Big Jolly Politics

politics in Harris County and Texas

Anti-Gun Nut Art Acevedo Appointed Houston Police Chief

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Mayor Sylvester Turner must really NOT want his pension legislation to succeed in Austin. While conservatives in Austin will be so glad to see Acevedo gone, his arrival here is a nightmare for every second amendment supporter in Houston.

Certainly the HPOU hall is abuzz with the news. There is no way that Ray Hunt and the HPOU leadership can be happy with this appointment.

Acevedo was docked five days’ pay for insubordination by Austin City Manager Marc Ott. The suspension was based on Acevedo’s public discussion of a controversial police shooting.

Big Jolly readers need to know that Acevedo is a BIG sanctuary city proponent.

“High-profile city police chiefs, including San Antonio’s Bill McManus and Austin’s Art Acevedo, have also said checking immigration status hinders policing strategies, sometimes by making members of communities with high numbers of undocumented immigrants less likely to report crimes.”

Art Acevedo is anti-gun.  Acevedo testified against the campus carry bill and is an open critic to the open carry law.

“Now we’re going to create an environment where people are lawfully allowed to carry firearms on campus,” he said. “We’re potentially turning sexual assault victims – who we have a lot of resources to help these young people…through our victims services and so forth – into potentially murder victims.”

While I wholly disagreed with the Martha Montalvo selection as interim police chief, it is difficult to think of a worse pick than Acevedo.  This makes the need for a well-qualified, conservative US Attorney for the Houston area even more important. Geez.

Devon’s Last Gasp

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On Thursday, Commissioner Steve Radack came to the Downtown Pachyderm to deliver the “vote straight Republican” message. Steve announced that all Republican slates are supporting straight ticket voting. Commissioner Radack went on a rant about bloggers who were supportive of Democratic candidates. Steve brought his trusty sidekick Jack O’Connor, the least articulate man in America, with him to the meeting.

Steve’s appearance was timed exactly one hour before Rusty Hardin’s press conference concerning Jenny, one of the jailed sexual assault survivors. At his press conference, Hardin claimed to represent Nick Socias, the prosecutor who jailed Jenny. The problem with that statement is that Hardin is not the attorney of record.

The purpose of Rusty’s press conference is clear – a Hail Mary for his friends in the Anderson administration. Unfortunately for Socias, he does not see that he is being sacrificed. His supervisors, likely the same people who authorized the writ of attachment, are the true offenders.socioshardin

The only question is how high up the totem poll did the decision go? My bet is Craig Goodhart. You may remember his name from the prosecutorial misconduct allegations in the Linda Carty case. Or the David Temple case. Interestingly, Devon Anderson denied any collusion between Hardin and her campaign on the issue. It just so happened that Anderson released a videotaped statement strikingly similar to Hardin’s press conference the night before Hardin’s presser using the exact same emails.

Hardin was not the only high profile attorney chiming in on the election. Randy Schaffer also released a letter asking for Anderson’s resignation. It should be noted that Randy Schaffer practices law with his son Josh Schaffer, the Planned Parenthood lawyer, I call it the Et tu, Brute? letter. Think about that, the Planned Parenthood lawyers are asking Devon to resign.

hotzewoodfillLet’s get back to Commissioner Radack. His little buddy Jack O’Connor asked a prepared question about why so-called Republican bloggers (i.e., Big Jolly) are supporting Kim Ogg for District Attorney. O’Connor bolstered his argument by pointing out the fact that Charles Kuffner, a local Democrat and blogger, never attacks his own.

Radack was very careful with his words. He made no excuses for Devon’s bad behavior, which includes jailing rape victims; charging pro-life activists for investigating Planned Parenthood; allowing a grand jury to no bill Doug Karpen, a notorious abortionist whose own employees came forward to say he was murdering children after they were born; covering up misconduct by an HPD homicide investigator; and failing to notify defendants of evidentiary problems. Steve Radack did not defend Anderson’s record. Nor did Steve ever point out that Texas Right to Life sent out a mailer encouraging the pro-life community not to vote for Devon Anderson or Sarah Davis. Steve’s message was simple: vote “straight” R. I am sure that Commissioner Radack’s message was not coordinated by Devon Anderson either. I wonder what Allen Blakemore has been up to the last few days.

Meanwhile, when I got home, I had several slate mailers encouraging me to vote a “straight” R ticket. The Hoopers were first in line to vote on Monday morning; so any good campaign should delete us from their mailing list. Alas, the mail has continued. The one piece that got my attention was from Steve Hotze and Jared Woodfill. They may want to be more careful in the candidate review process if they want a “straight” R ticket.

Jeffrey Neil Daily

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Jeff supported conservative causes in our community. I called Bruce Hotze and asked if it was appropriate to publish his comments on Jeff’s passing. Bruce shared these comments about his friend and I wanted to share them with Big Jolly readers.

I was quite shocked when Jeff’s wife Anabel called me on Thursday afternoon to tell me that Jeff had died due to an infection. Jeff was undergoing a new round of chemotherapy treatments that left his immune system weakened. Paul Bettencourt visited with Jeff about 2 PM on Tuesday afternoon. By 5 PM he was in an ambulance going to the emergency room and by
6 AM on Wednesday Jeff had  succumbed to the infection.

Jeff was a good friend, he loved talk about freedom and liberty. Jeff always spoke of his goal eliminating the property tax system in this country.

We fought some great political battles together.

We had many common business experiences as we both ran privately held manufacturing businesses in Houston. We would often brag about our latest new  hi tech machinery and their tight tolerances and increased production capabilities.

And we both ran businesses with bright design engineers. Jeff was particularly proud of his bright engineers and technical people and highly skilled machinist and office support staff. He knew their personal lives and loved to praise them in my presence.

We were kindred spirits.

I will miss my friend Jeff greatly.

Bruce R. Hotze, Sr.”

This is Jeff’s obituary from the Chronicle and I wanted his family to know our community mourns his loss and they are in our prayers.

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Jeffrey Neil Daily 1942-2016

Jeffrey N. Daily went home to be with our Lord on Wednesday, the 19th of October 2016, after a courageous 15 year battle with multiple myeloma.

Mr. Daily grew up working in his family’s monument business in Akron, Ohio and majored in accounting at the University of Akron. Throughout his life he was an athlete involved in football, basketball, and wrestling. Jeff started his professional career at Prince Waterhouse in New York then went on to achieve an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1967. His appreciation for competitive athletics made him consider a career in coaching a blind football team after living at the Perkins School for the Blind. At that time he worked for Peat Marwick Mitchell (now KMPG Peat Marwick) in its Boston and Los Angeles offices, had two children, Chris and Jeffrey, from a previous marriage. He was also a Certified Public Accountant.

He then went on to found Daily Instruments Corporation, a world leading thermometry company that services and provides value to the refining, petrochemical, and aerospace industries. In 2000 Jeff patented the CatTracker® an aerospace-derived technology for precision temperature measurement. By 2010 the market increase doubled in sales as CatTracker® became the standard of the downstream refining industry.

Mr. Daily gained extensive economic knowledge through his studies but his unique approach, as a true practitioner, was the product of years of debates with college professors and economists. His active participation in international business allowed him to set his theories into practice first hand, and witness the creation of jobs and economic value. Within every tome he found some element to practice and develop, in constant conversation with its author. His quest for innovation and inventing new technologies for refining and other industries was often discussed at lunch with his engineers as the company continued to grow. Currently over 150 people work for Mr. Daily and he challenged and positively influenced each and every member of his team.

Jeffrey N. Daily has been actively involved in politics since 1996. He has served in various capacities including: President of the Greater Houston Pachyderm Club, Candidates Committee of Associated Republicans of Texas, Finance Chairman of Harris County Republican Party, Member of C Club of Houston, Board Member of HPRC, and was on the Board of Directors of the Lincoln Club of Southern California. He was a Houston City Council candidate in 2003, was Co-Chairman for Let the People Vote and was Co-Campaign Manager of the winning Houston Prop 2 amendment, which limits annual City revenue increases to adjustments for inflation and population growth, unless approved by a citizens’ ballot.

Throughout the years he sponsored several pro-am basketball teams, often hoping to join a few minutes with the ex-pros. Basketball was his many passions but John Wooden (head coach of UCLA) was his idol. Over the years he sponsored many basketball leagues – often playing on them alongside the semi-pro players, many who remain friends of his to this day. Most importantly he loved attending and coaching his son Neil in the many AAU basketball games.

With all his accomplishments Jeffrey Neil Daily’s legacy will be remembered and honored because of his treatment of others. He was a kind and loving man with a wonderfully witty sense of humor. Jeff always saw the potential in people he came in touch with and was a driving force towards their success. Jeffrey had a close relationship with his sister Nadine. He loved traveling the world with his beloved wife Anabel and son Neil.
Jeffrey Neil Daily is survived by his loving family, wife Anabel and son Neil, his brothers Robert and John, and his sister Nadine.

Friends are cordially invited to a visitation with the family from five o’clock in the afternoon until eight o’clock in the evening on Thursday, the 27th of October, in the library and grand foyer of Geo. H. Lewis & Sons, 1010 Bering Drive in Houston.

The funeral service is to be conducted at two o’clock in the afternoon on Friday, the 28th of October in the sanctuary of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, 717 Sage Road in Houston.

In lieu of customary remembrances, memorial contributions may be directed toward the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, 383 Main Ave., 5th Floor, Norwalk, CT 06851.

Published in Houston Chronicle on Oct. 23, 2016

For Jim Leitner, County Attorney

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Jim Leitner Photo

Jim Leitner: Husband, father, grandfather, board certified attorney, public servant, former prosecutor, servant leader, church leader, pro-life Christian.

Jim, a native Houstonian, entered the Coast Guard at the age of seventeen. He served our country during the Gulf War and retired as a Commander.

A graduate of the University of Houston Law Center, Jim has practiced law for forty years. For years, Jim was the go-to attorney for difficult cases in Harris County. He represented some of the county’s worst offenders with integrity and intellect. Jim has handled over 300 jury trials and 300 appeals. He has served as First Assistant or second-in-command, in Bell, Harris, and Lampasas Counties.

Jim’s opponent, Vince Ryan, tried to use the powers of the County Attorney’s office to remove Dave Wilson, an elected official, from office because of his political and religious beliefs. Clearly, this was a blatant attempt by Vince Ryan, to remove Dave simply because he did not like him. Even democrats were critical of Ryan’s efforts – surprising. This is not a partisan issue. Manipulation of the legal system is improper. This alone should cause Republicans to race to the polls and vote for Jim.

The currently elected County Attorney Vince Ryan has begun a pattern of using outside law firms to sue local entities and families. In July of 2014, Harris County joined a lawsuit against ten companies involved in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon incident. As reported on 60 Minutes, the recovery effort against BP is resulting in fraudulent claims against the company. While the State of Texas and the City of Houston have filed similar lawsuits, it is difficult to claim that the BP disaster created a negative economic impact on Harris County, Texas. Many local businesses, including environmental firms, barge, and shipping companies, thrived during the clean up effort. That being said, I mention the BP litigation to highlight the mechanics that Vince Ryan is using to file these lawsuits – give business to outside law firms (friends of Vince) generally in exchange for political support.

Perhaps the most important reason to remove Vince Ryan is his lawsuit involving the San Jacinto waste pits. The harmful contaminant dioxin remains at the site because of Ryan’s litigation. Money that should have been used to clean the site instead enriched lawyers who support Ryan for office. It is shameful and the real efforts led by the company and Harris County officials to clean the site were halted by Ryan’s lawsuit. To this day, nothing has been cleaned up; but, Vince Ryan supporters made a lot of money and returned some to Vince just in time for his campaign.

Now, you have an opportunity to make the right decision for our community – Jim Leitner for County Attorney. There has never been a more qualified candidate with an outstanding military career and an impeccable legal career.

Devon Anderson’s Whisper Campaign Against Kim Ogg

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Kim Ogg

A whisper campaign has sprung up in the District Attorney race. I wanted to share a couple of emails that were being circulated in some Republican clubs and church groups. The emails speak for themselves but one is signed by Carolyn Vance, wife of former District Attorney Carol Vance. I will let you read them.

Dear Team,

That’s the title of a Friday “Houston Chronicle” article, followed by “Billionaire pumps $500K into race for district attorney.” We got that beautifully printed,  glossy ad in our mail yesterday, and you probably did too. So who is George Soros? He is the extremely wealthy ($24.9 billion) 86 year old Democrat who supports the most liberal causes. That would include a huge contribution to Hillary as well. To be truthful, I would NEVER want to vote for anyone he supports. His desire is to radically change this country just as Obama has tried to do. The fact that he is reaching down to influence local elections, like Kim Ogg’s running for DA, with his money is scary.

I have been told that Kim Ogg was a good prosecutor in her time at the DA’s office, but I have also been told that she is a lesbian and has a partner. Having seen our lesbian former mayor marrying her partner and kissing her in public, plus remembering her unrighteous stand on the bathroom issue – all of that leads me to believe that Devon Anderson will get my vote! I did not like it when David Daledin and his assistant were charged by the Grand Jury, but my husband has explained how a Grand Jury works and is not under the control of the DA. I will try to get him to write that out for us so we will understand and not blame Devon for it.

Praying for the Lord to intervene in all of the elections! Carolyn”

“Dear Friends,

One thing I wanted to make sure you know about regarding the local district attorney’s race is that the current DA Devon Anderson is the widow of the former DA who died in office and ran for DA after he died. She is the DA who tried to prosecute the baby selling whistleblowers David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt INSTEAD OF PLANNED PARENTHOOD. These charges have since been dropped, praise be to God! But before the hackles on your back rise any further, please be aware that the opponent KIM OGG is a LESBIAN. As a lesbian I think we can be sure that Ms. Ogg will promote this agenda. We have just fought this demon with Anise Parker.”

The religious overtone is designed to convince the reader not to support Kim because of her sexual orientation, homophobia. The first thing you should know about the dismissals is that Judge Diane Bull dismissed the selling of the baby body parts case. Devon Anderson criticized that decision. Devon Anderson was forced to dismiss the felony indictment after Jared Woodfill, Daleiden’s attorney, asked for the list of the grand jurors from the trial judge.

I wonder what gay crime victims and employees of the District Attorney’s office think of this campaign strategy?

DA Debate

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Hours before Devon Anderson and Kim Ogg debated last Monday night at Windsor Village United Methodist Church, one of Devon’s lead prosecutors was the subject of prosecutorial misconduct allegations in a Fort Bend County courtroom. Prosecutorial misconduct has become a theme of the Anderson administration.

The DA debate, moderated by Khambrel Marshall from KPRC Local 2, occurred just minutes before 84 million people watched the Trump-Clinton debate. Think about that for a second. The race for Harris County District Attorney is easily the most contested race in the county and the Anderson-Blakemore crew decided to debate Ogg the same night of the most watched political debate in history.

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Kim Ogg

Since the 2014 election, Anderson has been on the defensive for a variety of issues including several prosecutorial misconduct allegations; the [unjust] prosecution of two pro-life activists; a lawsuit that exposed the fact that prosecutors jailed a rape victim; even more jailed witnesses, including another rape victim; misuse of the asset forfeiture process; and a complete lack of diversity in the leadership ranks.

Devon used two defenses to this litany of scandals: personally attacking Kim Ogg and blame shifting.

Anderson attacked Ogg for previously running as a Republican. Anderson also attacked Ogg for voting in the 2008 Harris County Republican Primary. Instead of discussing her own attributes, Anderson tried to point out to the black community that Kim did not vote for Barack Obama in the 2008 primary campaign. Again, an interesting approach for someone defending her own Republican bona fides and one I enjoy sharing with Republican voters.

I do find it interesting that Kim Ogg’s father, former State Senator Jack Ogg, was one of the last pro-life Democrats in Texas. I was wondering if Anderson was going to bring that up; but, she is likely unaware of Houston political history.

Interestingly, Anderson is still defending her office’s decision to jail rape victims. While this does not surprise me, Anderson’s lack of legal responsibility blows me away. Let me explain. Most of you have likely seen Anderson’s video from Arizona defending the actions of her office. Since the news broke, Anderson has provided a detailed description of the trial court prosecutor’s actions. This is a problem because, whether or not they are true, the prosecutor’s actions were likely outside the scope of his employment, which would pierce his governmental immunity. This is why most smart lawyers say, “I cannot comment on pending litigation.” Devon Anderson is not a smart lawyer.

Ogg quoted hard data to demonstrate the lack of racial diversity in leadership positions at the Harris County District Attorney’s Office. Simply said, the racial diversity in the office in no way reflects the ethnic composition of the county.

In addressing the series of prosecutorial misconduct allegations against the District Attorney’s Office, Anderson claimed that none had been substantiated. In actuality, Judge Stacey Bond found that two prosecutors intentionally caused a mistrial in a highly publicized case. Attorney Stanley Schneider said that “Harris County residents should be troubled by the DA’s office condoning conduct like this.” After Bond’s ruling, attorney Dan Cogdell said, “It says to me there’s a cancer in that office that needs to be cut out.”

The latest problems involve destroyed evidence at Precinct Four and Anderson’s failure to timely notify defense counsel. Anderson’s office is a scandal a week and this will continue. She is in way over her head and has gotten terrible political and legal advice from those that surround her.

At one point during the debate, Anderson described her office’s transparency and a large chuckle erupted from the audience. Let’s just take the Precinct Four situation. Instead of accepting responsibility, Anderson shifted blame to Constable Mark Herman. Anderson claimed that her office could not obtain reliable case information from Constable Herman’s office, which is why Anderson’s office waited six months to notify defendants that the evidence in their case was destroyed. Meanwhile, defendants went to prison and, now, defendants may sue the county over these civil rights violations. Once again, the taxpayers lose with Anderson in office.

Anderson is wasting your tax dollars by permitting her prosecutors to exercise bad judgment and unethical conduct. She is also using the entire budget for salaries and is dependent on asset forfeiture funds for everything else.

There are only two ways to view this debate: via Ogg’s Facebook page and KPRC Local 2.

If you watch the debate, you will witness Anderson’s negative personal attacks against Ogg. Anderson’s defensive posture and blame shifting does not warrant Republican support. Most folks agree that Anderson is weighing down the ticket. It is time for the Anderson administration to end. Otherwise, Anderson’s misbehavior will continue as a stain on Harris County Republicans during every election cycle and lead to more problems for years to come. Most importantly, we are not safer with Anderson in office. Violent crime is prominent throughout the county. Anderson was a product of the slates and as Paul Simpson has waged a war against the three prominent slates, he continues to endorse and support the worst candidate in the Republican field, which drags down all of the candidates. Watch the debate and see for yourself.