Cindy Vara-Leija
Next up for Precinct 1 Constable is Cindy Vara-Leija. She is the only one of the four candidates to have worked as a Constable deputy, spending 35 years in the Precinct 1 office before retiring last year. She started out as a clerk, then got her law enforcement certification and became a deputy, then moved up the ranks to eventually become a captain. Here’s what we talked about:
You can find a list of all interviews for this cycle, plus other related information, on my 2012 Harris County Primary Elections page. You can also follow this blog by liking its Facebook page.
Best Candiate with real experience!!!
Listening to her interview , she was a Captain (Administration) why did’nt she fix the problems when she was there. Sounds fishing to me – the Constable getting indicted and you retiring. HUMMM.
I think you were the problem , my vote will go to someone else.
After listening to the interview, I have come to realize that you were a Captain at the precinct which means you where part of the administration . Which leaves me with one question why didn’t you correct the problems ? As an administrator i would have correct the problems .WHY NOW ..MAYBE because you where part of the problem. Sorry you don’t get my vote. I can see the smoke CAN YOU !!!
In your interview you said that you have lived in Pct 1 all your life, i thought you lived in Denver Harbor.. Integrity should start NOW . Please not another typical Politician. Besides you had the opportunity to make the needed changes when you were Captain and you did’nt. To bad i dont live in Pct 1.
Integrity, Honesty, law-abiding & public confidence, begins at the top – with that Elected official who swears an oath to uphold the laws of the State of Texas , unfortunately it appears Constable Abercia didn’t do this & shame on HIM, hence “his federal indictment”….and that of others who were investigated & indicted along with the Constable & who were a part of Abericia’s Command Staff.
As Ms. Vara-Leija said she was a Captain over Communications/Training of Deputies, courthouse security who started out as a clerk, and spent over 30 years working her way up to Captain.
I doubt Ms. Vara-Leija was calling all the shots over all these Grown Men who should have known better . You can tell Ms. Vara-Leija cares about the County Law enforcement office that she has spent over 30 years of her life working in…Being in public office is VERY HARD WORK….and it takes a lot of courage for woman to take on this job. I applaud Ms. Vara-Leija and SHE HAS MY VOTE and that of my whole family.
I want someone who knows Precinct 1, has worked in Pct. 1, is an experienced constable & wants to make Positive changes to improve services to Pct.1 citizens. Cindy Vara-Leija is the most qualified candidate!!!!
Yes we Need an Experienced, Certified Law Enforcement Constable,
like Ret. Capt. Cindy Vara-Leija who has worked in Pct. 1 & won’t waste time trying to learn the office, she already has the experience.
We need someone like Cindy to serve & protect All the citizens of Pct. 1…. Cindy has a plan and she knows where to make the improvements that are sorely needed . Looking forward to the CHANGES…..
Cindy you have our VOTE.
WoW .. Your comment says won’t waste time trying to learn the office, she already has the experience.
I think statistics has proven that a a person returning to the same office is like a broken record NO CHANGES. We the constituents want a CHANGE not the same old outdated STAFF looking out for themselves only. I have attended your meet and greets and i have found that they are all the same… BORING. You dont elaborate on what type of CHANGES you are going to make.TELL US YOUR PLAN. We want to see more police cars…how do you plan to do this? We want to see ALL deputies trained and not HOLDING the scene for another law enforcement agency..thats embarrassing. Captain over training , you didnt do a good job training these deputies if your plan is to HOLD THE SCENE. Also alot of grown men in commisoners court what is she going to do being the head of the constables’s office and one of the grown men tells her NOT APPROVED. I guess they are going to be CALLING ALL THE SHOTS ALSO.
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Cindy Vara-Leija is hands down the most qualified candidate in this race.
Let’s speak truth here. You want to talk integrity. How about…Alan Rosen who never states that he is a Reserve at the Sheriff’s Department. Where is the transparency? Putting it out there, boots on the ground full-time is way different than a being a Reserve Officer.
You want to talk honesty. How about…the fact that Alan Rosen’s father-in-law, Arthur Schechter, is “buying votes” and using his influence and power as a former Ambassador to garner endorsements? Why? Because no one wants to go up against Arthur Schechter. Rosen’s votes and endorsements are not about supporting the best and most qualified candidate but about taking care of favors, “scratching my back and I’ll scratch yours”, and the ugliest part of politics. Anyone who has endorsed Rosen should be ashamed.
Integrity and honesty should start with the campaign…so if voters want more of the same…Rosen will give more of the same.
If voters want experience, leadership, honesty, and ethics…Cindy Vara-Leija is the person who will deliver.
Cindy Vara Leija doesn’t look too good in the Joel Don Casey appeal. In that appeal (14th Court of Appeals, three Republican judges), it was affirmed that Harris County pay $3 million plus legal expenses. One of the reasons given was that Captain Leija ordered the removal of the squad car containing evidence in Mr. Casey’s homicide at the hands of sherriff’s deputies executing a mental health warrant. The case is now on appeal to the Texas Supreme Court. The victim was tasered repeatedly without cause, hogtied and stepped on causing his neck to break and his death. There is even a question whether or not he was alive by the time the deputies put Mr. Casey in the squad car. She is a nice person, relatively uneducated and must have been in way over her head. All my opinion, but she was following Jack Abercia’s orders, per the appeal, so I question her judgment and training — past, present and future.