Tag Archives: Harris County Sheriff

It’s not just Precinct 4

Posted on September 28, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

There are problems with evidence rooms in other Constable precincts as well. With Harris County’s Precinct 4 Constable’s Office mired in scandal over the improper destruction of 21,000 pieces of evidence, serious evidence cataloging and control problems also have been … Continue reading →

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UH Hobby School (Harris County only): Clinton 43, Trump 34

Posted on September 23, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I have many thoughts about this. Between September 1 and September 20, 2016, the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs conducted a telephone survey of 550 Harris County registered voters as part of a larger Hobby School study … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Time for a change, part 2

Posted on September 12, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron endorses Ed Gonzalez for Sheriff, after indicting incumbent Sheriff Ron Hickman for a litany of failures. At the beginning of this campaign we believed that Sheriff Ron Hickman should get the benefit of a doubt on his challenging … Continue reading →

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The Precinct 4 evidence destruction debacle

Posted on September 10, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

What the heck is going on here? The Harris County Precinct 4 deputy who was fired after destroying evidence in hundreds of pending criminal cases this year has been wrongfully tossing evidence without following department protocol since 2007, Constable Mark … Continue reading →

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Washington Post: Clinton 46, Trump 45

Posted on September 7, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Whoa. With nine weeks until Election Day, Donald Trump is within striking distance in the Upper Midwest, but Hillary Clinton’s strength in many battlegrounds and some traditional Republican strongholds gives her a big electoral college advantage, according to a 50-state … Continue reading →

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Three updates on county-related lawsuits

Posted on September 5, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Update #1: Judges sued as part of Harris County federal court bail challenge. Attorneys challenging the constitutionality of Harris County’s pretrial bail policies have added all 16 of Harris County’s misdemeanor court judges as defendants in a federal civil rights … Continue reading →

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What’s that definition of insanity again?

Posted on August 30, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

How many times are we going to find ourselves in this same situation before we finally accept that we need to do something different? The Harris County Sheriff’s Office has cut funding for law enforcement operations to cover exploding overtime … Continue reading →

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Bail practices lawsuit update

Posted on August 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

There was a hearing in court this week, and the judge was skeptical. U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal declined Thursday to rule on whether Harris County should be dismissed from a lawsuit intended to force officials to reform a tough … Continue reading →

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Legislation to ban the jailing of rape victims proposed

Posted on August 8, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Hard to argue with, I must say. The controversial jailing of a rape victim to ensure her testimony could lead to a new state law protecting victims’ rights to an appointed attorney. State Sen. Joan Huffman is joining with Harris … Continue reading →

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More on the jailed rape victim

Posted on July 31, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron pens a harsh editorial. Although a spokesman for the district attorney’s office has admitted this miscarriage of justice should never have happened, Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson defends the prosecutor involved in the case. She says the … Continue reading →

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July finance reports for county candidates

Posted on July 27, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Most of the interesting race in Harris County this year are the countywide races. Here’s a look at how the candidates in these races have been doing at fundraising. District Attorney Friends of Devon Anderson PAC Kim Ogg Name Raised … Continue reading →

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Falkenberg talks to DA Anderson about jailed rape victim

Posted on July 26, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Worth reading, as you would expect. I’m going to quote from the conclusion: [Assistant DA Nick] Socias appeared to have diligently tried to help, but he seemed to be trying alone. Anderson’s office said she wasn’t informed about the situation … Continue reading →

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What next for Julian Castro?

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I can think of something for him to do. Housing Secretary Julián Castro was long touted as a possible running mate for Hillary Clinton, but when the call came Friday informing him that the presumptive Democratic nominee had picked someone … Continue reading →

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We’re outsourcing inmates again

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

We never learn. Harris County, in the latest move to keep its swelling jail population in check, is pursuing an agreement with neighboring Fort Bend County to send inmates to the suburb’s jail. A Harris County Sheriff’s Office spokesman called … Continue reading →

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Democratic primary runoff results

Posted on May 25, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County results Fort Bend County results Statewide results Trib liveblog Just for the record, we didn’t get any precinct results until 8:34, at which time only 8% of precincts had reported. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t because of overwhelming … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Harris County bail practices

Posted on May 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

This could be a big deal. An advocacy group based in Washington, D.C., challenged Harris County’s bail system on Thursday, arguing in a federal civil rights lawsuit that hundreds of offenders are unlawfully jailed for minor offenses like trespassing and … Continue reading →

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Locke calls for jail administrator

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Some strong words from Precinct 1 Commissioner Gene Locke. Harris County Commissioner Gene L. Locke on Tuesday demanded that a certified jail administrator be hired after learning that four Harris County inmates have died after being assaulted by other inmates … Continue reading →

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Sheriff primary runoff overview

Posted on May 14, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Unless you live in HD139, this is the most consequential runoff on the Democratic ballot. [Ed] Gonzalez has drawn heavy support from the Democratic establishment, including former Mayor Annise Parker, state Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, and the Harris County chapter … Continue reading →

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Roundup of runoff candidate interviews and Q&As

Posted on May 9, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, early voting for the primary runoffs begins in a week. I did my usual series of interviews and judicial Q&As for the primary, but there were a few candidates I didn’t get to for one reason or … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Remember the runoffs

Posted on May 8, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron makes their endorsements for the primary runoffs, which will happen on May 24, with early voting from the 16th to the 20th. Let me sum up: Republican Member, Railroad Commissioner: Gary Gates Judge, Court of Criminal Appeals, Place … Continue reading →

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Harris County takes a step towards jail reform

Posted on May 1, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County commissioners voted Tuesday to back a sweeping plan to reform the criminal justice system, a week after the Harris County Jail began shipping inmates to other counties to avoid reaching capacity. Commissioners voted to accept a $2 … Continue reading →

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Interview with Jerome Moore

Posted on April 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, everyone is focusing on the Presidential race, but here in Harris County there are some races of great local importance. You can order them however you like, but the Sheriff’s race is certainly up there. I had … Continue reading →

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Runoff watch: Sheriff

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

This one is straightforward. Democrats Ed Gonzalez and Jerome Moore will square off for the right to go against incumbent Sheriff Ron Hickman this November. Gonzalez led the way with 43.5%, while Moore tallied 29.8%. Gonzalez was the consensus establishment … Continue reading →

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What’s next for Adrian Garcia?

Posted on March 6, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

We haven’t seen the last of him, I suspect. In less than a year, former Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia has gone from being the top Democratic elected official in Harris County to an also-ran in back-to-back elections. Garcia’s resounding … Continue reading →

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2016 primaries: Harris County

Posted on March 2, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Though this will be the first entry published in the morning, it was the last one I wrote last night, and I’m super tired. So, I’m going to make this brief. Harris County Dem results – Harris County GOP results … Continue reading →

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Chron overview of the Sheriff races

Posted on February 23, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The candidate who isn’t there nonetheless plays a central role. Appointed incumbent Ron Hickman faces two repeat challengers in the GOP primary, while four others, including former Houston City Councilman Ed Gonzalez battle for the Democratic nomination. The candidates square … Continue reading →

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Chron overview of Sheriff primaries

Posted on January 26, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

No, it’s not 2008, though there are a couple of superficial similarities. On paper, Ed Gonzalez is a near-replica of former Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia. The Latino Democrats served in the Houston Police Department and represented the same district … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Sheriffs

Posted on January 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the time of the season again. In Ed Gonzalez, Democratic Party primary voters have a candidate with broad experience in law enforcement and governance. Gonzalez’s resume includes three terms as councilman of District H, and 18 years in the … Continue reading →

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Interview with Jeff Stauber

Posted on January 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

As I said before, winning back the Sheriff’s office is a high priority for Harris County Democrats. Adrian Garcia won it in 2008 as an outsider. In 2016, Jeff Stauber is running on his years of experience on the inside. … Continue reading →

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Interview with Ed Gonzalez

Posted on January 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

When Harris County Democrats broke through in 2008 to win their first countywide races in over a decade, the standard bearer was Adrian Garcia in the Sheriff’s race. Garcia won re-election in 2012, but stepped down in 2015 to run … Continue reading →

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2016 Election page is up

Posted on December 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here it is. A few notes: – This is for races that will appear on the Harris County ballot only. Our ballot is big enough, with enough contested primary races, that I didn’t have the time or the energy to … Continue reading →

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Republican filing deadline highlights

Posted on December 18, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

As a followup to this, here’s a look at who filed for what in the Republican primary here in Harris County. Set your phasers to “snark” and come on in with me. Congress There are nine Congressional districts partially or … Continue reading →

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More candidates for Sheriff

Posted on December 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We’re up to four now. Lt. Jeff Stauber confirmed Thursday he is running for Harris County sheriff. “It’s the job that I always wanted. There’s no doubt that I could lead this agency,” Stauber said. Now a lieutenant assigned to … Continue reading →

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CM Ed Gonzalez to run for Sheriff

Posted on December 9, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Good. City Councilman Ed Gonzalez, an 18-year Houston Police Department veteran, announced Tuesday that he will run for Harris County Sheriff next year. Gonzalez is finishing his third and final term as councilman of District H, the majority Hispanic district … Continue reading →

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