Monday August 16th is Day 162 of liberal trial lawyer and Democratic nominee for Governor Bill White refusing to release his taxes from his years in public service.
While Bill White is spending millions of dollars attacking Governor Perry for things like renting too nice of a house to live in while the Governor’s mansion is being repaired after an arsonist torched it, he continues to refuse to release his taxes from 1993-1998. During those years he held public service positions that required him by law to complete annual personal financial disclosures. While Bill White was Deputy Secretary of Energy (1993-95) and Chairman of the Texas Democratic Party (1995-98), he was required by law to complete annual personal financial disclosures. White has also failed to make those disclosures public.
Liberty Dispatch invites any Democratic officeholder who would like to distance themselves from Bill White (or Barack Obama) to take the opportunity to write in now. After two years of witnessing the changes Obama and Democrats like Bill White have in store for this country, the last plausible reason to switch political parties besides pure opportunism is here. But any Democrat wanting to switch to the Republican Party for principled honorable reasons should do it now. Those waiting for the next election cycle will be seen as trying to be on the winning team rather than trying to do what they think is right.
LD Contributor
Part Three, Candidate "Rusty" Hight Deals...
Part one and two of the examination of the questionable decisions made with Judge C. T. “Rusty” Hight’s Trust and rental property undoubtedly did little to phase the allegiance of some of his lifelong friends and some of his family. People he has done favors for (and those who may need favors in the future) will surely continue to have the idea that he should be re-elected to one of the two highest courts in the county. However, with Hight having a Republican opponent with vast legal experience and an excellent reputation as an attorney, it is possible that if enough voters learn a little about Judge Hight’s past and present behavior that this the staunch unwavering Democrat will be the first 75th District Judge to face stiff competition from a Republican challenger in the last 100 years. Our effort to stay fair and balanced in presenting a few of the facts does not exclude us from hoping that voters will re-evaluate and talk to friends about this race.
Thus far in previous parts to this ongoing story, we have pointed out Judge Hight’s relationship to unnamed lawyers and a local investigator via the Hight Trust’s rental property and up to a possible $100,000 a year in court appointed work that he has discretion over. Court appointed lawyers are paid with our tax dollars of course. What other possible “quo’s” or unknown back scratching paybacks could be involved in a quid pro quo scheme? The possibilities seem endless, but one of the most obvious is how all of these other connections affect his relationship to them when he sits on the bench. Again, no doubt his buddies and his little following will try to slough everything off as campaign hubris and negative campaigning, but voters trying to decide who should wear those black robes for the next four years are not likely to turn a deaf ear or a blind eye to actual court decisions this Judge has reached that involved his “lawyers/tenants/court appointees”. In other words, if people convicted of child molestation or people that have been arrested over and over and over get a radical and unusually light sentence and they are defended by one of this group, most of us would like to know, would we not?
By nature I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt. But in the future as we consider a couple of cases where Judge Hight gave one of these inexcusable sentences to a convicted criminal, people like me need to be reminded. As a lawyer, Judge Hight was not only sued for malpractice by a prominent Liberty citizen, he was caught and reprimanded for changing court documents by the Texas Judiciary. Those documents could have affected people’s lives drastically if he had not been caught. Hight also was involved in what seemed to some to be clandestine effort to use his father-in-law’s position as county chairman of the Republican Party and one of his renters to gain a monopoly on the two District Courts that reside here in Liberty County (reference here is made to local lawyer and defeated primary candidate Michelle Merendino). That effort was unsuccessful, but during that campaign, Judge Hight’s former campaign manager was caught on video in a scandal that involved stealing mail and trying to destroy District Judge Chap Cain by falsely accusing him of exceeding campaign contribution limits. This begs the question: has Judge Hight’s mission to attack other elected members of our justice system become the independent mission of some of his political allies or is he directing it?
We may never appear in the 75th District Court, but can we afford to risk that. Also we must be aware not only fellow human beings we do not know may appear in that court, but our friends and neighbors may someday appear before this Judge?
It has recently been alleged, and evidence will show, that notorious Republicans have been pushed before Hight only to have been severely mistreated and had their criminal and civil cases severely prejudiced and undermined by Hight for political and personal reasons. Who will right these wrongs?
On the other hand, stay tuned as we look at how criminals with certain court appointed lawyers may be among C. T. “Rusty” Hight’s biggest fans.
LD Contributor
Thus far in previous parts to this ongoing story, we have pointed out Judge Hight’s relationship to unnamed lawyers and a local investigator via the Hight Trust’s rental property and up to a possible $100,000 a year in court appointed work that he has discretion over. Court appointed lawyers are paid with our tax dollars of course. What other possible “quo’s” or unknown back scratching paybacks could be involved in a quid pro quo scheme? The possibilities seem endless, but one of the most obvious is how all of these other connections affect his relationship to them when he sits on the bench. Again, no doubt his buddies and his little following will try to slough everything off as campaign hubris and negative campaigning, but voters trying to decide who should wear those black robes for the next four years are not likely to turn a deaf ear or a blind eye to actual court decisions this Judge has reached that involved his “lawyers/tenants/court appointees”. In other words, if people convicted of child molestation or people that have been arrested over and over and over get a radical and unusually light sentence and they are defended by one of this group, most of us would like to know, would we not?
By nature I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt. But in the future as we consider a couple of cases where Judge Hight gave one of these inexcusable sentences to a convicted criminal, people like me need to be reminded. As a lawyer, Judge Hight was not only sued for malpractice by a prominent Liberty citizen, he was caught and reprimanded for changing court documents by the Texas Judiciary. Those documents could have affected people’s lives drastically if he had not been caught. Hight also was involved in what seemed to some to be clandestine effort to use his father-in-law’s position as county chairman of the Republican Party and one of his renters to gain a monopoly on the two District Courts that reside here in Liberty County (reference here is made to local lawyer and defeated primary candidate Michelle Merendino). That effort was unsuccessful, but during that campaign, Judge Hight’s former campaign manager was caught on video in a scandal that involved stealing mail and trying to destroy District Judge Chap Cain by falsely accusing him of exceeding campaign contribution limits. This begs the question: has Judge Hight’s mission to attack other elected members of our justice system become the independent mission of some of his political allies or is he directing it?
We may never appear in the 75th District Court, but can we afford to risk that. Also we must be aware not only fellow human beings we do not know may appear in that court, but our friends and neighbors may someday appear before this Judge?
It has recently been alleged, and evidence will show, that notorious Republicans have been pushed before Hight only to have been severely mistreated and had their criminal and civil cases severely prejudiced and undermined by Hight for political and personal reasons. Who will right these wrongs?
On the other hand, stay tuned as we look at how criminals with certain court appointed lawyers may be among C. T. “Rusty” Hight’s biggest fans.
LD Contributor
Dear LD
I recently found out that one of the two boys responsible for beating a boy on July 27, 2009 and then stealing his deer feeder might be released from jail by Christmas. This is appalling to me as the boy has an extensive juvenile criminal record and the family as a whole is nothing but a menace to Liberty county. I have been a victim of this family's thieving ways but could not stop them. He was responsible for thousands of dollars of wire theft in Tanner Settlement in Hardin in 2008 and thousands of dollars of damage to my farm. Two of his brothers (one of which was involved in this crime) have done time for drugs and their mother is a know menace in Liberty for both her behavior and for drugs. The only thing this boy will do once released is reoffend as he has no education and no way to support his family except to steal from us. What will that teach his young son? We need to speak out about this type of criminal. To the boy who was assaulted, please go speak to the judge and parole board. Demand that Kaleb Jackson remain behind bars for his entire sentence.
Name withheld
Name withheld
Obama visits Texas
As President Obama set foot on the runway in Austin, Texas Governor Rick Perry handed a letter to White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett requesting an increase in National Guard troops and law enforcement resources along the Mexican border. This issue is just one of many that most Texans disagree with Obama and the Democratic Party on. And that is the most obvious reason Perry’s Democratic opponent in the race for Governor will be nowhere to be found during the three day Presidential fundraising trip.
Liberty County voters should take note. Obama is here using what is left of the old Democratic Party machine to raise millions to push candidates and policies that have an all-time unfavorability rating in this state. For years local Democrats have bragged on their connections when they seemed popular and denied the importance of political parties and Democratic Party connections when they were unpopular. The case of Bill White is no different. Elect him and you strengthen the base of the Democratic Party and you help Obama. Period.
In state party conventions they emphasize the importance of electing local people in local offices. If local Democrats want to distance themselves from their fellow Democrats, they should denounce the fallacies policies their fellow Democrats promote. PUBLICLY! And if there are many, they should have switched parties last election. But they will not do that.
A good example is Liberty County Judge candidate, Democrat Zack Zbranek. Tried and true Democrat to the core of his being. He believes in big government and the whole Democratic Party package. He has not, and will not, separate himself from any of it. People like Zbranek are what is keeping the Democratic Party alive in Texas and in hopes of one day returning to power. They would love to be parading Obama around arm in arm down the streets of Dayton and Liberty and Cleveland. But they would only do that openly if Democrats were in power and if voters here would accept the Obama worldview.
There is less than 100 days to the next election and each voter will receive a ballot at that time. Obama’s name will not be on it. Zack Zbranek’s name will be however. He will bring a lifetime of chasing the all mighty buck and the last fifteen or so as a trial attorney to the voters as his experience, but a vote for him if he wins will have helped Obama in his mission to change America.
Liberty County voters should take note. Obama is here using what is left of the old Democratic Party machine to raise millions to push candidates and policies that have an all-time unfavorability rating in this state. For years local Democrats have bragged on their connections when they seemed popular and denied the importance of political parties and Democratic Party connections when they were unpopular. The case of Bill White is no different. Elect him and you strengthen the base of the Democratic Party and you help Obama. Period.
In state party conventions they emphasize the importance of electing local people in local offices. If local Democrats want to distance themselves from their fellow Democrats, they should denounce the fallacies policies their fellow Democrats promote. PUBLICLY! And if there are many, they should have switched parties last election. But they will not do that.
A good example is Liberty County Judge candidate, Democrat Zack Zbranek. Tried and true Democrat to the core of his being. He believes in big government and the whole Democratic Party package. He has not, and will not, separate himself from any of it. People like Zbranek are what is keeping the Democratic Party alive in Texas and in hopes of one day returning to power. They would love to be parading Obama around arm in arm down the streets of Dayton and Liberty and Cleveland. But they would only do that openly if Democrats were in power and if voters here would accept the Obama worldview.
There is less than 100 days to the next election and each voter will receive a ballot at that time. Obama’s name will not be on it. Zack Zbranek’s name will be however. He will bring a lifetime of chasing the all mighty buck and the last fifteen or so as a trial attorney to the voters as his experience, but a vote for him if he wins will have helped Obama in his mission to change America.
PART TWO: “FOLLOWING RUSTY HIGHT’S MONEY AND COURT DECISIONS”
In Part One of this story (please read it if you haven’t - scroll a few stories down from this one) I mentioned I was a concerned citizen who wants our justice system to work, and who plans to vote in the next election. I also said I intended to offer my opinion, but my goal was to include information that will hopefully cause readers to believe my analysis is fair and balanced – even if they disagree. So I will stick with that idea despite efforts to intimidate or to obfuscate.
Let me start by agreeing with any who have questioned that Judge Hight’s Trust renting to people who appear before him in the 75th District Court qualifies as “some kind of Watergate scandal”. The monthly rental checks received by the Hight Trust, regardless of the amount of each, clearly by themselves, do not point to much of anything – except perhaps poor judgment.
Let me also express to those who have responded to Article One with so many four letter words you weren’t posted, that I never claimed to be a lawyer and that people who are much more schooled in the technicalities of the law can debate you as to whether these transactions are legal or whether they are based on where Judge Hight’s children live, etc. Re-read Article One and you will see that I said I would offer my opinion about what is right and what is wrong and that I would back up my opinion with rationally reasoned thoughtful discourse.
Remember I defined the term quid pro quo as a "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" situation, as opposed to a legal definition. I would enjoy debating any lawyers that would defend such behavior but my purpose is to present to the voters a fair and balanced view of what kind of person Judge Hight is. If there are no dots or I can’t connect the dots, then voters should pay me no mind. But if I manage to show the voters that the 75th District Court in Liberty County is being run unsatisfactorily, even those voters who have voted for Judge Hight in the past, then I ask people to help me make a change.
So Part Two of this story continues to “following the money” or as was said before - to talk about the “quid”. Again, I can just hear local lawyers who want to continue to appear before Judge Hight: “How dare these people pretend to understand the law or Latin.” Then they read the law chapter and verse and declare the Judge is in no way involved a quid pro quo according to their interpretation, prejudice, etc.
But as I said before most of us are not lawyers, nor are we jurors in a case against Judge Hight. But we are voters who can cast votes to hire and fire judges.
Therefore some of my questions are: “Is Judge C.T. “Rusty” Hight “scratching the back” of any of those people leasing the previously discussed properties from the C.T. Hight Trust?” “How much have the monthly rentals been for each tenant?” “Is it true that any (or perhaps all) of his tenant are receiving thousands of dollars in taxpayer money from work they have been given as a result of District Judge C.T. Rusty Hight appointing them to some task ( defense, private detective work, etc)?”
These are just a few of the things on my mind; there are many other questions that need to be asked. Many people who pay a significant amount of rental money each month to the C.T. Hight Trust appear before Judge C. T. "Rusty" Hight and receive court appointed work from him. In one case alone, one of these people was awarded $100,000 by Judge Hight.
Please continue to follow the money (and the interesting court decisions) with me as we take a look at the most important local race in the November election and we uncover whether Judge Hight’s sentencing has been what voters would hope – especially when it involves his renters serving as the defense lawyers.
In summary, we will study how Hight's decisions relate to those he has a financial interest in or is a political enemy of... and his personal and ethical behavior.
Stay tuned to this informative, detailed and multi-faceted expose' on candidate for Liberty County Judge, Carol "Rusty" Hight.
LD Contributor
Let me start by agreeing with any who have questioned that Judge Hight’s Trust renting to people who appear before him in the 75th District Court qualifies as “some kind of Watergate scandal”. The monthly rental checks received by the Hight Trust, regardless of the amount of each, clearly by themselves, do not point to much of anything – except perhaps poor judgment.
Let me also express to those who have responded to Article One with so many four letter words you weren’t posted, that I never claimed to be a lawyer and that people who are much more schooled in the technicalities of the law can debate you as to whether these transactions are legal or whether they are based on where Judge Hight’s children live, etc. Re-read Article One and you will see that I said I would offer my opinion about what is right and what is wrong and that I would back up my opinion with rationally reasoned thoughtful discourse.
Remember I defined the term quid pro quo as a "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" situation, as opposed to a legal definition. I would enjoy debating any lawyers that would defend such behavior but my purpose is to present to the voters a fair and balanced view of what kind of person Judge Hight is. If there are no dots or I can’t connect the dots, then voters should pay me no mind. But if I manage to show the voters that the 75th District Court in Liberty County is being run unsatisfactorily, even those voters who have voted for Judge Hight in the past, then I ask people to help me make a change.
So Part Two of this story continues to “following the money” or as was said before - to talk about the “quid”. Again, I can just hear local lawyers who want to continue to appear before Judge Hight: “How dare these people pretend to understand the law or Latin.” Then they read the law chapter and verse and declare the Judge is in no way involved a quid pro quo according to their interpretation, prejudice, etc.
But as I said before most of us are not lawyers, nor are we jurors in a case against Judge Hight. But we are voters who can cast votes to hire and fire judges.
Therefore some of my questions are: “Is Judge C.T. “Rusty” Hight “scratching the back” of any of those people leasing the previously discussed properties from the C.T. Hight Trust?” “How much have the monthly rentals been for each tenant?” “Is it true that any (or perhaps all) of his tenant are receiving thousands of dollars in taxpayer money from work they have been given as a result of District Judge C.T. Rusty Hight appointing them to some task ( defense, private detective work, etc)?”
These are just a few of the things on my mind; there are many other questions that need to be asked. Many people who pay a significant amount of rental money each month to the C.T. Hight Trust appear before Judge C. T. "Rusty" Hight and receive court appointed work from him. In one case alone, one of these people was awarded $100,000 by Judge Hight.
Please continue to follow the money (and the interesting court decisions) with me as we take a look at the most important local race in the November election and we uncover whether Judge Hight’s sentencing has been what voters would hope – especially when it involves his renters serving as the defense lawyers.
In summary, we will study how Hight's decisions relate to those he has a financial interest in or is a political enemy of... and his personal and ethical behavior.
Stay tuned to this informative, detailed and multi-faceted expose' on candidate for Liberty County Judge, Carol "Rusty" Hight.
LD Contributor
Feds peel the onion...
With the Feds active in Liberty County and Chambers County, all eyes are upon their activity. Information has come into Liberty Dispatch which alludes to more possible federal indictments of Phil Fitzgerald, Lee Groce, Dennis Odell, Mike Little, Liz Beausoleil, Chambers County Judge, Jimmy Silvia and others. Until and even after the indictments, people need to remember that these people should be presumed innocent until proven guilty.
As late as last week, federal investigators were still sequestering records from Liberty County and Chambers County. Its also alleged that county officials from both counties have sought to destroy emails and other records which could tend to incriminate them.
It will be interesting what information comes to light when those who are accused point the finger at others even more corrupt.
Liberty Dispatch readers are hopeful the corrupt leaders in each community will soon be brought to justice.
As late as last week, federal investigators were still sequestering records from Liberty County and Chambers County. Its also alleged that county officials from both counties have sought to destroy emails and other records which could tend to incriminate them.
It will be interesting what information comes to light when those who are accused point the finger at others even more corrupt.
Liberty Dispatch readers are hopeful the corrupt leaders in each community will soon be brought to justice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
