight and 11 days.

This year, teachers are scheduled to work 187 days, including 15 for training. Next year, the four versions of the calendar propose 195 or 196 total work days for returning staff, including 15 to 16 training days. The calendars specify an additional two days of training for staff who are new to the district.

Miles has said staff will be compensated competitively for the extra time. Miles has not specified what the wages will be, but he said in mid-December he expects HISD’s teacher salaries will be the highest in the region.

“We will raise teacher salaries. I don’t want to give you an amount right now, because we’re still adjusting that,” Miles said at the time.

HISD is soliciting feedback on the four versions of next year’s calendar from teachers, administrators and other community members. Feinberg’s Thursday email included a survey for members of the district’s advisory committee — made up of parents, staff and other community members — to fill out by Wednesday.

Bradley Wray, a physical education teacher at Deady Middle School on HISD’s southeast side and a member of the District Advisory Committee, said he thinks the number of training days in the draft calendars is too much for experienced staff. Additionally, he said he has unanswered questions about the compensation packages Miles has mentioned.

“Will the big salaries be for everyone, including elective teachers and other non-STAAR tested teachers? Will support staff see adequate pay increases?” he said.

See here for some background. This is of course a direct result of the District of Innovation adoption. As the Chron story notes, there are some variations for spring break and other things as well, so it’s not just a matter of what start date you prefer. As for the pay issue, I’m perfectly happy for teachers and staffers to get a raise, but as we’ve discussed many times, that has an as-yet unknown price tag, HISD already has a projected budget deficit, and Mike Miles has been considerably less than forthcoming about how he intends to pay for all that. It would be nice if we got some clarity – and a voice – on that along with the schedule options, but don’t hold your breath.

On a completely tangential note:

While Mayor John Whitmire was lauding Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles for making the decision to close schools Tuesday, Miles was telling an education committee the district should have stayed open and “I’m not going to make the same mistake again.”

Miles was the last of the local superintendents to decide on Monday to close schools Tuesday because of the arctic cold front that moved through the area. This came after Whitmire called him. “I gave Superintendent Miles my best advice yesterday afternoon. I encouraged him to not have school and he made the right decision,” Whitmire said.

But in a meeting before HISD’s District Advisory Committee to talk about school year calendars today, Miles deviated from the agenda to talk about Tuesday’s school closure.

He said he regretted his actions and wouldn’t do it again. He also took a shot at what he called exaggerated fears about the damage the weather was going to do.

“We made a decision to close schools today. I’m not sure that was the best decision. It was mine to make and I made it. I’m not sure it was the best decision.

“I think we missed an opportunity to develop a culture of essentialness. We need that. Our profession has gone away from that. We close schools too often in this country, in this profession . And we don’t emphasis essentialness.

“No fire departments close; no police departments close; no hospitals close. And after those first responders we’re it, except if we were in combat.

[…]

There’s only one way to build a culture of essentialness and that’s to act essential Despite the noise, despite the whining, despite the people who are exaggerating [that] we’re going to cost people’s lives. I’ve got to ignore that and think about the kids and our core function. ”

I work for a major multi-national corporation. We are now back in the office a minimum two days a week, with Wednesday being a mandatory in-office day for my department. On Tuesday, we were told to stay home on Wednesday rather than risk driving on unsafe roads; all schools will be open again on Wednesday because temperatures will warm up into the 40s and the risk of road hazards is greatly reduced. My point here is that either you prioritize safety or you don’t. I get that there are other considerations for school districts, and Mike Miles is quite correct that unscheduled school closings are a burden for a non-trivial number of parents. He made the best call he could with the information he had at the time. It happened that the risk he was trying to mitigate didn’t materialize. What he’s saying here is that the next time this situation comes up – and it will, sooner or later, in some form – he’s going to prioritize keeping the schools open over everyone’s safety. That’s a choice he can make, and if he had made it this time it would have been fine. Next time, maybe we’re not so lucky. This is the choice he says he’s going to make. Let’s be clear about what that means. The Chron, which notes that “The TEA encourages school districts to make sure that their calendar includes enough minutes to account for at least two bad weather or other missed school days”, has more.

UPDATE: Some further remarks from Miles about future weather-related school closures.

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Texas blog roundup for the week of January 15

Posted on January 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance really hopes we’re not shivering in the dark this time as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Continue reading →

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Interview with Jerry Davis

Posted on January 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Jerry Davis

Our next familiar name in the primary for Harris County Tax Assessor belongs to Jerry Davis, who was a three-term Council member (plus a little bit more) and Mayor Pro Tem for District B. Davis is a businessman and past CEO of the non-profit Making It Better (now called Literacy Now), which works to improve literacy, leadership, and life skills for disadvantaged children. Davis co-owns the restaurants the Breakfast Klub and the Reggae Hut with his brothers. He challenged Rep. Harold Dutton in the 2020 primary but fell short in a runoff. I’ve interviewed him a couple of times before, most recently in 2013, which you can find here. Here’s the interview we did for this election:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15
Rep. Jarvis Johnson, SD15
Todd Litton, SD15
Beto Cardenas, SD15
Annette Ramirez, Tax Assessor
Danielle Bess, Tax Assessor

As noted this is Tax Assessor week, and you will get to hear from all of those candidates. Next week I will have interviews in CDs 07 and 18. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Judicial Q&A: Brandi Croffie

Posted on January 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am running a series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested Democratic primaries. This is intended to help introduce the candidates and their experiences to those who plan to vote in March. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information about Democratic primary candidates, including links to the interviews and judicial Q&As, can be found on Erik Manning’s spreadsheet.

Brandi Croffie

1. Who are you and what are you running for?

My name is Brandi Janell-Estelle Croffie, and i am running to be the next judge of the 133rd judicial district court of Harris County, Texas. I am a humble girl from Humble Texas.
I have an education background in teaching and worked as a former probation officer in Montgomery Texas, prior to attending law school. I have a heart for service and will bring the same dedication, integrity, and fair decision making to Harris County.

2. What kind of cases does this court hear?

This court will hear civil court cases where the amount in controversy exceeds $500.00. This can be anything from general business disputes to personal injury or even minor insurance settlement cases.

This court does not, however, hear any cases that are criminal, involve family cases, or probate cases as Harris County has seperate courts for these types of cases.

3. Why are you running for this particular bench?

I chose the 133rd District Court because since its inception in 1986, the seat has only been held by two judges. The opening of this seat allows the seat to be filled with a candidate who has a different background and life experiences than the prior two seat holders, but still holds strong democratic values.

I truly believe that representation matters in the courtroom and by electing me, voters can have someone with a similar background and life lens, who can rule with compassion and who will follow the law.

4. What are your qualifications for this job?

I have been practicing civil litigation for my entire legal career. My practice routinely requires appearances in district courts, predominately in Harris, Fort Bend, and Montgomery Counties. I have the judicial temperament, as well as the willingness to learn and listen, required for the bench. My background and life experiences bring diversity of thought and provide much needed representation for underserved communities. My 11 years of experience has provided the necessary skill set as well as the legal acumen required for the position. Further, my educational background in the field of counseling gives me the unique qualification of experience dealing with many different people from many different walks of life. This coupled with my experience and training, specifically in civil litigation, allows for a unique perspective and a unique way of dealing with people needed in the courtroom. Having practiced solely in civil litigation, I understand the rules of procedure and the courtroom dynamic involved.

5. Why is this race important?

This race is important because people who bring their matters to courts in Harris County should know that they will have someone hearing their cases who is fair, unbiased, and consistent. Voters should trust that they will receive timely rulings on their cases, and should know that their cases will be heard by someone who is qualified and will treat them with dignity and respect.

6. Why should people vote for you in March?

People should vote for me because I am a candidate with a proven record of service to the state of Texas and the Houston community. People should vote for me because I have the experience needed, as well as the willingness to learn and listen. I can bring my unique background, and my diversity of thought to the bench. I will always follow the law.

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Judicial Q&A: Brandi Croffie

Texas Medical Board asked to clarify abortion exceptions

Posted on January 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

If the Supreme Court won’t do it, then what else is there?

Two attorneys have asked the Texas Medical Board to clarify what qualifies as a medical exception to the state’s abortion laws, following the Texas Supreme Court’s rejection last month of a Dallas woman’s attempt to terminate her nonviable pregnancy.

The petition, filed Tuesday by attorneys Steve and Amy Bresnen, who are also lobbyists, asks the board to issue “clear guidance” about when an abortion is allowed under the law. Dr. Sherif Zaafran, the board’s chair, said the agency is in the process of reviewing it. The medical board expects to respond by the end of this week, he said.

Since Texas banned nearly all abortions in summer 2021, dozens of women have come forward to say they were denied medically necessary abortions for their complicated pregnancies. These women have said they should have qualified for an abortion under the state’s narrow medical exceptions, but their doctors were too fearful or unclear on the law to perform the procedure.

“It’s time for the Medical Board to get off the sidelines. The fact that life-threatening conditions related to pregnancy are driving women out of state for abortion care is not acceptable,” Steve Bresnen said in an email to The Texas Tribune. “The Legislature, the Governor, the Supreme Court of Texas and physicians have asked for clarity and the TMB has the power to give it. There is no excuse for further delay.”

In Texas, the medical board can revoke a doctor’s license if they violate the state’s abortion laws. Texas’ Supreme Court asked the board in December to provide doctors with more guidance on interpreting those statutes after the court rejected Dallas resident Kate Cox’s request for a medical emergency abortion.

The court’s request prompted the Bresnens to also ask for clarity from the board. Their petition also calls on the board to identify steps doctors can take to ensure that their decisions are in line with the standards for a medical exception.

The petition also asks the board to prohibit complaints against doctors that are not supported by specific evidence that an abortion performed in Texas was illegal.

“The downside risks of performing (an abortion) in an uncertain world are, you can lose everything, including your freedom, for 99 years,” Steve Bresnen said. “Physicians and hospitals need the state to tell them, ‘Here’s what this exception means, and here’s how you go about making sure that you’re acting within the exception so it minimizes your legal risk.’”

See here for some background. Please note that SCOTx asked the TMB for guidance after they cravenly refused to rule on what those exceptions are themselves. And look, maybe the TMB can take a sober and objective look at the data and the science and the rulebook and the accepted practice and come up with a precise list of what to do and what not to do for our state’s doctors, but let’s be clear about two things. One is that there is no way on God’s green earth that Ken Paxton will accept what they say. He will absolutely threaten, harass, and as needed prosecute and sue any doctors who dare to provide an abortion and hospitals that allow them to take place. Even if the situation in question is as clear as it could be, he’ll claim the doctor was recklessly murdering a baby while the hospital turned a blind eye to it. This is what he does.

And two, the best case scenario for this guidance from the TMB is that it would be an affirmative defense to the murder charge that the doctor would be arrested for. Perhaps that would allow the doctor to beat the rap, but who in their right mind would want to risk that? As long as there are no constraints on Ken Paxton there will continue to be Kate Coxes and Amanda Zurawskis and so on. The TMB can’t do anything about that.

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Interview with Danielle Bess

Posted on January 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Danielle Bess

We continue with the Tax Assessor candidates, and we come to a familiar name (as with SD15, there will be a couple of these), Danielle Bess, a native Houstonian, Navy veteran, and real estate professional. Her work has included affordable housing and community development projects, and rebuilding or repairing homes damaged by floods. She has been involved in politics for awhile and has worked with multiple campaigns. She has also been a candidate for HD147, losing in the runoff to Rep. Jolanda Jones in 2022, and for Houston City Council At Large #2 last year. My interview with her for HD147 is here, my interview with her for At Large #2 is here, and my interview with her for Tax Assessor is here:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15
Rep. Jarvis Johnson, SD15
Todd Litton, SD15
Beto Cardenas, SD15
Annette Ramirez, Tax Assessor

As noted this is Tax Assessor week, and you will get to hear from all of those candidates. Next week I will have interviews in CDs 07 and 18. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

We will have a joint primary this year

Posted on January 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This solves a problem we had only begun to realize we had.

Harris County Republicans and Democrats plan to hold a joint election during the upcoming March primaries after years of the parties conducting separate contests, County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth announced Sunday.

Although the measure must still be approved by the Commissioners Court, voters who want to cast their ballots in either of the parties’ primary elections on March 5 can do so in common precincts with the same voting equipment in a first for the county, Hudspeth said.

March’s joint contests should mean a smoother Election Day for voters.

“For Democratic and Republican primary voters, this year’s joint aspect of the Election Day voting process will be familiar,” Hudspeth said in a statement Sunday. “It is the same voting process used for years in the conduct of early voting during Primary Elections, and it is the same Election Day voting process used when voting in a November election.”

The agreement was spurred by Senate Bill 924, a newly enacted state law that requires Harris County to open significantly more polling sites than it historically has on primary day. Hudspeth, the county’s chief elections officer, sounded the alarm to the Commissioners Court this month and warned that her office would not have enough workers or machines to run separate primaries without facing major hurdles.

Without joint elections, Harris County would have had to go from about 375 polling sites during the most recent primaries to at least 512 under the new law, Hudspeth told the Commissioners Court Jan. 9.

[…]

Cindy Siegel, the Harris County Republican Party chair, argued after Hudspeth’s comments to the Commissioners Court that the county’s history of running split elections should not be changed.

But in a statement Sunday, Siegel said the party agreed to hold a joint primary election in Harris County for the first time after reviewing SB 947 and consulting the Texas Secretary of State’s elections division.

“This decision was not made lightly, but … we had no other option,” she said. “We will work with the clerk’s office to have a successful primary election, and we plan on maintaining as much control over our election as possible through ongoing negotiations with all stakeholders over the next couple of days.”

Lots of background material on this one: Here’s the County Clerk press release announcing the joint primary. Here’s Commissioner Adrian Garcia’s press release calling out Republicans for not being willing to contribute to the solution, which was from last week, around the time that Chron story in which Clerk Hudspeth explained the issue was published. Here’s SB924, which I’ll get into in a minute. The story references SB947 but I think that must be a typo as SB947 is a criminal code bill.

The story itself is straightforward enough: The effect of SB924 is that Harris County will have to operate more polling places on Primary Day, which it would have had a hard time handling. What was not explained was how and why SB924 enabled those requirements. Looking at the text of the bill, the gist is that while counties used to have the discretion to combine precincts with fewer than 500 registered voters, that discretion is now gone for counties with at least 1.2 million people. Fewer combined precincts + the need for two sets of voting machines at each location = more locations than we could have handled with the voting machines we now have.

The Republicans in the previous story sniffed that this was the fault of the Democratic-controlled Commissioners Court for not buying enough machines. I would agree that we should buy more of them now, but this law was just passed and only went into effect on September 1. It’s not like we can just order new machines from Amazon and have them up and running immediately – among other things, they need to be certified first. I don’t know what the SOS said to Cindy Siegel, but it got her on board with the joint primary solution, so we have that going for us.

Three points of interest that I would have liked to see the story address: One, this law also affects Dallas, Bexar, Tarrant, and Travis Counties, and if it doesn’t affect Collin County (population 1.158 million as of March 30, 2023), it will very soon. Denton County will follow in a few years, Fort Bend and Hidalgo a few years after that, and from there we’ll see. It would be interesting to know how they are dealing with this. Two, this was apparently a fairly partisan bill – it passed on third reading on a straight party-line vote in the Senate and a mostly but not entirely party-line vote in the House. The Dems who supported it included the likes of Reps. Rafael Anchia, Ana Hernandez, and Gene Wu, which makes me think there must be some objective reason for it. I assume the partisan reason for it is that it targeted the big urban counties, but that’s my supposition. Again, it would be nice to know more. And three, since we have a lot more than 512 precincts, I assume there’s a reason why we needed that many voting locations. The law that governs polling places in counties that use voting centers is this one, and my eyes glazed over before I made it out of the first sub-section. Again, more information, in the form of quoting some voting experts, would have been nice.

Anyway. Now you know what I know, or at least what I think I know, about this. We’ll see how it plays out in practice. As a dedicated early vote person, I’ll need to hear someone else’s account of that.

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Feral peacocks

Posted on January 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I will admit that the headline of this story made me think it would be little more than a laugh, but it had me fully engaged.

Kirk Sides/Chronicle staff photographer

Kellie Donoghue proceeds with trepidation when she takes her four dogs for a walk. Even though it’s broad daylight, she scans the streets before she makes a turn, vigilant for the omnipresent threat that’s taking over her Memorial-area neighborhood.

She’s checking the roads, tree tops and bushes for peacocks.

For decades, peacocks — more accurately called peafowl — have stalked Donoghue’s Heathwood neighborhood, shrieking from homes and trees and charging at humans and pets.

The peafowl, she said, are prone to attacking humans, animals and cars and can cause serious property damage to homes. They walk into traffic without hesitation, creating unsafe driving conditions for motorists.

“I saw seven of them smashing into a car the other day,” she reported. “They tear up roofs and break windows. Once they even chased a group of kids.”

Compounding the issue, said Heathwood resident Linda Aber, is the fact that all the birds started out as one small, privately owned flock. Aber believes the birds are all inbred, which she said raises ethical questions about whether they should be allowed to continue to reproduce.

The Heathwood flock are notorious among Texas ornithologists and invasive species experts.

Fred Collins is a wildlife biologist and former president of the Texas Audubon Society advisory board who has been studying the birds since they were introduced to Houston in the late 1950s.

The peafowl were brought to the area by Vargo’s restaurant, which closed in 2012. Many of the birds left Vargo’s property, he said, settling in the nearby neighborhoods.

What started out as a small flock of birds grew well into the hundreds by the 2010s, he said, and the flock has continued to expand.

While the birds drifted into most of the neighborhoods surrounding the Buffalo Bayou, Collins stated that the birds causing issues in Heathwood have congregated in such dense numbers because they’re being fed by residents.

It was the description of them as “invasive species” that made me stop chuckling and think about this more seriously. This isn’t the usual way that we encounter invasive species, and they’re not causing ecological havoc, but they’re still a pest that shouldn’t have been there in the first place. We hear from some other experts in the story but there’s no “this is what should be done to try to ameliorate this” statement within. The experts refute the residents’ assertions about the birds being aggressive (more likely, they’re habituated to humans, who have been feeding them), and one can infer that the best course of action mostly involves not feeding these birds any more. Easier said than done since who knows who might be doing that, but it’s at least a mantra that residents who want to Do Something can spread. I wish them well and hope that these birds don’t migrate any farther to the southeast.

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Interview with Annette Ramirez

Posted on January 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Annette Ramirez

This week we will focus on the primary for Harris County Tax Assessor, which is also an open office with the pending retirement of two-term incumbent Ann Harris Bennett. There are five candidates in the race, and I will have interviews with all of them, beginning with Annette Ramirez. Ramirez is an A&M grad and attorney who has worked for over 20 years in the legal department of the Aldine Independent School District. She currently serves as Assistant General Counsel overseeing the District’s in-house property tax collection, litigation, and real estate matters. Aldine has the distinction of being the only school district in Texas that collects its own property taxes. That’s one of the thing we talked about in the interview:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15
Rep. Jarvis Johnson, SD15
Todd Litton, SD15
Annette Ramirez, Tax Assessor

As noted this is Tax Assessor week, and you will get to hear from all of those candidates. Next week I will have interviews in CDs 07 and 18. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Judicial Q&A: Troy Moore

Posted on January 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am running a series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested Democratic primaries. This is intended to help introduce the candidates and their experiences to those who plan to vote in March. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information about Democratic primary candidates, including links to the interviews and judicial Q&As, can be found on Erik Manning’s spreadsheet.

Troy Moore

1. Who are you and what are you running for?

My name is Troy M. Moore and I’m running to become your first for Harris County Probate Judge for Court 5 — a newly created court that has an open seat.

2. What kind of cases does this court hear?

Harris County Probate courts hear cases regarding the transfer of assets for deceased people. The court also presides over guardianship cases, which decide how to deal with persons who mentally may be unable to take care of themselves.

3. Why are you running for this particular bench?

I am running for this position because I am the most qualified, experienced candidate for this position. I have dedicated most of my legal career to advocating for others in probate court. I have filed over 368 cases in probate courts. I know that my legal education, experience and a passion to serve provide a strong foundation for me to become a jurist, known as an arbiter of justice and equity, for every person who comes before the court.

I understand the intersection between the Texas Estates Code and the real-life impact on people. I always make sure that I do not forget the community responsible for the man that I am today. I make time in my practice to not just serve those who are fortunate to have the means to employ legal representation, but also those who are socioeconomically disadvantaged due to life circumstances. My most rewarding moments have been those times that I have spent advocating for issues and the people of this County.

4. What are your qualifications for this job?

My qualifications to become your next Harris County Probate Judge 5 are as follows:

  • 22 years as a Texas Bar Licensed Attorney;
  • 15 years as a Solo Practitioner with a concentration in the areas of Probate Law and Litigation;
  • Filed over 368 probate cases in Harris County; and
  • Trial Litigation Experience (in County and Federal Court).

5. Why is this race important?

This race is important because it is a new open seat that was created to address the backlog of cases in our courts that delays outcomes for everyone. It is important that the person elected to this court has the experience, temperament and integrity to achieve that legislative goal. This will be this Court’s first year in existence — we must get this one right.

6. Why should people vote for you in March?

Harris County Residents should vote for me, Troy Moore, for the first Judge of Harris County Probate Court 5 because:

  • I am the candidate with the most subject matter experience in Probate Law, and I will be ready on day one.
  • I am committed to conducting a time-efficient and effective court. I will not keep cases in my court beyond the time necessary to make an informed decision.

*It is important that judges make correct decisions at the trial court level, and not create an unnecessary burden to taxpayers by wasting the parties’ time and money when trial court decisions are reversed on appeal.

  • I am committed to the promise of the application of fairness and equity, no matter the individual’s background or personal wealth.
  • I have a proven track record of practicing law with character, dignity and integrity.
Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Judicial Q&A: Troy Moore

Apparently that challenge to the 2023 Constitutional amendment elections just went away

Posted on January 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I’d been wondering about this.

Legal challenges that threatened to upend Texas voter-approved property tax cuts and increases to retired teachers’ pensions appear to have been squashed by a coordinated effort between the governor, the attorney general and the secretary of state.

The secretary of state’s office has declared the 13 voter propositions approved on Nov. 7 a part of the Texas Constitution, according to legal filings in Travis County. The court documents indicate Gov. Greg Abbott seized upon a legal technicality to thwart six lawsuits challenging the results of the recent election.

Property tax cuts that could save homeowners hundreds on their tax bills next year and thousands of dollars for cost-of-living increases for retired teachers could have been in limbo while the lawsuits moved through courts in Travis County and a likely appellate process.

[…]

On [December 4], Abbott canvassed the election, notifying the secretary of state’s office that he had certified results for all of the voter propositions. On [December 5], the secretary of state’s office filed motions in the lawsuits indicating the measures are now part of the state constitution.

The election challenges would have held up implementation of the amendments. But the office of the attorney general discovered that the lawsuits had “citation and return of service” that gave incorrect deadlines for the secretary of state to respond, according to legal filings.

Typically plaintiffs can correct suits with proper citations. However, Texas law requires all subpoenas in challenges to elections to be served before the governor certifies the results.

Since the results have been certified, they are no longer subject to new legal challenges.

“This Court will never see a simpler example of mootness,” the legal filings from the secretary of state’s office read.

[…]

Randy Erben, a law professor at the University of Texas at Austin, said even if the law appears to be on Abbott’s side, dismissing the cases will require a ruling from a judge.

“The canvas ends the debate, but … the court may come back and say there’s nothing the matter with the service or there’s some exception or ameliorating factor,” Erben said.

See here and here for the background. I had noted this effort to moot the lawsuits, but the way I saw it reported at the time, I had assumed more or less what Professor Erben says, that the litigation was still active until a judge made a ruling. After the recent stories about electing appraisal district board members and new money for state parks, and I figured either we had a collective case of amnesia or something had happened with the litigation that I had missed. Turned out it was just my expectations, as that magic filing seems plus Abbott’s day-early canvass did indeed make it disappear. If later on the judge in the case rules that the lawsuit is still active, then I suppose anything that happens from there would affect a future election, as by then it would be too late for this one. Anti-climactic to say the least, but here we are. I’m always happy to see election deniers get denied, though I doubt this will slow them down the next time. I presume the lesson they’ll take from this is to be more careful in their filings. I fear we’ll find out this November.

Posted in Election 2023, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Apparently that challenge to the 2023 Constitutional amendment elections just went away

Weekend link dump for January 14

Posted on January 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This self-portrait of a young Philadelphia man called Robert Cornelius is believed to be the earliest American portrait photo still in existence. Basically, the first selfie.

“For decades after its 1989 release, each of the hundreds of millions of standard NES Tetris games ended the same way: A block reaches the top of the screen and triggers a “game over” message. That 34-year streak was finally broken on December 21, 2023, when 13-year-old phenom BlueScuti became the first human to reach the game’s “kill screen” after a 40-minute, 1,511-line performance, crashing the game by reaching its functional limits.”

“The law is the law, and the rule of law is the rule of law, and the court is the entity tasked with determining whether the nation follows where that leads. Unlike with so many of their recent decisions, the people most affected by this decision, whatever it may be, will not be silent, or fearful, or mollified by the words IT IS SO ORDERED. This may be the first major test this year of whether the court, and indeed the country, can weather 2024 with its institutions intact. It decidedly will not be the last.”

“Why Trump can’t use the ‘idiot’ defense other Jan. 6 defendants often lean on”.

Jerry Lewis’ notorious and almost-never seen The Day The Clown Cried is set for a screening this June.

“For an illustration of what we Christians celebrate on Epiphany, think of the movie Freaky Friday. Either one will do — the original with Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris or the remake with Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis. Neither is really a great movie, but they’re both memorable and entertaining.”

RIP, Cindy Morgan, actor best known for Caddyshack and Tron.

“Stranger Things has officially started production on its fifth and final season.”

“Man Finds Undamaged Cell Phone That Survived 16,000-Foot Fall From Alaska Airlines Blowout”.

RIP, Franz Beckenbauer, German soccer legend who won a World Cup as a player and as a coach.

“Who is America’s Largest Landowner?”

“A California man who lost $100,000 in a 2021 SIM-swapping attack is suing the unknown holder of a cryptocurrency wallet that harbors his stolen funds. The case is thought to be first in which a federal court has recognized the use of information included in a bitcoin transaction — such as a link to a civil claim filed in federal court — as reasonably likely to provide notice of the lawsuit to the defendant. Experts say the development could make it easier for victims of crypto heists to recover stolen funds through the courts without having to wait years for law enforcement to take notice or help.”

“The Biden administration stopped a company from selling data on people’s medical visits on Tuesday, its first settlement on a privacy issue that has many Americans concerned about who can see their most sensitive personal data — particularly visits to abortion providers.”

“Asking people to “do the research” on fake news stories makes them seem more believable, not less”.

“So, I’ve watched with some befuddlement the cascading reaction to this essay, even from apparently at least one person on Swift’s team. Many, many people have weighed in on the supposed inappropriateness of the Times’ actions here, and I would like to suggest everyone consider this entire situation with a little more chill, and a lot more grace.”

I had no idea that modern dishwashers took longer than older ones, but now that I do know, I don’t really care. Who waits around for their dishwasher to finish up?

RIP, Bud Harrelson, former Mets shortstop, coach, and manager.

The ESPN fake Emmys thing is just too weird.

RIP, Tom Shales, Pulitzer-winning TV critic for the Washington Post.

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It’s official, Paxton will get deposed

Posted on January 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Excellent.

A crook any way you look

Attorney General Ken Paxton and his top aides will be forced to testify in a lawsuit accusing Paxton of violating the state’s whistleblower protection law after the Texas Supreme Court on Friday denied an emergency motion to block the depositions.

The case centers on allegations by four of Paxton’s former top deputies that he fired them out of retaliation after they reported him to the FBI for alleged corruption in 2020. They alleged that he accepted bribes in exchange for abusing his office to help a friend and campaign donor, financially troubled real estate investor Nate Paul.

Those allegations became the basis for impeachment charges filed by the majority-Republican Texas House last year; the Texas Senate later acquitted the third-term Republican.

The state Supreme Court justices did not explain the denial. Justice Evan Young did not participate.

Two justices — John Devine and Jimmy Blacklock — dissented in part, saying they would have ordered the plaintiffs to depose lower-ranking officials first and then let the district court reconsider the necessity of Paxton and his top aides’ testimony.

With the high court’s denial Friday, Paxton and his aides have run out of appeals. Paxton’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

See here for the previous update. SCOTx did not waste any time on this, which I appreciate. Like the whistleblowers’ attorneys, I look forward to seeing this asshole get put under the microscope; the attorneys expressed this opinion more delicately than I did. The deposition will happen sometime before February 9. Nate Paul has also been served and his testimony is scheduled for February 21, assuming he doesn’t try his luck with the courts to stop it. Good luck with that, pal. Reform Austin has more.

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Whitmire’s approach to HISD

Posted on January 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It’s on brand, I’ll say that.

Mayor John Whitmire

Mayor John Whitmire met Monday with Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath to reaffirm his support for Houston ISD’s appointed leadership, signaling a new approach from City Hall toward the state’s stewardship of the district as Whitmire begins his term as mayor.

Whitmire met with Morath to share “his views on the importance of HISD to the City of Houston and pledged that he and his new Education Advisor would assist the Houston Independent School District in any way possible,” according to mayor’s office spokesperson Mary Benton.

The mayor’s office did not divulge further details about the conversation, and said that Whitmire’s education adviser had not yet been named. The Texas Education Agency did not return a request for comment.

While Houston’s mayor has no formal authority over its school district, the relationship between mayor and superintendent has come under scrutiny as the city’s Democratic leaders have fought against the takeover of its school system by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and his education commissioner, Morath. Morath, a former Dallas ISD trustee, is responsible for appointing former Dallas ISD Superintendent Mike Miles to HISD’s top post in June.

Former Mayor Sylvester Turner, a vocal supporter of former HISD Superintendent Millard House II, gave Miles the cold shoulder upon his arrival in Houston, regularly speaking out against Miles’ controversial reforms and ignoring an invitation to tour one of his New Education System schools, which underwent the most drastic overhauls.

Whitmire met with both Morath and Miles during his campaign for mayor and said he would lend whatever assistance was needed to Miles and his administration.

“The bottom line is the takeover has taken place, and it’s shameful to politicize that, politicize children’s education,” Whitmire said in November. “Let’s support the students, support the administration that has got the children’s best interests at heart, and go forward.”

[…]

Erin Baumgartner, director of the Houston Education Research Institute at Rice University’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, said that it was fine for Whitmire to speak with Morath, but that ultimately, his relationship with Miles will be most important, given the localized control of Texas school districts.

Students’ and families’ needs go “beyond what a school district can offer,” Baumgartner said, and the mayor has the power to leverage resources toward transportation, public safety and social services in a way that improves their ability to receive a quality education.

“It’s really about the City of Houston recognizing HISD as a resource in our community and supporting the students that are in it,” Baumgartner said.

Robert Sanborn, president and CEO of the education policy nonprofit Children at Risk, said that Whitmire’s pragmatic approach toward relations with the TEA and the HISD leaders they appointed is a healthy step in the right direction for Houston children, but that Whitmire’s ultimate goal should be to expedite HISD’s return to local control.

“When you see Mayor Whitmire reaching out to them, it’s going to make a lot of people angry but it’s also the reality of what is happening, and to just abandon (HISD) and say ‘we don’t want them here so I’m not going to meet with them’ is probably not the right move,” Sanborn said. “However, the mayor’s clear message needs to be ‘let’s move it along, let’s stop with the takeover and move to get our own superintendent and our own board in there.'”

Whitmire told the Chronicle in November that his goal was to “make it work as best as we can and then get ’em out of town.”

I think we’re all familiar with the pros and cons of this approach. Maybe it’ll work, maybe he’ll get played. It’s too soon to say. At least in this case, as long as the Mayor keeps that focus on getting Mike Miles out of town, it should keep him pointed in the right direction. Beyond that, we’ll see.

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Dispatches from Dallas: Special year-end edition

Posted on January 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a special edition of my friend Ginger’s “Dispatches from Dallas” series. I very much hope Ginger will be back to providing regular editions soon.

This is a quick wrap-up of the year-end news for 2023 from DFW and some predictions and forward-looking stories for 2024, brought to you by the music of LCD Soundsystem.

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Interview with Beto Cardenas

Posted on January 13, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Beto Cardenas

Now we come to the end of our SD15 interview odyssey, stretching to its sixth day to accommodate this sizeable field. Beto Cardenas, who just put up a campaign launch video that features an endorsement from Rep. Sylvia Garcia that you can see here, is an attorney and businessman. A graduate of Texas A&M and Texas Tech Law School, he has served on multiple boards including the Houston Parks Board, Texas Tech University School of Law Foundation, and Houston Zoo He has served as Chairman of the Houston Botanic Garden, and previously served as a director of the Houston Food Bank. He represented the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in opposing the end of DACA in 2018; you can hear him discuss this on Houston Matters. Here’s what we talked about:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15
Rep. Jarvis Johnson, SD15
Todd Litton, SD15

As noted this is the end of SD15. Next week I will have interviews with the five candidates running for Harris County Tax Assessor. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

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We’re going to be electing what now?

Posted on January 13, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I had no idea about this. It sure wasn’t covered in the runup to this past election.

In a state known for too many elections, there’s another one coming to Texas’ 50 largest counties.

This May, voters in those most populous counties will be asked to elect three members of their respective appraisal district boards. When Texas voters approved constitutional amendments to lower property taxes this year they also approved new political positions within their appraisal districts that are now up for election in May.

Appraisal districts determine annual property valuations based on market value, which helps local taxing entities calculate how much tax revenue they can receive in a given year, and set their tax rates and budgets. Since 1980, these districts have included a property tax appraiser and an appointed board.

Last November, voters approved the ballot measure that set a temporary maximum on appraised property values and increased the homestead exemption from $40,000 to $100,000. But they may not have read further. Included in the ballot language was a major tweak to how appraisal district board members – usually appointed by local elected officials – are chosen.

Beginning in May, there will be four-year terms for members of the boards for appraisal districts with populations over 75,000 and each will have eight members. Three of those will be elected. The change has drawn some concern and criticism from county leaders now saddled with a brand new election. And many counties are still working out which current members will serve as an appointed official and which will be forced to run for an elected spot.

So why do this? According to state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Houston Republican and the author of Senate Bill 2 that became Proposition 4 on the November ballot, Texas lawmakers were overrun with questions regarding taxpayer input into the county appraisal district governance.

“Now when you look historically over this, there’s never really been elected representation ever on the appraisal district board of directors,” he said.

Whether a board is elected or appointed, board members don’t make decisions regarding property values, which is the issue voters primarily complain about according to Bettencourt. The board does decide what members are appointed to the appraisal review board, which is not required to lower property values but has the option to.

[…]

But the change has drawn concern from some chief appraisers, who worry this will either politicize the system or create problems convincing anyone to fill the seat.

“Who wants to get signage and go knock on doors for a position that does not pay a dime?” asked Angelina County Chief Appraiser Tim Chambers. “You get no benefit whatsoever for being on my board – a cup of coffee or a bottle of water is about all you get.”

In Bexar County, Chief Appraiser Rogelio Sandoval is waiting to see what this will mean for his community. He didn’t express an opinion on the change, but said it is his job to uphold the law regardless of what it is – which is what he plans to do.

There’s also the added scrutiny board members typically face, as residents protesting their property evaluations have historically evaluated properties owned by board members as well, he said.

Chambers wanted to know exactly what the board of directors was expected to campaign on, what kind of promises they could make. Board members are not permitted to discuss property valuations outside of public meetings and cannot tell the chief appraiser to change property values.

[…]

Chambers and [Mike Brower, chief appraiser for Bowie County] worry creating elected positions will politicize a formerly apolitical system. Brower doesn’t understand why the positions need to be elected.

“Essentially, the board can hire and fire the chief appraiser and find us a place to office. They can enter into contracts over $5,000, they approve a budget and they appoint (the appraisal review board),” Brower said. “I just told you everything my board of directors is allowed by law to do and not a thing that I just told you has anything to do with property value and it has nothing to do with taxes.”

Campaigners seeking board positions cannot promise to lower property values, or to make truly substantive changes to how the system operates during the election.

Yeah, I have no idea what this is going to look like. The current list of HCAD Board members includes a bunch of people whose appointed terms ended this past December 31; in theory, either they have been reappointed by now or someone new has taken their place. At least three of them (Kathy Blueford-Daniels, Martina Lemond Dixon, and Ann Harris Bennett) are elected officials, which means they could not run for one of the new elected positions on the Board. (HCAD now stands for Harris Central Appraisal District by the way, another thing I learned in writing this post.) But I suppose they could continue to be appointed members? (Ann Harris Bennett will not be, at least once her term as Tax Assessor ends.) I have no idea.

Here’s a list of Texas counties, which you can sort by population size. Harris, Montgomery, Fort Bend, Brazoria, Galveston, and Liberty Counties will all have to go through this. Waller County, with a population of 61K and rapidly growing, will likely join the fun in a few years, while Chambers (51K) may be a decade or more away. Walker County, home of Huntsville, is the smallest county to meet the 75K threshold, though Wise County in North Texas was just below it and may have to consult a demographer and/or lawyer to see if they are in scope. This is going to be more than a little chaotic.

One last thing to note is that this will be a May election, at least this time; perhaps in the future we will do these in November. I’ll have to read SB2 more closely. We generally don’t have much election activity in Harris County in May – some smaller cities and some school boards do May elections, though those are usually in the odd-numbered years. Outside of the HISD recapture re-do referendum in 2017, we pretty much never have elections on the uniform May date. We do have party primary runoffs in May, but those are on a different date. See how much fun this is already?

Anyway. I will keep an eye on this. In the meantime, some more coverage of the fact that we will even be having this election in less than four months would be nice. The Fort Worth Report, which provides an estimate of $300K to hold that county’s election for these posts, has more.

UPDATE: Finally looked through this very long bill and near the bottom there’s this:

SECTION 5.13. (a) Appraisal district directors shall be elected to the elective positions as provided by Section 6.0301, Tax Code, as added by this article, beginning with the election conducted on the uniform election date in May 2024. The directors then elected take office on July 1, 2024, and serve a term that expires on December 31, 2026.

(b) Following the election of the initial elected directors of an appraisal district as provided by Subsection (a) of this section, directors shall be elected as provided by Section 6.0301, Tax Code, as added by this article, beginning with the general election conducted in November 2026. Directors then elected take office January 1, 2027.

(c) At the first meeting of the board of directors of an appraisal district described by Section 6.0301, Tax Code, as added by this article, that follows the November 2026 general election of directors under that section, the three elected directors shall draw lots to determine which director shall serve a term of two years and which two directors shall serve a term of four years. Thereafter, all elected directors serve four-year terms.

OK, so at least this May election is a one time deal. This is still very weird.

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Driverless trucks minus human “safety drivers” set to debut later this year

Posted on January 13, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I-45 will be where to find them.

Driverless trucks with no humans on board will soon cruise Texas highways if three startup firms have their way despite objections from critics who say financial pressures, not safety, is behind the timetable.

After years of testing, Aurora Innovation, Kodiak Robotics and Gatik AI expect to remove safety drivers from trucks that are being guided by software and an array of sensors, including cameras, radar and lidar, which sends pulses of light that bounces off objects. The companies have already hauled cargo for big names, such as Walmart Inc., Kroger Co., FedEx Corp. and Tyson Foods.

“At the end of the year, we anticipate getting to the point where we begin operating those trucks without drivers on board,” Chris Urmson, co-founder and CEO of Pittsburgh-based Aurora, said in an interview.

All the companies say they’re ready to deploy the technology, though they know there’s little-to-no margin for error. The risk is worth it, they say, because the technology promises to improve highway safety and lower transportation costs.

Detractors say the companies have incentive to reduce the losses that investors have been financing during the development and testing phase.

“We are concerned about the lack of regulation, the lack of transparency [and] the lack of comprehensive data collection,” said Cathy Chase, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. The list of opponents also includes the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the 1.3 million-member union that represents drivers and warehouse workers.

[…]

At Aurora’s terminal just south of Dallas, a worker cleans sensors on top and at the side of a dark blue Peterbilt truck while a safety driver sits in the cab ready for the truck to pull out. If all goes as planned, the safety driver, whose hands now hover above the wheel without touching it while the truck is in transit, will soon no longer be needed for the 200-mile trek to Houston.

“Our intent is this is going to feel like just another day, except this day the truck’s going to head out on the road without anybody in it,” Urmson said.

[…]

Gatik AI, a Mountain View, Calif.-based startup, has already driven trucks without a driver in Arkansas and Canada. The company uses smaller, box trucks and plans to deliver from distribution centers to stores. In 2024 the company expects to deploy driverless trucks in the Dallas area “at scale,” Gatik co-founder and CEO Gautam Narang said.

Kodiak plans to “start small in 2024 and gradually ramp it up as we build confidence in the system that we didn’t miss anything,” said Don Burnette, CEO of the closely held company that he founded in 2018 that is also based in Mountain View, Calif. “We’ve seen the damage that can be done,” as in the case of robotaxis in San Francisco, he said.

The first operations without a human aboard will be short runs near the company’s truck terminal just south of Dallas and extend from there, said Burnette.

The companies have truck port partners to help with refueling their diesel-powered fleets and roadside assistance in case of a flat tire.

See here for the most recent post I have about driverless trucks, which have been running in Texas mostly on I-45 for the past couple of years. I have a couple of posts about Aurora and Kodiak, but the only mention I can find on this site about Gatik was in the context of autonomous vehicles in general. You can learn more about them at the links in the story; Aurora has a separate page for this project. They have also been in the news for some bigger ambitions.

Thousands of self-driving trucks could be on U.S. roads by 2027 following a Friday announcement by autonomous trucking firm Aurora Innovation.

Together with Continental, Pittsburgh-based Aurora said it has finalized the architecture and requirements of its Aurora Driver hardware — an important milestone that will allow the company to scale its driverless trucks and deliver them to commercial partners including PACCAR and Volvo.

Aurora plans to debut its autonomous trucks on a Dallas-to-Houston route by the end of this year.

[…]

Aurora and other trucking firms like Gatik and Kodiak Robotics have thus far used a human driver on pilot routes as a failsafe for self-driving software but aim to bring fully autonomous vehicles to Texas roadways this year. Aurora is working with Continental’s engineering team to develop a specialized secondary computer that can take over operation if a failure occurs. That’s expected to go into production in 2027.

The technology has the potential to reshape the freight industry, allowing trucks to be on the road for more than 20 hours a day and, without the need for human breaks, trim delivery time for long-haul loads by days. Companies developing autonomous programs say driverless hauling will improve highway safety and stabilize transportation costs.

Major players in the automotive and freight spaces are betting on autonomous technology to do just that: Toyota, Volvo, Uber, PACCAR and Amazon are all investors in Aurora. The firm raised $850 million last summer.

Self-driving technology could also fill gaps in the industry left by driver shortages, with as much as 90% of long-haul trucking predicted to become self-driving.

Today I-45, tomorrow the world. Getting a truck to honk its horn as you pass it on the highway may become extinct as well. We’ll see how it goes.

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Interview with Todd Litton

Posted on January 12, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Todd Litton

Normally this is where I’d say we’re wrapping up the week, but there are six candidates in the Democratic primary for SD15, so there will be another interview tomorrow. For today, we have another familiar name, Todd Litton, who made a spirited run for CD02 in 2018 against Dan Crenshaw. Litton is an attorney and mediator, with his own mediation practice in Houston. He has been on the board of many non-profits, he helped recruit multiple State Rep candidates in 2020, and he served as Mayor Bill White’s Chair of the City of Houston’s Tower Commission. You can listen to the interview I did with him in 2018 here, and you can listen to what we discussed this time here:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15
Rep. Jarvis Johnson, SD15

I will have one more interview from SD15 tomorrow, with interviews from other races to follow in the weeks to come. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

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Judicial Q&A: Erica Hughes

Posted on January 12, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am running a series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested Democratic primaries. This is intended to help introduce the candidates and their experiences to those who plan to vote in March. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information about Democratic primary candidates, including links to the interviews and judicial Q&As, can be found on Erik Manning’s spreadsheet.

Erica Hughes

1. Who are you and what are you running for?

Erica Hughes, running for Judge of the 151st Civil District Court. I am a lifelong Democrat from Dallas, Texas. I became a part of the Houston community when I moved in 2003 to attend law school. I am a military Veteran that loves to give back to the community.

2. What kind of cases does this court hear?

This court hears civil cases where one party is seeking monetary relief of more than $500. This includes debt collection, real estate cases, insurance coverage, personal injuries, wrongful death, product liability, breach of contract. The court is not limited to hear these types of cases, but these are the most common cases before the court.

3. Why are you running for this particular bench?

I am running for the 151st District Court because it is time for change. I have the experience to be an excellent civil Judge. I will truly see all parties as equals. This court needs a Judge that understands what justice for all means. The court needs a Judge that will be impartial to all, no matter their campaign contribution, individual representation, corporate status, attorney representation, or walk of life. I will bring an approach that will administer justice for all in a timely and efficient manner. I believe that everyone should experience a justice system that gives them a fair trial by a jury of their peers.

4. What are your qualifications for this job?

I have practiced law for 17 years. I am a graduate of Thurgood Marshall school of Law. I have served as a Judge for Harris County Criminal Court #3. I have served as a Judge for Harris County Veterans Court for all 16 Misdemeanor Courts. I serve as a Judge for Immigration under the department of Justice. I have worked for State Farm Insurance Company representing policy holders. I have also served as a plaintiff’s attorney in my own practice for personal injury claims. During this time, I served as a fee attorney for a Title company within the state of Texas working on real estate matters. I have served in the military as A Judge Advocate General. I have also been adjunct faculty for 13 years. I have also served as a board member to the Coalition for the Homeless. I have a heart dedicated to the community and serving the community. I believe all these experiences combined make me the best Judge for the job.

5. Why is this race important?

The judicial system is usually the communities first encounter with someone they elect and their last chance for justice. They need someone who understands their walk of life and that everyone is not familiar with the judicial system. The community needs someone who has experience with the community, corporations, and the experience to fairly adjudicate their dispute while treating everyone with respect and dignity. The voters can make sure they get a Judge like this in the 151 st by voting for me.

6. Why should people vote for you in March?

The people should vote for me because I have the experience, empathy, integrity, and the fight for justice for all. I have the community involvement and legal experience combined that will make best Judge for the job. I have worked in my community and fought for an equal justice system and made improvements every day, not just during election time. My legal career and life experiences have prepared me for this role. I am ready on day one to create a courtroom that welcomes all parties to have their day in court. I am asking for your support to effectuate the change needed in this court. Please vote for Erica Hughes.

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Paxton tries his whistleblower deposition luck with SCOTx

Posted on January 12, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This should be the end of the line, one way or another.

A crook any way you look

Embattled Attorney General Ken Paxton is asking the Texas Supreme Court to shield him from being deposed in an ongoing whistleblower lawsuit filed by four former agency employees. The former aides say they were wrongfully fired in retribution for complaining to federal authorities about Paxton’s possible misconduct in helping a friend and campaign donor.

Paxton’s appeal to the state’s high court, which was filed Monday, comes after an appeals court on Friday evening rejected the same motion, affirming a district court’s previous ruling to compel his and several of his high-ranking deputies’ testimony in the case.

The 3rd Court of Appeals’ ruling Friday also allows the whistleblowers to continue their lawsuit after a proposed $3.3 million settlement agreement fell apart when the Legislature last year refused to pay for it.

[…]

Over the course of four appeals seeking to stop the whistleblowers from continuing their suit and to quash his court-ordered testimony, Paxton has argued that he complied with the nonmonetary elements of the settlement agreement — such as removing a disparaging news release about the whistleblowers and making a public statement that the former top aides in his office had acted with good intention in complaining about him to the FBI — and that the Legislature’s refusal to foot the bill should not warrant continued settlement talks or a trial.

“And, like any legislation, settlement funding can take more than one session to pass,” Paxton’s attorneys argued in their Monday appeal to the Supreme Court.

In a response filed Tuesday to Paxton’s latest appeal, the whistleblowers’ attorneys disagreed with the Office of the Attorney General’s assessment, arguing the terms of the previous agreement were never met and that lawmakers, who adopted a provision to bar state appropriations from funding a settlement, have no interest in paying for the initial agreement.

“The Legislature considered and rejected OAG’s request for funding, and even added a rider to the appropriations bill forbidding OAG from settling this case with taxpayer funds,” the attorneys for the whistleblowers wrote in their response.

The whistleblowers also are painting Paxton’s argument to maintain the original settlement agreement and bar his testimony in the case as tired and repetitive after previous courts have rejected the attorney general’s same argument on the path to appealing to the Supreme Court.

“If OAG’s arguments seem familiar, that is because this Court has considered them before,” the whistleblowers wrote, referencing a September Supreme Court ruling that lifted an abatement on the case, allowing for settlement negotiations to continue.

[…]

Despite Soifer’s ruling that the plaintiffs showed “good cause” in seeking to compel Paxton’s deposition — along with those of First Assistant Attorney General Brent Webster, Paxton’s chief of staff Lesley French Henneke and senior adviser Michelle Smith — Paxton’s team argues that his testimony is not warranted and that “less intrusive means of discovery” should be prioritized.

Under Soifer’s order, Paxton and his deputies are required to provide their depositions by Feb. 9, but not prior to Jan. 16.

See here for the previous update. Note how Paxton filed his Supreme Court appeal on Monday after getting ruled against by the Third Court of Appeals on Friday. I’m guessing there was a lot of copy/paste involved there. I would expect another quick ruling – today is Friday, so keep an eye on the internets this afternoon, as that’s always a popular time for this sort of thing. KXAN has more.

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Dispatches from Dallas, January 12 edition

Posted on January 12, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think.

This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth, an explosion rocked downtown Fort Worth; the late Eddie Bernice Johnson was honored; Ken Paxton was swatted; there was assorted primary-related business; Dallas’ city charter and its upcoming bond proposal got closer to their deadlines; the DMN’s architecture critic had a few things to say about housing policy; a Dallas Zoo giraffe died; and more. This week’s post was brought to you by the music of the Supreme Beings of Leisure.

This week’s post will also be my last for a while, though I hope to be back on the beat sooner rather than later. I received a diagnosis of endometrial cancer in November, and next week I’ll have surgery to remove the cancer. I have a 70% chance of skating by without radiation or chemo following surgery, but obviously I won’t know when I’ll be up to writing until afterwards. When caught at this stage, endometrial cancer’s survival rate is 99% at 5 years, so I’m glad my doctors found it. As a public service, I’d like all of you to know that any post-menopausal bleeding is a sign to take yourself to the doctor immediately and get checked out, because the default assumption is that’s a sign of uterine cancer. The life you save may be your own or that of someone you love!

As you may have heard, since it got national coverage (Washington Post), there was an explosion in downtown Fort Worth on Monday. Nobody was killed but more than 20 people were injured, one critically. The Star-Telegram has the best coverage; the gist is the cause appears to be a natural gas leak in the basement restaurant of the Sandman Hotel. The hotel is in a historic building; the design and steel construction may have kept the building up despite the explosion. You can see from the photos in the last link that it’s a large twenty-story building. City authorities have closed streets in the area and the parade route for the Stock Show has been changed to keep participants away. The Star-Telegram also has an explainer about gas explosions in North Texas and how some of them are related to maintenance on the customer-owned line from the street.

While we were fortunate enough not to have an explosion, our own Dallas home had a leak that our inspectors didn’t catch when we moved in. A month after we took over and paid our first gas bill, we called to have it checked because it seemed high and found out there was a leak. We spent a very cold holiday after having our gas turned off at 5 p.m. the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It took about ten days to get the line dismantled and replaced and the inspection to clear it so we could get our gas heating back on.

What bothers me personally as a gas customer is that our bill was ridiculous and Atmos could have spotted it, but they left it to us to figure it out. It’s one thing for Atmos to not be financially responsible for repairing gas lines on private property. But they’re the experts and they have a good idea of when a customer’s gas expenditures change. The gas lines in this part of Texas are mostly old and aging out; we learned this in 2018 after the big DMN investigation into Atmos mentioned in the Star-Telegram article about gas explosions. If they know their own lines need replacement, they ought to be proactively telling their customers to get the lines from the street checked.

Circling back to the hotel explosion, the lawsuits have already started, with the hotel, the management company, and Atmos as defendants.

The second big story this week has been the funeral and burial of local legend Eddie Bernice Johnson, who represented South Dallas in Congress for 30 years. She died on December 31, her wake was on Monday, her funeral was on Tuesday and she was buried in the Texas State Cemetery in Austin on Wednesday.

One of the more distressing parts of the news about Johnson is how she died. The family plans to sue her medical provider for negligence, as described by the Texas Tribune, and I suggest you read the details with caution because they’re pretty rough. The gist of it is that she had spinal surgery, was left unattended in her own bodily wastes, her injuries became infected, and the infection killed her.

This week’s story is about Johnson’s achievements, though. She was honored by a variety of community and political leaders, including President Biden, who made his first trip to Dallas as President to attend the wake. Love Field, where Biden flew in on Monday, was the site of a pro-Palestinian rally that led to 13 arrests but didn’t keep Biden from attending the wake. You can read about EBJ’s career in the publication of your choice; my favorite piece is this D Magazine tribute with quotes from state, local, and national figures she mentored. She will be much missed.

In other news:

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Interview with Rep. Jarvis Johnson

Posted on January 11, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Rep. Jarvis Johnson

Next up is State Rep. Jarvis Johnson, who has served in HD139 since winning a special election to succeed the newly elected Mayor Sylvester Turner. He was on the Appropriations Committee this past session and was the Vice Chair of the Community Safety and Homeland Security & Public Safety committees. Johnson served for three terms on Houston City Council before that in District B. A TSU graduate and entrepreneur, I’ve interviewed him a couple of times before, most recently in 2016 when he was elected to HD139. You can listed to that interview here and you can listen to this interview here:

PREVIOUSLY:

Karthik Soora, SD15
Michelle Bonton, SD15
Molly Cook, SD15

I will have more interviews from SD15 this week, with interviews from other races to follow in the weeks to come. You can keep track of all my interviews and judicial Q&As on the ever indispensable Erik Manning spreadsheet.

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An effort to recall Dallas’ Mayor

Posted on January 11, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know how seriously to take this. It seems like a big stretch. But I’ll be rooting for them.

Last September, when Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson told the world he had switched political parties from Democrat to Republican, it ruffled more than a few feathers in the blue-leaning city. Now, a Dallas activist and former City Council candidate named Davante Peters is circulating a petition to recall the mayor.

Johnson’s party switching isn’t the only factor that inspired the petition. Peters said the mayor’s absence from city meetings over the last few years prompted him to file his petition with the city secretary. According to KERA, Johnson has missed more than 130 hours of City Council meetings since 2019, something that Peters takes seriously.

“There’s obviously something that has his attention more than his role at hand,” Peters said. “That’s kind of what led me to jump on this.” Johnson’s office did not respond to a request for comment about the recall effort.

Peters is the owner of a health and wellness business called Tha Alkaline Hour. He’s encouraging people to show up to his Dallas location at 4414 S. Marsalis Ave. to sign his petition.

Recalling an elected official in Dallas is a multistep process. First, a notice of intent to circulate a petition must be filed with the city secretary. That’s what Peters did on Jan. 5. The petition must be signed within 60 days by at least 15% of voters who were eligible to vote in the last election.

After the signatures have been gathered, the petition is sent to the city secretary to be certified within 30 days. When it’s been certified, the petition can be submitted to the City Council, which will then call for a recall election. This election is to take place on the next available election date no later than 60 days after the certification of the petition.

The recall election is held as if the mayor’s position were vacant. The mayor is automatically placed on the ballot unless he resigns or decides not to run. The rest of the candidates must comply with regular requirements for a general election in the city. The person elected must take the oath of office within 10 days after the canvassing of the election or the seat will be declared vacant.

[…]

Peters said the vast majority of people he has approached with his petition have been supportive of it. “I haven’t found anyone so far who is not extremely eager and excited to sign our petition,” Peters said. He said the first day of circulating the petition he got about 100 signatures. He has about 150 signatures now and needs 103,595. The deadline for the signatures is March 5, Dallas City Secretary Bilierae Johnson told the Observer by email.

All due respect, but 100 signatures a day isn’t going to come close to meeting the threshold. The magic number to get to the required total in 60 days is 1,727 sigs per day. It’s clear that Davante Peters isn’t going to approach that number on his own, but a more organized effort, with funding and volunteers and messaging and so on, should be able to. If such a movement springs up around Peters in the next couple of days, then perhaps the Mayor has something to worry about. If not, this is probably the last you’ll hear of it. We’ll see.

UPDATE: The Trib story addresses one of the points I made above:

Kardal Coleman, chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party, started an online petition last year calling for the two-term mayor — a former long-time Democrat — to resign. As of Tuesday, it has over 2,300 signatures.

Peters said he felt that the online petition was a “symbolic effort.” His recall petition is the first filed with the city’s secretary against a Dallas City Council member since a failed effort to unseat a council member in 2017.

Johnson’s office did not respond on Tuesday to requests for comment on the petition.

[…]

Peters said he hopes the petition will gain support from Coleman, other Dallas Democrats and community activists.

I agree that the online petition was just a symbolic activity. The Dallas County Democratic Party ought to be in a position to make Peters’ effort a real one, if they are so inclined. They may or may not be – they have a primary to run, and this November takes precedence over everything else – but if they are, then this may go somewhere. The DCDP is not the only entity that could fuel this – honestly, anyone with enough money and a big enough grudge could do it – but they’re a logical starting point.

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