Wider highways are not an appropriate or effective intervention to expand commerce opportunities, and they do not expand opportunities for those bearing the greatest burdens of the expansion, more than 15 groups wrote in a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, released Tuesday. Just to review the timeline a bit, the federal order to halt I-45 construction did indeed come one year ago, a couple of weeks after Harris County sued TxDOT over many of the previously expressed concerns about the project. The main takeaway here is that not only can you not trust anything Paxton says, you also cant trust anything his office says, even if they sign their names to it. There is no justification for denying the public information about a controversy just because it involves litigation, Aleshire said. Letter to Federal GovernmentGovernment Application LetterGovernment Opinion LetterLetter to a Government OfficialHillsborough County Letter of IntentLetter to County ClerkLetter to a Government AgencyBill Support LetterMontgomery County LetterCounty Court Letter. However, a handful of candidates in tight races may consider legal challenges over election results. Too bad! Operating Agreements, Employment Most big law firms have people fly coach now unless a business class seat is the only thing available. At the same time, party leaders are threatening GOP state lawmakers who control the Texas Legislature with increased sanctions if they dont support the platform, including potentially spending tens of thousands of dollars directly to oppose them in future primaries. The EPAs civil rights compliance arm announced the investigation last Wednesday. Hilton declined to comment on why the office did not ask for the ruling sooner. Attorney Fee Standards effective June 1, 2019. . Same shit, different year. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. After closing the polls, election judges will hand off ballots to law enforcement officers and deputized county staffers, who will drive the equipment to the central counting station at NRG Arena on the judges behalf. Bennett 0 1,022 0 14,527 8(lost to Judge Erika Ramirez), Bruce Bain, former candidate for the269th District Court(lost to Judge Cory Sepolio), Michelle Fraga, former candidate for the281st District Court(lost to Judge Christine Weems), Elizabeth Buss, former candidate for theHarris County Criminal Court at Law No. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar on Friday accused Harris County of defunding law enforcement,rekindling a feudfrom last fallin which Republican state officialsthreatened to blockthe countys annual budget. Please read the Administrative Order below: Harris County Orders /COVID Emergency Orders. Court records filed Friday showed a bail bondsman sued Harris County as an attempt to stop the new rule, which would require agents like her to charge defendants jailed on violent offenses a 10 percent minimum to secure their freedom after an arrest. 10-DAY DEMAND LETTER PROCEDURES The District Attorney requires that you write a letter to the person in possession of your vehicle. The judge in the Lunceford contest was assigned on December 13, I dont know what has happened since then. The pause, approved unanimously by Commissioners Court at a special meeting Monday, instructs County Attorney Christian Menefee to seek a stay on the lawsuit in federal court as he negotiates with TxDOT to resolve differences between the changes the county seeks to the project and the current plan. The investigation will focus on whether the adoption of the amendment and the permitting process is discriminatory, and whether the state agency failed to seek meaningful public comment. If the questions are not answered, she would therefore still need to have the temporary injunction in place, he said. Attorneys for the city and county relied on a dissenting opinion from a judge on the 8th Court of Appeals in a mask mandate case involving El Paso County, Ariens said: that Texas law does not allow the governor to suspend laws giving local governments the ability to respond to public health crises as they see fit. Details big and small remain works in progress and a federal pause looms as the last big hurdle, for now, as officials move ahead after last months agreements. Spanish, Localized Stacey M. Soule, State Prosecuting Attorney. In a statement, Air Alliance Houston said the agreements will do very little to protect Houston communities from the harms posed by this project, specifically related to air pollution caused by the larger freeway in many neighborhoods around the central business district. Dan Spjut is represented by Elizabeth Alvarez. HCTRA Harris County Toll Road Authority It looks like your browser does not have JavaScript enabled. At this point, we do not anticipate that it impacts the outcome of any races, Harris County First Assistant County Attorney Jonathan Fombonne said. Attorney General Ken Paxton is distorting the law to fuel conspiracy theories, encouraging reckless behavior that erodes public trust in our democratic process, Menefee said in a statement. Despite the crisis, St. Marys University School of Law professor Michael Ariens believes the lawsuits ultimate success is a long shot.. Hegar,a Republican,said he hopes Heap and county officials can resolve the situation themselves long before Harris County begins budget deliberations for fiscal year 2024. He also predicted that county officials would once again use a convoluted approach to argue they had not reduced Heaps funding. Texas law says that if the ballots legal custodian, typically a local election official, makes unauthorized entry into the secure container containing the voting ballots during the preservation period, or fails to prevent another person from making an unauthorized entry, the custodian has committed a Class A misdemeanor, Bitter wrote. All About Bail Bonds owner Sunya Claiborne, plaintiff in the lawsuit, contends that her business is at stake because the minimum charge requirement is classic price fixing and a per se antitrust violation without any grant of state authority to displace competition, according to court documents. Paxton and one of the district attorneys (Shawn Dick of Williamson County) appealed. The letters of guardianship provide an expiration date on their face, one year plus 120 days after the anniversary date. The mayor announced Thursday that Arturo G. Michel is returning to government as City Attorney for the City of Houston. Judge Finch is represented by Anthony Drumheller. Several other provisions of SB 1 have been challenged ina half-dozenlawsuitsby civil rights groups and theBiden administrations Justice Department,includingbans on 24-hour and drive-thru voting, ID requirements for mail-in ballots andprotections for partisan poll watchers. If I read this literally as a layman, I think Im required to provide ballots the day after an election before the results have even been canvassed, said Chris Davis, elections director in Williamson County, who said such a release would make it impossible for counties to confidently conduct recounts that would stand up to legal scrutiny. Mirza said in the case four years ago, Paxtons office did not ask the Texas Supreme Court to intervene. It created a 20-day window of early voting in the late 1980s and expanded it dramatically in the early 1990s to include more locations like shopping malls and grocery stores. Commissioners Court had previously authorized Menefee to file suit. The average attorney charges $500 per hour. . 1 subjects me to criminal prosecution for encouraging eligible voters to vote by mail so they may participate in our democracy an option they have under Texas law.. Mark Goldberg Assistant District Attorney | Harris County District Attorney's Office. webcomments@hctx.net. Become a member to support the independent voice of Houston This is one of the precise situations I have been most worried about this election people in shadowy volunteer groups who suggest in one way or another that they are acting under official authority questioning the eligibility of voters directly by knocking on their doors, Slattery said. 1 provision no later than February 14, 2022. These are nuisance suits but the Judges and Lina have had to hire attorneys to represent them against the claims. From the inbox, a press release from Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee: Judge David Peeples will preside over the election contest filed by Republican candidate Erin Lunceford to void the results of her race for the 189th District Court in the November 2022 Harris County General Election. See here (scroll down) for the background. FDAMS Application . All About Bail Bonds owner and plaintiff Sunya Claiborne argued in the lawsuit that the policy jeopardizes her business calling the minimum fee requirement classic price fixing and a per se antitrust violation. The lawyer for the plaintiff, Kevin Pennell, said he plans this week to appeal the judges order. The file is going to be stored in two places: on your device and in the My Forms folder. See here for the background. Things are moving in what seems to be a positive direction, said J. Bruce Bugg, chairman of the Texas Transportation Commission. Its your own damn fault you didnt vote! If you open up the floodgates and give anyone access to the ballots throughout that process, you have broken that chain of custody to the point where you would not be able to prove that this was the ballot a given voter cast, Masterson said. local news and culture, Faith Bugenhagen From Statesman columnist @bgrumet: @TXAG Ken Paxton is using the powers of his office to treat a good-faith mishap as a crime, after coming under political pressure from his own base to file charges., Austin Statesman (@statesman) 9:30 AM 6 February 2022. Houston, Harris County and the Texas Department of Transportation have an agreed path forward for rebuilding Interstate 45, and a lot of steps to get there. Anyone who ran into a problem at one location could have gone to another. My tuition has been paid in full and I would have imagined the school would have notified me for other fees at this point in time. Menefee. of Incorporation, Shareholders Harris County Attorney Letter // Get FREE Letter Templates (Print or I dont think Ive seen reports for District Attorney on the county election site before. Dockets. An election judge is the person in charge of running a voting location. In a Wednesday evening news release, the elections office warned residents against scammers it said pretended to be from the county elections and voter registration offices and attempted to collect sensitive personal information from voters. of Incorporation, Shareholders Neighborhoods with batch plants lack deed restrictions and zoning to protect them, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee said. US Legal Forms provides you with a solution to exactly that. Paxtons office did not respond to specific questions about why he disagreed with Bitters conclusion, nor did he respond to requests for comment. Doing nothing is identical to telling the other lawyer take me to court.. There is no valid justification for such a one-sided restriction on speech.. The Statesman has a couple of key bits from the ruling: In his order, Rodriguez rejected Paxtons argument that the solicitation ban targets government speech, which isnt protected by the First Amendment because the state is allowed to regulate how public employees perform official duties. The county attorneys probe is based on a complaint from at least one Sunnyside resident who said two men came to her home and asked questions they said were to confirm the identities of registered voters who live at that address. This event transpired months ago and the officers who came to my house had me believe that I would be aware of any charges that evening by phone, however, I did not receive a call. 1 and, many other entities, including the Brennan Center (inLUPE v. Abbott), have also filed suit against various parts of the law. Berrys office said Heap actually received $48.5 million. A Republican is going to win during the primary election. 2023-01066; Dan Simons v. Judge Sedrick Walker. TxDOT still must acquire some property, Koch said, and the pending Federal Highway Administration review that the local agreements do not affect must be resolved. The guardian of the estate has all rights and obligations to expend the wards funds, subject to prior court approval. In fact, the first time any concerns were raised occurred during a public meeting May 11 at the Election Committee Hearing by the Secretary of States Office. What is troubling everybodyand apparently troubling the attorney general who wants to give a definition of solicitation that Im not aware existing in any criminal codeis the absurd result that someone could be held criminally liable for encouraging their fellow citizen to vote, Morales-Doyle said. The dispute seems to be more about politics than the law, Martin Renteria, a Republican election judge in Harris County, said. Our election workers should not have to fear being criminally prosecuted because the attorney general wants to play politics and try to rewrite laws, Menefee said. I still dont see any mention of a decision being handed down. Aaron Adams is represented by Elizabeth Alvarez. Despite the GOPs criticism, at least 40 Republican judges are choosing to participate in the countys plan. 2022-79328; Erin Lunceford v. Judge Tami Craft. None of the affidavits led to county elections officials removing any names from the voter rolls. On Election Night, the Texas Organizing Project, Texas Civil Rights Project and ACLU of Texas obtained a court order from a judge requiring all Harris County polling locations to extend voting hours until 8 p.m. after the groups argued in a lawsuit that late openings at some polling locations prevented some residents from voting. Alan Rosen had his eye on the Sheriffs office back when Ed Gonzalez was a nominee for head of ICE, but thats off the table now. Even for a few weeks. See here for more on that, and here for the response letter, which also observes that the people who want to get the I-45 project going dont represent those who will be affected by it. Their leadership has known about the Countys election day plans for some time, yet they waited until 6 hours before the polls close to now ask a court to throw the plans out the window and put residents votes at risk, Menefee said in a statement. https://mailchi.mp/3860a20fae8b/we-need-your-help?e=cf7bb2b770&fbclid=IwAR3bf6Pdu4mhPHiTnPDtpzT361sMx5VyDAxSnUXy7qM7EbTLGfZabSUiT4w, Clubs in Action PAC (@CIAHTX) 8:32 PM 27 February 2023. UPDATE: The Trib story also references 2,000 ballots, which does not help clear up my confusion. By all accounts, there were maybe 20-25 sites that have paper issues. of Sale, Contract Nearly 70% of voters cast their ballots during the early voting period, but Mealer only cites issues on Election Day itself. Unless you're tempted to ignore a summons/subpoena/etc. This is utterly chaotic. 13 Cause No. CultureMap has more. And facilities are often in communities of color not wealthy, white River Oaks making what has been happening clear environmental racism, state Sen. Borris Miles said. The lawsuit was brought by Harris County election administrator Isabel Longoria and Cathy Morgan, a volunteer deputy registrar who is appointed to help register voters in Travis and Williamson counties. I thought the price fixing argument was weak and as such Im not surprised at this outcome. However, Gerald Birnberg, an elections attorney and General Counsel to the Harris County Democratic Party, questioned the Secretary of States logic, pointing out that its own office deputizes others to perform certain duties. Free preview Harris County Attorney Letter, Why Would You Get A Letter From The County Attorney, Harris County District Court Vacation Letter, Living She offered examples of voters she no longer felt she could help navigate the vote-by-mail process. Former officer Gerald Goines led a raid on the home, which police believed to be a drug den.Jun 21, 2021. An additional $10 collection fee will be added to each invoice referred to collections, as approved by Harris County Commissioners Court in September 2020. Lets see what happens in May. The county and Claibornes lawyers are expected later on Friday to debate whether a temporary restraining order and injunction should be granted. packages, Easy Last year, TCEQ approved an amendment that included exemptions for emission limitations for concrete batch plants, in response to an application to construct a plant by a Fort Worth concrete company. But I have always believed that one way or another this was going to happen, so any improvements or modifications to the original plan have to be considered with that in mind. The voted ballots are the core of the election process and the prohibition on disturbing the ballots (except in limited circumstances as permitted by the Election Code) preserves the integrity of the election itself, wrote Adam Bitter, general counsel for the office,in a letter obtained by Votebeatthrough a public records request. Giving this much power to a governing minority is the problem here. A county attorney tried to send me mail through USPS the other - reddit If it is charges it'll give you the opportunity to prepare if you get the paperwork. Thats what I, a non-lawyer who has no responsibilities in these matters, would have done. That included an 88-year-old voter whom Morgan would typically call at the start of every year to remind her that she has to reapply for mail-in ballots. A judge blocked the initial attempt as well. Though there is concern about the projects impacts in Midtown, Third Ward and Eado, the most vocal opposition to the project emanates from north of downtown where TxDOT proposes to add two managed lanes in each direction to I-45. Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee said the county would challenge Hegars finding in court if necessary. The Chron story, from a bit later in the day, has more details. We wont allow any group to engage in illegal conduct to try and remove registered voters off the rolls.. I guess its theoretically possible that of the provisional E-Day ballots that were specifically cast by people who got in line after 7 PM (because if you were already in line you were always allowed to vote), Jones had a net advantage of at least 450 over Pierce. Not a dismissal, but I hope that will demonstrate our commitment., Menefee said he will ask the court for a stay of 30 days, and then potentially extend that for an additional 30 days if the discussions are fruitful., The pause is a show of good faith by the county to remind TxDOT that were in this to find solutions and address community concerns, Menefee said in a statement. Local, state and federal leaders celebrated the EPAs decision to look at the discrimination claims Tuesday. Longoria and Morgan, however, told U.S. District Judge Fred Biery of San Antonio that waiting until summer is not an option for a prohibition that will handcuff them in the weeks leading up to the March 1 Texas primaries. They noted many of the details give TxDOT room to renege while others fall short of the changes some neighborhood advocates had sought. Our practice is focused on debt collection remedies. Their enforcement of laws involve cases of public health, deed restriction, crime victims compensation, and animal cruelty/ dangerous dog seizure warrants. Target letters inform the recipients that they are the target of a federal investigation, which means that the government intends to press civil or , The letters stem from the investigation into the 2019 drug raid of a small home on Harding Street in south Houston. Icsezen interpreted this to mean that they werent allowed to observe the SVC, checked his interpretation with the Harris County Attorney, which approved his decision, and turned the poll watcher away. Im perfectly happy telling them all to take one of the commuter buses in, and if the service for that is inadequate to push for it to be improved. UPDATE: Its 10:30 PM, more than a third of the Tuesday votes have been counted, and I see nothing on Twitter or in my inbox to indicate that SCOTx has issued a ruling. WHD knocked on about 1500. Simply put, the party would have a practical strategy on what to do and what not to do. Harris County Clerk's Office Our eCommerce feature allows the public to purchase both certified and non-certified copies of various documents. Obviously, County Attorney Menefee made up his mind since then. Not much else to say at this time for 2024, but I will note that at least some of the Democratic judges whose election is being challenged by a sore loser are raising funds for their legal defense. One judge whose race is being challenged, David Fleisher, lives in 133. The motion was granted by a district court judge and then put on hold by the Fifth Circuit. But well see what happens. Menefee. Estate, Public It could also ask voters to approve the funding reduction in a referendum, Hegar said.