Monday, October 21st kicks off the Early Voting for the 2024 Election in Texas, and as always, the Harris County Criminal Justice World has some very important races on the ballot. Although there are many uncontested judicial races this year, there are several important ones that you should be paying attention to. Although most people vote along party lines these days, there are several races that voters should consider crossing over to vote for.
As with most years since 2008 (especially on a Presidential year), I anticipate a Democratic sweep for Harris County. As usual, I don’t expect what I write here to change the results of any election one way or the other, but I'm happy to give my thoughts if you want to hear them.
Harris County District Attorney - Democrat Sean Teare vs. Republican Dan Simon
I don't know that even those of us who are huge Sean Teare fans foresaw the absolute drubbing that he executed against Kim Ogg in the March Democratic Primary, but it was brutal. His 75-30 was so significant that it made Ogg switch parties for all intents and purposes. And although Kimbra has yet to take her final bow at the Office, there is a different atmosphere in the entirety of building because all of us are so damn happy that she's finally leaving.
The past eight years under the Ogg Administration have seen a flurry of departures of experienced prosecutors, ridiculous micromanagement, and political prosecutions that have decimated the credibility of a once formidable office. With Ogg's exit, there is a sense of optimism that the Office is going to be a good place to work again under new leadership. Since Ogg has let it be known that she will hold the Office in a death clutch right up until the last second of December 31st, 2024, prosecutors in that office have had to keep their enthusiasm to themselves publicly, but the excitement there is two-fold: not only are the prosecutors excited to see Kim Ogg and her traveling circus leave town, they are very excited about the possibility probability of Sean Teare being the next elected District Attorney.
As a candidate for District Attorney, Sean is the complete package. He's a veteran prosecutor who served under both Republican and Democratic Administrations. He tried serious cases and knows the law. He led important Divisions within the Office. He worked hand in hand with law enforcement, spending countless hours on the streets, helping with investigations. He listens and he knows how to work well with others. He's also honest, ethical, and fair. He's going to be an amazing leader.
By contrast, the credentials of Republican candidate Dan Simons are headed in the opposite direction. Dan first came to the political arena in 2018 when the Republican Party decided to eat its own and run a candidate against then-County Court at Law # 8 Judge Jay Karahan. Karahan had pissed off party officials by officiating over a same-sex wedding and the Party of Hotze just wasn't having that. Dan stepped to the plate as the one Republican willing to run against Karahan, and he won the primary. He proceeded to be defeated that November by Democratic Socialist Franklin Bynum.
Normally, County Court at Law races are fairly dull affairs, but the battle between Simons and Karahan got pretty epic, with Karahan running a website that proclaimed Never Dan Simons. It posted several negative evaluations Simons received while an Assistant District Attorney. Those negative evaluations recently resurfaced in this Houston Landing article about both Teare and Simons' tenure as prosecutors. Although I never had a personal problem with Dan when he was a prosecutor, I was aware of the questions about his character and integrity as a prosecutor. Those matter tremendously in the race for District Attorney and they highlight why Sean is absolutely the unquestioned choice for the job.
Only a hardcore partisan Republican would even think of voting for Dan Simons in this race and they would have to hold their nose to do so. Sean Teare is the clear choice in this race.
Recommendation: Sean Teare (D)
The 177th District Court - Democrat Robert Johnson (I) vs. Republican Emily Munoz Detoto
Democratic incumbent Judge Robert Johnson of the 177th District Court is easily one of the most unpopular judges in the Harris County Criminal Justice Center, if not THE most unpopular. His reputation with those who practice in front of him is largely that he is unkind, unreasonable, and inflexible. A poll conducted by the Harris County Criminal Lawyers' Association gave him a 1% approval rating.
1%
Let that sink in.
Stunningly, the Houston Chronicle, in their incredibly off-base endorsement, regarded this backlash against Judge Johnson as a sign that he must be doing something right. That couldn't be further from the truth. Most attorneys who do indigent defense refuse to do work in his court and that leads to indigent defendants not getting the benefit of quality representation. In conversations about new policies for the appointment of indigent defense representation, the pushback against a Managed Assigned Counsel method usually cites the possibility of lawyers being forced to work in Johnson's court against their will.
His opponent, Republican Emily Munoz Detoto, is a former prosecutor and long-time defense attorney who has run for a bench several times in the past. I've known Emily for over twenty years now and we have always been friends. That being said, Emily is definitely . . . not shy and has no hesitation about pissing off people that she gets into conflicts with. She's a good lawyer, but she is known to get in fights with prosecutors, judges, cops, and anyone who gets between her and her client.
Her time as a prosecutor and a defense attorney make her a better candidate than Judge Johnson.
Recommendation: Emily Munoz DeToto (R)
338th District Court - Democrat Allison Jackson Mathis vs. Republican Michele Oncken
If there was a 1st Runner Up to Least Popular Judge in the CJC, it most likely would have gone to current 338th District Court Judge Ramona Franklin, who was neither a big fan of coming to work nor following the law. Fortunately, she was defeated in the March Primary by Democratic candidate and defense attorney Allison Jackson Mathis, who will now face Republican prosecutor Michele Oncken in November.
In the interest of full disclosure, I was one of the people who begged Allison to run against Judge Franklin in the Democratic primary and I was ecstatic that she won. Allison is a career defense attorney who cares deeply about the Criminal Justice System and the inequities it so often demonstrates against the poor and under-represented. She's devoted her career to that and I have no doubt that she would be a fair and compassionate judge.
I've known Michelle Oncken since I was an intern at the D.A.'s Office in the late 1990s and I have absolutely nothing negative to say about her at all. She and I have been friends for over twenty years and I love her and her husband, Kirk to death. She is a felony Division Chief and quite capable of being a judge. My only qualms about Michelle is that she hasn't been a defense attorney.
It's because of that reason that I'll be voting for Allison Mathis in November. There is a perspective that a person gains when they become a defense attorney that I think is valuable to the bench. I certainly will admit that I didn't have that perspective when I was a prosecutor and I cherish having it now.
Recommendation: Allison Mathis (D)
NOTE: The 486th, 487th and 488th District Court Benches were all created since the 2022 Election and all of the Judges sitting on those benches were appointed by Republican Governor Greg Abbott. All of those Judges are now running for the first time as the Republican Candidates for those benches.
486th District Court - Republican Aaron Burdette vs. Democrat Vivian King
Republican Judge Aaron Burdette is a former Harris County Assistant District Attorney who rose to the level of District Court Chief before leaving for private practice. He did not practice criminal defense after leaving the Office, instead serving as in-house counsel for a gun advocacy organization. According to some sources, he is an "institution" of the CJC. Since he has taken the bench, I've appeared in front of him on only a handful of occasions, but he has been fair and evenhanded in my dealings with him.
His opponent is Vivian King, who currently serves as First Assistant to the recently ousted Kim Ogg at the Harris County District Attorney's Office. In my opinion, Vivian is every bit as bad, if not worse, than Kim Ogg and has absolutely no business being a judge. Although she has experience as both a defense attorney and a prosecutor, her erratic behavior and questionable job performance outweigh the balance that she could have potentially brought to the bench.
Late last year, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals blasted her for dropping a client's appeal when she was his defense attorney, despite expressly telling him she would handle it. She also mismanaged the task assigned to her of securing funding for the District Attorney's Office in 2025. Some of us more suspicious people wonder if she and her boss, Kim Ogg, deliberately didn't secure the funding knowing it would most likely be managed by a potential Teare Administration. And don't get me started on the time she called me to yell at me during the pandemic because of something I had written about her on this blog. My comment had been that I didn't think she should be in charge of the Covid response for HCDA and her response was to threaten to both sue and grieve me. Yeah, that was stable. To this day, I still don't know what time she takes her lunch hour.
Vivian declined to speak with the Chronicle Editorial Board because she knew that they might ask her what she would be like on the bench. I can answer that -- she'd be freaking scary. I actually think Vivian would be even more erratic than Kim Ogg.
Recommendation: Aaron Burdette (R)
487th District Court - Republican Lori Deangelo vs. Democrat Stacy Allen Barrow
This is a tough one for me.
Out of the three candidates appointed to the new benches by Governor Abbot, Lori Deangelo was the only who had real experience as a defense attorney, and that shows in her tenure on the bench, where in my limited dealings with her, she's been fair. I've also known her since I was a baby prosecutor and I consider her a friend. The only knock that I have heard against her is giving very high bonds on cases that have gotten high media attention.
Stacey Allen Barlow currently serves as an Associate Judge in Harris County, and I have appeared in front of her on more occasions than I have appeared in front of Judge Deangelo. I have had very positive experiences with her. I have found her to be thoughtful and fair and extremely legally knowledgable on the issues that she has had to rule on. I think she would make a very good (full-time) judge.
Recommendation: Both
488th District Court - Republican Matt Peneguy vs. Democrat Carvana Cloud
I've known both Matt Peneguy and Carvana Cloud since we were all prosecutors together back in the Olden Days. Although I have been very open about my issues with Matt's wife, former 482nd Judge Maritza Antu, I never had negative experiences with him in the time that I've known him. I dealt with him when he was a prosecutor and I was handling clients on cases with him, and he was always friendly, fair and reasonable. He was a Harris County Assistant District Attorney for a long time, leaving as a Felony District Court Chief. He then went on to be an Assistant U.S. Attorney before being appointed to the bench. To my knowledge, he has never been a defense attorney.
Of the three judges appointed to the new benches, however, the most complaints that I have heard have been about him. I have not appeared in his court since he took the bench, so I don't have personal knowledge of how he runs his court, but the complaints I have heard are concerning. I have heard that Judge Peneguy has taken to revoking bonds on Defendants who are late for court, which is a practice that had all but disappeared during the pandemic (for those few judges who still did such a thing). I've also heard that he has pushed back on authorizing funding on some Defense motions for investigator funds. Those two issues are alarming to those of us in the defense bar who 1) don't think a person's freedom should ever be contingent upon Houston traffic and the CJC elevators getting them to court on time; and 2) think that no judge ever should be determining that a defendant before him doesn't need his case investigated.
Carvana Cloud ran for District Attorney in 2020. I supported her then and I support her now. She's a lifelong Houstonian from Acres Homes who attended Kinkaid. Like Sean Teare, she served in the Rosenthal and Lykos Administrations before leaving for private practice, and was recruited back to the Office by Kim Ogg. Also like Teare, she saw what a bad job Kim Ogg was doing and quit to run against her boss. Although Carvana wasn't successful in her run against Ogg in 2020, she returned to the Defense Bar where she has continued to make a difference, fighting for justice for her clients. She is hardworking, dedicated, smart and compassionate. She would absolutely make a fantastic judge.
Recommendation: Carvana Cloud (D)
County Court at Law # 16 - Ashley Mayes Guice (D) vs. Linda Garcia (R)
Sitting Judge Darrell Jordan of the the County Court at Law # 16 did not seek reelection, so this one is an open bench. Both candidates have previously served as a County Court Judge. Both Guice and Garcia are well-liked attorneys who were liked during their times on the bench, as well.
It has been quite a few years since I've seen Linda Garcia, though. I don't know if she is practicing in juvenile or some place else, but I don't know what she has been working on lately. Ashley Guice, however, is a constant presence at the Criminal Justice Center, who continues to work in the trenches day in and day out. She was great on the bench when she served as an interim judge a few years ago, and I look forward to seeing her back there again.
Recommendation: Ashley Mayes Guice (D)
So, those are all of the contested races within the CJC. I'm not going to do write-ups on the Appellate benches, and other criminal law-related positions, but here's a recap on who I would vote for along with who I am voting for in the other races:
District Attorney: Sean Teare (D)
177th District Court: Emily Detoto (R)
338th District Court: Allison Mathis (D)
486th District Court: Aaron Burdette (R)
487th District Court: Both
488th District Court: Carvana Cloud (D)
County Court at Law # 16: Ashley Mayes Guice (D)
Harris County Sheriff: Ed Gonzalez (D)
Justice, 1st Court of Appeals, Place 6: Sarah Beth Landau (D)
Justice, 1st Court of Appeals, Place 7: Julie Countiss (D)
Justice, 1st Court of Appeals, Place 8: Kristin Guiney (R)
Justice, 14th Court of Appeals, Place 3: Chad Bridges (R)
Justice, 14th Court of Appeals, Place 4: Tonya McLaughlin (R)
Justice, 14th Court of Appeals, Place 5: Frances Bourliot (D)
Justice, 14th Court of Appeals, Place 6: Meagan Hassan (D)
Justice, 14th Court of Appeals, Place 8: Brad Hart (R)
