by Staff | Oct 22, 2014 | Uncategorized
October 22, 2014 (http://governor.state.tx.us/news/appointment/20268/) Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Maggie Jaramillo of Richmond as judge of the 400th Judicial District Court in Fort Bend County for a term to expire at the 2016 general election. Jaramillo is an attorney in private practice and a past assistant county attorney for Starr County. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Fort Bend County Bar Association, Fort Bend County Criminal Defense Attorneys Association and the Fort Bend County Mental Health Board. She is also a member of the Ladies Auxiliary to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #3903, volunteer for the Hispanic Scholarship Fund and a gate keeper for the Fort Bend County Fair. Jaramillo received a bachelor’s degree from Northern Arizona University and a law degree from the Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of...
by Staff | Oct 13, 2014 | Uncategorized
October 10, 2014 (http://governor.state.tx.us/news/appointment/20214/) Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Steve Hughes of El Paso as justice of the 8th Court of Appeals for a term to expire at the 2016 general election. Hughes is an attorney and shareholder for Mounce, Green, Myers, Safi, Paxson and Galatzan P.C. He is board certified in Civil Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, and a member of the Appellate Practice Section of the State Bar of Texas. He is a member of the American, El Paso and Fifth Federal Circuit Bar associations. He is also a legal advisor for the International Clarinet Association and a past member the El Paso Symphony Board of Trustees. Hughes received a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in music performance from Texas Tech University and a law degree from The University of Texas at Austin School of...
by Staff | Oct 8, 2014 | Uncategorized
October 7, 2014 (http://www.statesman.com/news/news/opinion/richardson-for-court-of-criminal-appeals-rose-for-/nhdPs/) Texas has two supreme courts. There’s the one we know as the Texas Supreme Court, the final arbiter of state civil cases. Then there is the lesser-known, given the absence of the word “supreme” in its name, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. The court is the last stop on the appellate road for criminal cases and reviews all death penalty convictions. Three seats on the nine-member court are up for election next month, but only the contest for Place 3 features Republican and Democratic opponents. The presence of major-party candidates doesn’t mean the Place 3 campaign is competitive, however. Without hesitation, voters should elect Republican Bert Richardson. This story continues on premium website for subscribers, MyStatesman.com. Continue reading/get access here...
by Staff | Aug 29, 2014 | Uncategorized
August 29, 2014 (http://governor.state.tx.us/news/appointment/20074/) Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Cindy Ermatinger of Midlothian as judge of the 443rd Judicial District Court in Ellis County effective Sept. 2, 2014, for a term to expire at the next general election. Ermatinger is an attorney, owner of The Law Offices of Cindy Ermatinger, and a former assistant district attorney for Dallas and Ellis counties, where she specialized in juvenile delinquency, child abuse and family violence prosecutions. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Ellis County Bar Association, Ellis County Defense Bar Association, Trial Lawyers College, and Texas and Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers associations. She is an associate board member of the Midlothian Education Foundation and a graduate of the Midlothian and Waxahachie Leadership Program. She is also a past defense attorney member of the Ellis County Bail Bond Board and a past member of the American Business Women’s Association and Midlothian Rotary Club. Ermatinger received a bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma State University and a law degree from the Texas Wesleyan University School of...
by Staff | Aug 26, 2014 | Uncategorized
August 25, 2014 (http://governor.state.tx.us/news/appointment/20067/) Gov. Rick Perry has appointed Craig Stoddart of Rockwall as justice of the 5th Court of Appeals for a term to expire at the next general election. Stoddart is first assistant criminal district attorney and chief of the Appellate Division for the Rockwall County Criminal District Attorney’s Office. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. He is co-chair of the Government Appellate Lawyers’ Committee for the State Bar of Texas and co-author of the Texas Bar Journal 2012 and 2013 Criminal Law Year in Review. He is a member of the College of the State Bar of Texas, Texas District and County Attorneys Association, Rockwall County Veteran’s Diversion Committee, Rockwall County Mental Health Task Force and Hubbard Chamber Music Society Board. He is also an advisor for Royse City Teen Court and a coach for the Rockwall YMCA Youth and Government Program. Stoddart received a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Texas and a law degree from the Texas Tech University School of...
by Staff | Aug 7, 2014 | Uncategorized
August 6, 2014 (http://www.kvue.com/story/news/state/2014/08/06/bible-banner-suit-heads-to-texas-supreme-court/13705897/) HOUSTON (AP) — A group of Southeast Texas high school cheerleaders is asking the Texas Supreme Court to rule on whether banners emblazoned with Bible verses it displays at football games is protected free speech. The Kountze Independent School District had initially banned the displays but later allowed them. However, the district retained the right to restrict the banners’ content. A state appeals court in May ruled the cheerleaders are no longer at risk of being kept from displaying the banners because of the policy change. In a petition filed Wednesday, though, the cheerleaders’ attorneys contend the school district lacks the right to restrict the banners’ content because it’s the cheerleaders’ constitutionally protected private speech. At attorney for the school district didn’t respond to a call for...
