Might a Citizen Petition Remove Travis County DA Garza from Office?
Bell County Attorney Nichols Tapped as Prosecutor
Aptly termed a “political earthquake” by advocacy group Save Austin Now, Comal County 433rd State District Court Judge Dib Waldrip has approved a citizen-filed petition seeking to remove Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza from office for issues related to “incompetency and official misconduct.”
This action is based on a process created by House Bill 17, a bill that passed on a bipartisan basis and became effective Sept. 1, 2023.
KXAN News reports on the ruling:
AUSTIN (KXAN) — A petition filed in the 455th Travis County District Court on Apr. 8. calling for the removal of Travis County District Attorney José Garza was accepted for consideration Friday afternoon by Dib Waldrip, the 433rd District Judge in Comal County and Presiding Judge of the 3rd Administrative Judicial Region.
Waldrip, who was appointed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to serve as the Presiding Judge of the 3rd Administrative Judicial Region in 2022, was assigned to the case on Apr. 10.
Additionally, Waldrip appointed Bell County Attorney Jim Nichols to represent the State as “a qualified and appropriate prosecuting attorney from within the region.”
According to the court records, Nichols was selected by Waldrip after considering available options in accordance with Texas’ statute stating “the county attorney of the jurisdiction serves as counsel for the State in actions to remove an officer, except when such an action seeks removal of a prosecuting attorney.”
Nichols will investigate the allegations against Garza before the matter is brought before Waldrip, who will decide if the case moves forward to a jury trial. Garza will remain in his official capacity pending a jury’s verdict.
The article includes a statement sent to the station by Garza:
Every day, our office works to bring justice to Travis County and keep people safe. Last month, a few billionaires and MAGA Republicans and their dark money PAC failed to stop our progress at the ballot box. Now, one month later, their allies are wasting taxpayer money trying to undermine the decision of the voters of Travis County. They failed once, and they’ll fail again.
Per KXAN’s reporting, an issued citation requires Garza to appear at a May 16 hearing in a Travis County District courtroom. It further details the petition’s allegations:
The petition argues “incompetency and official misconduct” related to the policies enforced by Garza about the who and what criminal offenses his office prosecutes.
Specifically, the petition references three issues supporting these allegations:
Defendant singles out law enforcement officials by automatically, indiscriminately, presenting charges against them to grand juries;
Defendant maintains a “do not call to testify” list of law enforcement officials who he deems unfit to testify and disqualifies from serving as witnesses for the State of Texas; and,
Defendant refuses to prosecute a class or type of criminal offense under state law.
The 21-page petition goes on to detail policies and evidence that allegedly show violations of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure such as presenting cases to grand juries that are not supported by probable cause and discriminatory practices specific to law enforcement officers.
Save Austin Now Responds
Save Austin Now co-founders Matt Mackowiak and Cleo Petricek testified in favor of this bill before both the Texas House and Senate and issued this statement in response to Waldrip’s ruling:
Tonight is a watershed moment for public safety in Austin. A Travis County resident has filed a substantive petition under HB17 alleging serious and provable violations of state law which, if proven, must result in DA Garza’s removal from office. This is the beginning of the end for DA Garza’s reign of terror for our community, ignoring the wishes of crime victims, attacking law enforcement and enabling criminal activity through an indiscriminate refusal to uphold his oath and prosecute violent crimes. We want to thank the petitioner for her courage and seriousness.
In an email, they further stated:
The process from here is that the appointed prosecuting attorney will conduct an investigation and holds sole discretion to bring this case to civil trial.
If he does, the civil trial will be held in Travis County under a conviction standard of 'preponderance of the evidence' and a 10-2 verdict or better is required. If a finding of responsibility is determined (could be decided by judge or jury), then the only remedy is removal from office.
We will seek to provide evidence that we have demonstrating multiple violations of state law during DA Garza's first term.
CLEAT Calls Out Garza
The Save Austin Now email noted another development:
On Friday DA Garza also got more bad news. His chickens are coming home to roost.
The Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas (CLEAT) is a steadfast law enforcement organization that we have partnered with for many years, including in our Garza Watch project launched 9/1/23 (GarzaWatch.com).
They made a major announcement on Friday.
Save Austin Now summarized the situation:
The Travis County DA's office illegally released confidential personnel files related to three APD officers in a public information request to a reporter.
Will DA Garza allow an investigation into this illegal activity? Or will he cover it up?
Garza Watch
In September 2023, Save Austin Now did partner with the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas (CLEAT), SafeHorns and ARPOA, to launch Garza Watch, a website dedicated to “Holding the Travis County District Attorney and County Attorney Accountable on Behalf of Crime Victims.”
In addition to detailing “ways to hold them accountable,” the site features news articles detailing the prosecutorial actions (or often inactions) of local officials and is a valuable resource for better understanding why Garza faces removal from office as this action moves forward.
Lou Ann Anderson is a writer, former radio producer and current podcaster at Political Pursuits. Her tenure as Watchdog Wire–Texas editor involved covering state news and coordinating the site’s citizen journalist network. As a past Policy Analyst with Americans for Prosperity–Texas, Lou Ann wrote and spoke on a variety of issues including the growing issue of probate abuse in which wills, trusts, guardianships and powers of attorney are used to loot assets from intended heirs or beneficiaries. She holds a degree from the University of North Texas in Denton.