I have three things to say about this.
Kim Ogg
Kim Ogg’s campaign for a third term as Harris County district attorney suffered a blowout loss in the Democratic primary election on Tuesday. In the final election night tally, challenger Sean Teare had a 50 percentage point lead over the incumbent — a stunning margin backed up by several possible explanations.
Conceding the race Tuesday night and without naming names, Ogg attributed her loss to the fact she “had made some powerful enemies for all the right reasons.” In the final days of the primary, she sharply criticized her opponent for accepting over $700,000 from left-leaning billionaire George Soros, who supported her in previous election cycles.
Teare had also garnered the local support of County Judge Lina Hidalgo, County Commissioner Rodney Ellis and former Mayor Sylvester Turner ahead of the primary.
Ogg further explained that doing her job had cost her the job. She received criticism from within her party for embarking on the prosecution of three former Hidalgo employees in connection with a vaccine outreach contract.
Those cases were stuck in neutral for over a year; however, the Texas Rangers issued search warrants in November indicating they were expanding their investigation.
Ogg has maintained that she was just following the law by investigating Hidalgo’s employees.
But Teare supporters pointed to Ogg herself as the reason for the wide margin.
“She was our biggest help, honestly,” said Rebecca Shukla, a local Democratic Party precinct chair who signed a petition last fall to admonish Ogg.
[…]
Shukla said she’d watched Ogg’s support among Democrats wane since her first election in 2016, but for her, a turning point came in 2022, when she and other party organizers were fighting to get Hidalgo reelected. Shukla worried that Democrats’ local gains in recent years could all be rolled back.
“Kim Ogg contributed to the potential that it could all go back because she didn’t support Lina. She was actively fighting against her, which basically meant our whole ticket here in Harris County,” Shukla said. “Here we are knocking doors, out there in the heat and she’s just making it harder.”
Ogg had repeatedly accused Democrats on Commissioners Court of “defunding” her department. In October 2022, shortly before voting started in Hidalgo’s reelection bid, Ogg and other law enforcement officials packed Commissioners Court in a dramatic display of support for increases to their budgets.
Ogg’s lack of support for other party members was top of mind when a group of precinct chairs put forth a resolution last fall for the party to formally admonish her.
“People didn’t like how she weaponized her office to go after people within the party,” said Daniel Cohen, a precinct chair and organizer who supported the resolution, which ultimately passed by a wide margin in December.
Until that point, the grievances listed in the resolution had been open secrets, Cohen said.
“It was just a matter of the public starting to actually discuss it,” Cohen said.
Cohen rejects the idea that Ogg’s loss can be chalked up to “powerful enemies” like Soros.
“When she says ‘powerful people beat me,’ I think it’s hilarious,” Cohen said, instead attributing the outcome to the many grassroots supporters who put in the work to elect Teare. “I look at the pictures (of organizers) and I’m like, they are powerful, but they’re not what you think. It shows you that people can be powerful. People can hold their own elected officials accountable.”
The progressive political group Texas Organizing Project also claims credit for the massive win: TOP’s field organizers say they knocked on more than 94,000 doors across Harris County to support Teare.
In 2016, the group had mobilized for Ogg, working to flip the seat held by a Republican. But the group’s leaders felt she no longer represented their values and switched sides this election cycle.
“Sean Teare knows the Harris County DA’s office is in need of a course correction, and he’s a leader who will gain community input to make that happen,” TOP Board President Doshie Piper said in a statement in February when the organization endorsed Teare. “While Kim Ogg wastes county residents’ time and taxpayer dollars on petty political vendettas, Sean is ready to get to work, restore trust with the public, and implement lasting, humane legal reforms.”
Before I continue, as a matter of full disclosure, I’m a Democratic precinct chair, Rebecca and Daniel are friends of mine, I attended the meeting where the resolution to admonish Ogg was passed but did not vote on it. I’ve also had a very cordial relationship with Kim Ogg going back to her first run for DA in 2014. I have many feelings about this race and how we got here, and one of them is sadness that it came to this.
With that said…
1. I don’t think this story captured just how remarkable Ogg’s loss was. The two-term incumbent, who won without a runoff in 2020 against three opponents, got fewer votes and a lower percentage than the opponents to County Attorney Christian Menefee and Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, none of whom had any money or name ID. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of an equivalent election result. It’s mind-boggling.
2. To me, the concerns started with Ogg’s seemingly sudden opposition to the misdemeanor bail reform settlement, which was a direct result of the Democratic wave of 2018 that not only swept out all of the Republican judges that opposed the idea but also installed a Democratic majority on Commissioners Court, which then authorized the settlement as the new Democratic judges asked to drop their defense. A huge amount of Democratic energy went into the fight for that settlement, much of which was expressed in the 2018 campaign. That could have been overcome, but the criticism that Ogg subsequently made of the settlement and the Democratic judges, much of which closely echoed Republican criticism and often sounded like what Judge Hidalgo’s opponent in 2022 was saying (I refuse to name her any more if I don’t have to), really got the most stalwart party members angry. It wasn’t just about the disagreement. It was the way it was expressed, and the timing of it, and the stakes involved.
3. Again, I think all of this could have been overcome. There are plenty of policy differences within the party, and we muddle through them most of the time. The animosity between Ogg and Judge Hidalgo, who as the story notes is extremely popular among Democrats, could have been overcome – we don’t all have to like each other as long as we’re all moving in more or less the same direction. The case against the former Hidalgo employees, which are more technical violation than anything lurid and which maybe isn’t a slam dunk as a criminal case, didn’t even have to be a breaking point. But given all of the other things, it sure seems like maybe Ogg and her office shouldn’t have been the ones to pursue it. She could have handed it off to a special prosecutor, or asked another DA like Fort Bend County’s to handle the case. That would have allowed for the process to play out without the insinuation of political motives or payback or whatever.
Basically, there wasn’t any one thing that led to this result. It was a combination of a lot of things, built up over time. There were opportunities to avoid a lot of the problems and maybe turn down the heat, but they didn’t happen. And so here we are. Whatever else we get from Sean Teare, the favorite to be the next District Attorney of Harris County, I hope he has paid attention to all of that.
“That could have been overcome, but the criticism that Ogg subsequently made of the settlement and the Democratic judges, much of which closely echoed Republican criticism and often sounded like what Judge Hidalgo’s opponent in 2022 was saying (I refuse to name her any more if I don’t have to), really got the most stalwart party members angry. It wasn’t just about the disagreement. It was the way it was expressed, and the timing of it, and the stakes involved.”
That’s one of the reasons why I voted for Teare. It’s not just that she disagreed on things with other Democratic officials; it’s that she seemed to be going out of her way to crap on them. Combine that with various mistakes and unrest in the DA’s office, and it was clearly time for a change.
Ok, I’ll defend DA Ogg.
On bail bonds – DA Ogg objected to the practice of allowing repeat offenders to just churn in/out of the county jail, constantly being released back onto our streets on numerous PR and low bail bonds. The Fox26 “Breaking Bond” series documented just the tip of this problem and the tragic consequences for Harris County residents. DA Ogg and Crime Stoppers, along with Sheriff Gonzalez, Mayor Turner, Mayor Whitmire, and other prominent Democrats were right to call out reckless bail bond practices.
As far as the local “defunding” fiasco, Judge Hidalgo and Commissioners started this drama by seizing all the DA and Constable rollover funds (while leaving their own rollover funds alone). The seizure of those local LE funds was one of the factors that led to the new state law prohibiting defunding LE agencies.
As far as DA Ogg investigating Judge Hidalgo’s Office (alleged bid-rigging), that’s her job. Judge Hidalgo can call it a political vendetta all she wants – no amount of whitewashing is going to change the evidence uncovered by those search warrants. All those e-mails and text messages from Judge Hidalgo and her staff clearly show what was going on. Judge Hidalgo later pretending she didn’t know Elevate Strategies was going to win that multi-million contract was priceless – see link below.
https://www.billkingblog.com/blog/county-vaccine-contract-exposed-as-blatant-bid-rigging
DA Ogg could have ignored public safety, government corruption, and not fought to properly fund her Office, but instead choose to stand up and do her job. If there is a lesson to be learned by her primary defeat, it is local Party loyalty trumps all else.
Mr. Teare was asked that very question at a meeting of my local Democratic club, about repeat offenders out on bond committing crimes again and again, and basically, Kim Ogg was responsible for that happening. She may have “objected”, but didn’t do anything about it. Article I, Section 11a of the Texas Constitution allows for the DA to bring a hearing for someone who is out on a felony bond who commits another felony to revoke their bond and deny further bail with “substantial evidence” (the lowest standard of evidence) and it’s pretty cut and dried. He also pointed out that there was so much churn in the office that they couldn’t fill the positions they had open, so why did they need more money for new positions that they also wouldn’t be able to fill?
If there’s evidence of wrongdoing against an elected official, even of the same party, of course there should be an investigation. It just doesn’t have to be tried in the media as accusations fly in the middle of an election campaign, using the former general counsel of the other party who has already prejudged the matter and is salivating at bringing down a Democrat representing one of the largest constituencies in the state. Party loyalty does not trump all else, but not acting like a member of the party and openly attacking members of your party (including precinct chairs who are the backbone and boots on the ground of the local organization) may hurt you in a party primary.
At minimum, that’s disingenuous. Judges are already advised of a defendant’s criminal history, open cases, and existing bail bonds BEFORE they go ahead and issue the defendant yet another bond on a new case (usually over the objections of the DA’s Office). Given that fact, what good is another hearing going to do? Progressive judges, not DA Ogg, are responsible for repeat offenders victimizing our neighborhoods while out on multiple bonds.
As far as trying cases in the media, that’s Hidalgo’s playbook. How many times has Hidalgo publicly attacked DA Ogg and the corruption investigation as a “political vendetta”, all in a desperate attempt to distract people from the actual evidence? Well, that strategy worked. Instead of blaming Hidalgo for the alleged bid-rigging scheme, Democrats punished Ogg for investigating it.
I dunno… I thought the beginning of the end was when her office went after the poker rooms, and then it turned out that it was all a big shakedown scheme.
Greg, you were one of the main people involved in the joint facility, Harris County and Houston. Why does it take almost all day to book a prisoner? So says your mayor.
Why do you think Kim Ogg needs defending? She won’t win another county-wide election as a Democrat. She could run as she had before as a Republican.
She is still targeting Democratic Judges.
Meme, first, some context. Before the JPC opened (Feb. 2019), HPD prisoners would sit at city’s jails for 12 – 24 hours (or longer) before being transferred (via vans) to the HCSO to even start the county jail intake process. By closing the city jails and consolidating operations at the new JPC, we eliminated the prisoner transfer delays and all the duplicate jail functions (e.g. separate city/county intake processing, separate property processing, jail housing). Prior to the JPC opening, it would usually take an HPD prisoner 2 or 3 days to go through the entire city/county jail intake process.
As far the JPC intake time: There are numerous entities involved in the intake process and issues in their operations can cause prisoner delays at the JPC. So, which entities are involved in intake? The arresting agency (officer has to file good-quality DIMS), the DA’s Office (has to review/accept proposed charge), the District Clerk’s Office (has to create the case, assign court, etc.), the Public Defender’s Office (conduct interviews, represent client in PC/bail hearing), Pre-trial Services (conduct interviews, complete risk assessment, etc.), County Court Administration (create Probable Cause dockets, etc.), Houston Municipal Courts (create dockets, conduct hearings on their cases), county PC/JP judges (conduct PC/JP hearings, set bonds, issue PR bonds), Harris Health (conduct screenings, follow-up with doctors and/or mental health staff – The Harris Center), and, of course, the HCSO (search, transfer of custody process, property processing, AFIS, booking, dress-in, classification, etc.). Harris County Universal Services is also directly involved, as the JWEB/county computer systems must be operating smoothly. Given the large daily intake volume (~300), any delays by the above entities can cause prisoners to stack up in the JPC, causing safety and security concerns.
To ensure efficient intake processing, the JPC staff have to be proactive and work together as a team. Using the jail management software system, JPC staff can see (real-time) each prisoner’s processing progress. Prisoners will appear on different work-queues, depending on a prisoner’s case type (municipal, JP, new Class B and higher charges, parole violation, etc.), case status (pre-trial or sentenced), and where they are in the intake process (some functions can occur in any order, while others are sequential). In addition, some prisoners may have multiple cases, so may undergo more intake steps. Anyway, any delays in expected processing times can be seen by JPC staff as the prisoner’s name will turn yellow, and then red, on the applicable work-queue dashboards.
Before I retired (Sept. 2019), I used an app. on my county phone (24/7) that allowed me to see, among other things, the number of prisoners waiting for various processing functions at the JPC. If I saw the numbers start to climb, I would proactively call the applicable entity/personnel and help resolve whatever was causing the delay.
The JPC is a complex operation. The JPC can function like a Ferrari, or it can be as slow as a rusty old bicycle. It all depends on a skilled JPC workforce and the amount of teamwork between all the various entities.
Hey, I’m available to come pop the hood and see if the JPC needs a tune-up. I do a little consulting on the side. Just let me know!
When I do a sales pitch, I really should include my link. Geez.
https://www.summerlinjailconsulting.com
Oh God, now a commercial…
C.L., good one. That was funny.
Greg, as I stated, that is what Whitmire said about the operation. Maybe one of his clowns will read what you wrote and ask him.
Whitmire, that’s your boy also, right?
So why do you think Ogg needs defending?
So, Kim Ogg replaced the Republican and that was the important party politics at the time, the big Democratic sweep of 2018 was the big party politics of that time, then criminals get let loose all over, defund the police, other people jumping on the party politics of the time and this election is no exception. If one party, and in this case it’s the Democrats, are responsible for this mess of the judicial system and they cannot make up their indecisive collective minds, then own the good with the bad. There is no other political party to blame for the real issues Harris County faces except for the one playing party politics and winning offices. Winning is a passing achievement and the responsibility of the offices, which are owned by the overall public, is a continuing act of SERVICE. So, own the problems the political party has created as a result of party politics.
I think Ogg deserved better. That said, I agree it’s academic for now. Depending on the political winds and how Mr. Teare performs, she may run again in 2028. You never know.
David, when the Democrats win, it is like being in Hell; when the Republicans are in charge, it is like being in heaven.
What mess, David? I am still waiting for Whitmire to tell us how he is going to raise the money for the firefighters.
I don’t see a mess that wasn’t there when the Republicans controlled all top offices.
Greg, Ogg got what she deserved; she thought she could go to bed with the Republicans, those domestic terrorists, and people would not notice.
I got a funny robocall from Ogg attacking her opponent for being part of a law firm which defended Paxton in the Senate trial.