This job is more than wearing a robe, or holding a title, and I know that. It is a job that allows me to impact our youth, to provide reliability to small business owners and landlords who come into court, to ensure the rights are being protected of those being sued or those experiencing their brush with the court system for the first time. My experience as a prosecutor has well prepared me for reviewing and signing search and arrest warrants and setting bonds. My education has made this job easier, there is no learning curve on wondering what the law is and what I should do. Any party can expect a fair shake. As an outsider coming in, I know that “the way it has always been done” is often not the right way. I have not been afraid to stop inappropriate practices and improve the workings of JP 1-1, both in the courtroom and in the office.
Out of our 9 current Justices of the Peace only 2 are lawyers. Now, the Texas Constitution says you don’t have to be a lawyer to be a JP, but it’s time to change the attitude in Nueces County that the bare minimum is all we should expect. Because I am a Justice of the Peace who is a licensed attorney I am often called upon by our local law enforcement to sign blood draw warrants for those individuals who are arrested and suspected of driving while intoxicated. A JP who is not an attorney cannot sign these types of warrants. If we want to send a message to drunk drivers, we need to ensure we have the capability to enforce that message.
I truly love being your Justice of the Peace for Precinct 1, Place 1. I want to take the time to thank the Republican County Commissioners: Chuck Cazales, Mike Pusley, and Judge Loyd Neal, who believed in me and moving this County forward when they appointed me to the bench. The day the Honorable Robert Vargas swore me into office was a turning point in my life. You can trust that I am running a court whose purpose is to protect the rights and property of the people of this County. Let’s keep Good Government in Nueces County!
I APPRECIATE YOUR VOTE ON NOVEMBER 2ND!
