Life at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center

Early voting began yesterday (Monday, May 16) for the May 24th runoff election. The most important one, by far, is the Republican race for the Court of Criminal Appeals, Place Two, which pits Harris County District Judge of the 232nd District Court, Mary Lou Keel , against Ray Wheless from Dallas. I've known Judge Keel since I first started at the D.A.'s Office.  I have tried cases in front of her as both a prosecutor and as a defense attorney.  She defines the very idea of the tough but fair judge.  She calls balls and strikes on issues of the law and draws from her decades of legal experience.  She knows the rules of law and procedure off the top of her head and she is Board Certified in Criminal Law. She would make a tremendous addition to the Court of Criminal Appeals. Her opponent has run a disappointingly misleading campaign.  He has tried everything in his power to distract from the very obvious fact that Judge Keel is the more qualified candidate for the positio

There will be a celebration of life for Robin Mitchell on Saturday, May 21st at 3 p.m. at St. Mark's United Methodist Church, 600 Pecore, Houston, TX 77008. As you know, we lost Robin last week to pancreatic cancer. A fund has been set up to help support medical costs, as well as education costs for his children.  If you can, please donate at this website .

Last October, I went for my semi-annual check up with my oncologist.  I was expecting good things. First of all, the type of leukemia that I dealt with two years earlier has an extremely low recurrence rate, so other than natural mild paranoia, I wasn't too concerned about getting some bad news.  Additionally, at the last appointment, my doctor told me that he would be moving to annual visits if I got the "all clear." Not that I minded the blood draws twice a year.  After going through chemo in 2013, I'm pretty used to needles.  Moving to a once-a-year visit is more of a symbolic thing, really.  It kind of signals that the doctor thinks you are sufficiently out of the woods that he doesn't need to keep such a close eye on you. As expected, my reports were good.  As promised, my doctor told me that I wouldn't have to come back for another year. Before I left, he asked me if I'd had my flu shot yet.  I hadn't.  He recommended I get that taken car

Tomorrow, May 5th, 2015 at 12:00 p.m., there will be a portrait unveiling for retired 338th District Court Judge Mary Bacon on the 20th Floor of the Criminal Justice System. Judge Bacon has been retired for some time now, but I had the pleasure of trying a case in front of her when she was a visiting judge.  Not only is a great judge, she is one of my favorite people.  I'm very glad to hear about the portrait unveiling. Please come by if you are in the neighborhood and have the time.