Tag Archives: Ed Gonzalez

Sheriff Gonzalez nominated to lead ICE

Wow. President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that he will nominate Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, a vocal skeptic of cooperating with federal immigration authorities in certain circumstances, to serve as director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. As head of … Continue reading

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Precinct analysis: Sheriff 2020 and 2016

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Appellate courts, Part 2 Judicial averages Other cities District Attorney County Attorney Behold your 2020 vote champion in Harris … Continue reading

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Sheriff Gonzalez hires jail administrator

Interesting. A former state jail inspector will oversee Harris County’s jail, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez announced Wednesday. Shannon Herklotz, who worked for the Texas Commision on Jail Standards for more than 20 years, began serving as the jail’s chief of detentions … Continue reading

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Felony bail reform lawsuit moves forward

Pending the next appeal, anyway. A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the case challenging Harris County’s felony bail system should proceed to trial. Nineteen felony judges represented by state Attorney General Ken Paxton immediately gave notice they planned to appeal … Continue reading

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Overview of Harris County Sheriff’s race

The explanation for why Sheriff Ed Gonzalez is a big favorite to be re-elected is quite simple, really. County veterans wondered if former Houston police officer-turned politician Ed Gonzalez would be up to the job of sheriff in 2016 after … Continue reading

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More on the motion to dismiss the felony bail lawsuit

Should get a ruling soon. The bulk of Harris County’s felony judges sought Monday to get the federal case against them dismissed, saying they should not be party to the challenge on how bail is determined for thousands of poor … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: Ed and Kim

This is an easy call. Anyone who has been led by personal experience or the events of the past year to conclude that cops are callous and jaded hasn’t meant Ed Gonzalez. The compassionate approach of this 51-year-old homicide detective-turned-city … Continue reading

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Poll: Michael Moore claims large lead in Commissioners Court race

From Keir Murray: Like Dallas County did over a decade ago, Harris County Commissioners Court poised to flip from 4-1 Republican to 4-1 Democrat in just two election cycles. @mmooretx strongly positioned to win Pct. 3. Trump trailing by 14 … Continue reading

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July 2020 campaign finance reports: Harris County

You can always count on January and July for campaign finance reports. This roundup is going to be a little funky, because all of the candidates filed eight-day reports for the March primary, and a few also filed 30-day and … Continue reading

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Meanwhile, the jail is filling up again

We really need to do something about this. The Harris County Jail population has been steadily rising since late April and is now approaching its pre-pandemic capacity despite early efforts to curb crowding, according to the sheriff’s office. With an … Continue reading

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The current status on local police reform efforts

Well, the budget amendment process didn’t do much. City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved Mayor Sylvester Turner’s $5.1 billion budget for the next fiscal year, slightly increasing funds for the Houston Police Department even as some cities are under pressure … Continue reading

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Commissioners Court to address police reform

On the agenda for today. Ten police and criminal justice reform items appear on Tuesday’s agenda; seven by Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis, two by County Judge Lina Hidalgo and one by Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia. They would:  Examine … Continue reading

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Driving may be down, but traffic fatalities are not down as much

It’s a bit of a conundrum. COVID-19 can keep millions of Texans at home and cut vehicle travel roughly in half in many cities, but cannot keep hundreds from dying on state roads — continuing a stubborn trend of carnage … Continue reading

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Judges have to do their part

Some could be doing better. Harris County’s largest association of criminal defense attorneys on Monday called on local judges to halt in-person court appearances to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. As the virus has swept across the nation, it … Continue reading

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Another obstacle to releasing inmates

One step forward, one step back. As fear and COVID-19 crept though the Harris County Jail, felony judges halted the release of low-risk inmates on Friday, blocking the county chief executive’s order to free them to await trial. Sheriff Ed … Continue reading

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The state of inmate releases

Harris County judges are going to follow the federal bail lawsuit settlement agreement and not Greg Abbott. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has moved to restrict the release of people in jail during the coronavirus pandemic — but Harris County’s misdemeanor … Continue reading

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More on Abbott’s stay-in-jail order

Here’s that more detailed Chron story I referenced yesterday. I’m just going to quote the newer information about Greg Abbott’s executive order that attempts to basically stop most releases of inmates from the jail regardless of the coronavirus situation. The … Continue reading

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Still trying to do something about the coronavirus risk in the jail

Time is extremely limited for this. A federal judge Friday asked lawyers to hammer out a plan for releasing about 1,000 indigent inmates detained on bonds of $10,000 or less amid fear of a COVID-19 outbreak at the third largest … Continue reading

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Reducing the coronavirus risk in jail

This is an obvious step to take. More than 8,500 people are housed inside the Harris County jail, and thousands more move through the building and return to their communities each day to keep the criminal justice juggernaut running. Sheriff … Continue reading

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2020 primary results: Harris County

Let’s start with this. Long lines combined with a lack of voting machines turned into frustration for voters at several election sites in Harris County on Super Tuesday. Margaret Hollie arrived at the Multi Service Center on Griggs Road at … Continue reading

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The interviews I didn’t do

As was the case with the 2019 Houston elections, there were too many candidates and too many races (and in this case, too little time as well) to do a full slate of interviews. I did what I could, and … Continue reading

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How should we police the police?

This article raises a number of interesting questions. A quarter of the 60-plus law enforcement agencies operating in Harris County have refused to sign agreements to help local prosecutors track problem cops. Under those agreements, all signed since District Attorney … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: Ed again

This is an easy call. [Sheriff Ed] Gonzalez, 50, a soft-spoken Houston native, former councilman and 18-year veteran of the Houston Police Department, ran as a reformer and he hasn’t disappointed in his first term. From taking a bold stance … Continue reading

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Cite and release

This has been a long time coming. Harris County law enforcement officials on Tuesday will begin a “cite and release” program that treats some misdemeanor charges like court citations for speeding tickets, just days after the district attorney’s office said … Continue reading

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January 2020 campaign finance reports: Harris County

As you know, New Year’s Day brings a new round of campaign finance reports, for all levels of government. I’m going to be working my way through these as I can, because there’s lots to be learned about the candidates … Continue reading

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Where the primary action is

It’s on the Democratic side in Harris County. This should come as a surprise to no one. The crowded Harris County Democratic primary field reflects a new reality in Houston politics: With the county turning an even darker shade of … Continue reading

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Filing update: Focus on Harris County

One more look at who has and hasn’t yet filed for stuff as we head into the final weekend for filing. But first, this message: Hi y’all, as we approach the filing deadline in Texas, this is a reminder that … Continue reading

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Filing period preview: Harris County

Previously: Congress, Statewide, and SBOE/Senate/House. For County races, I cannot use the Patrick Svitek spreadsheet, as it doesn’t include local races. I am instead using the Campaign Contribution and Expenditure Reports for Various County Offices link on the County Clerk … Continue reading

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Harris County’s gun surrender program

Just common sense. Harris County officials on Tuesday announced four measures aimed at curbing gun violence, which County Judge Lina Hidalgo said are necessary because the state and federal governments have missed opportunities to prevent shootings. Hidalgo secured unanimous approval … Continue reading

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Last bail lawsuit hearing

At least I assume it’s the last one. I’ve been thinking this was all over but for the formality for months now, so what do I know? Dianna Williams has witnessed the “collateral damage” of jailing on the fabric of … Continue reading

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July 2019 campaign finance reports: Harris County

Before we get to the numbers, please read this. The widow of former Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner El Franco Lee has emptied most of her late husband’s $3.8 million campaign account by donating to community groups and charities. Ethel … Continue reading

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The local response (so far) to the ICE raids

This is good. Houston’s top elected and law-enforcement officials sharply criticized federal authorities’ plans to arrest large numbers of immigrant families living without legal permission in major U.S. cities, contending that the raids targeting groups of recent arrivals would harm … Continue reading

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Joint processing center opens

This was a long time coming, but it should be worth the wait. More than a decade after city voters approved a bond measure to fund it, Houston and Harris County opened a joint inmate processing center Thursday that officials … Continue reading

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More road safety, please

Seems like a good idea. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez [last] Tuesday called on local law enforcement agencies to devote more resources to improving road safety and to create a new region-wide task force dedicated to reducing the Houston area’s … Continue reading

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