Witness intimidation? Texas State Senator pledges to hunt down "Publican" person responsible for illegal voter complaint filed against his constituent

A Texas state senator was caught on video during a public hearing pledging to hunt down the identity of the person responsible for filing an illegal voting complaint on one of his constituents in the aftermath of the Texas 2020 presidential primary.

Texas State Senator Borris Miles was referring to a complaint filed resulting in the subsequent indictment of Hervis Rogers, whom Senator Miles revealed is one of his constituents in the Harris County-area Texas Senate District 13.

But first some background from the NY Post:

"A Texas man who was hailed as a national hero after he queued for several hours in order to cast a ballot in last year’s presidential primary, was charged with illegal voting earlier this week.

Hervis Rogers was arrested Wednesday in Houston, charged with two counts of illegal voting, according to a report on Houston Public Media. He is being held in jail, unable to pay bail set at $100,000. 

“Mr. Rogers is being held in jail on an extremely high bail amount that he cannot afford for what amounts to simply attempting to fulfill his civic duty. This is not justice,” said ACLU of Texas legal director Andre Segura. “He faces potentially decades in jail. Our laws should not intimidate people from voting by increasing the risk of prosecution for, at worst, innocent mistakes.”

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is alleging that Rogers voted while on parole for a 1995 conviction for burglary.

In Texas, it is illegal for those convicted of a felony to vote in an election until their sentence is completed, including probation and parole. Rogers’ parole began in 2004 and expired in June 2020. The Texas primaries, in which he cast his ballot, were held in March of that year.

With that context scroll to the 2:50:00 minute mark of the Texas Senate State Affairs hearing held July 10, 2021.

Senator Miles: "How did the Attorney General's office even find out about this?"

Witness answer: "We received a complaint through the Secretary of States office."

Senator Miles: "Through the Secretary of States office?"

Witness: "We got a complaint from the public."

Senator Miles: "I need not ask...who in the public?"

Witness answer: "So 31.006 information regarding complaints to the the Attorney Generals office is not public information until the investigation is completed."

Senator Miles: "My office will be submitting a legislative privilege to get that information request so that...I would like to know..I'd like to know who that "publican"---who it is, who it is requestin' that".

Rogers was bailed out of the Montgomery County jail on July 10 but that does not excuse Senator Miles from what appears to be a pledge of witness intimidation.

Nevada lawsuit reveals Houston uses same ballot-sorting system as Clark County

Holy Presidential Election, Batman! News organizations across the country are reporting the Trump campaign suffered a huge loss in Nevada; oh really?

Here's a copy of the order from the Clark County, Nevada  lawsuit about the ballot-sorting and signature verification systems purchased in the name of "COVID" to expand the use of mail ballots in the county. 

In his order Judge James Wilson wrote :

Clark County uses an electronic ballot-sorting system, Agilis. No other Nevada county uses Agilis. Some major metropolitan areas including Cook County, Illinois; Salt Lake City, Utah and Houston, Texas use Agilis. Some other Nevada counties use other brands of ballot-sorting systems.

Registrar Gloria decided to purchase Agilis due to the pandemic and the need to more efficiently process ballot signatures. 

One of the Petitioners attorneys questioned Registrar Gloria about Agilis in an earlier case: Corona v Cegavske but never asked Registrar Gloria to stop using Agilis.

Clark County election staff tested Agilis by manually matching signatures. Clark County election staff receives yearly training on signature matching from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The last training was in August 2020.

Judge Wilson Order Clark County Lawsuit by Yvonne Larsen on Scribd

Related: 

California Gov. Newsom slammed by Superior Court Judge; bars use of COVID to change, make state law

Texas: Harris County Commissioners Court to meet Tuesday; vote canvass on agenda

Texas: Harris County Commissioners Court to meet Tuesday; vote canvass on agenda

Harris County, Texas Commissioners Court will hold a special meeting Tuesday November 17 to discuss the canvassing of votes cast in the 2020 General Election and Special Elections.

Texas Election Code requires the Secretary of State to post a notice on the secretary of state's Internet website of the date, hour, and place of the state canvass at least 72 hours before the Governor conducts the state canvass.

Sec. 67.012. TIME FOR CANVASS BY GOVERNOR. (a) The governor shall conduct the state canvass at the time set by the secretary of state...

Fort Bend County Commissioners Court met Tuesday November 10 to canvass election results.

Governor Abbott must conduct the state canvass on or before December 3, 2020.

* This article was updated to include information about the Fort Bend County canvass.

Breaking: was there foreign meddling in Texas CD-7 Congressional primary race?

Photos of Harris County GOP precinct chairs taken with a foreign national tied to endorsements of candidates for political office have emerged and questions are being asked about foreign meddling in the March 2020 Texas CD-7 Congressional Republican primary race.

The photo below was posted by Harris County CD-7 GOP precinct 509 chair Gail Stolzenburg. Mr. Stolzenburg identified Jeb Strickland, Precinct 625 chair and Jon Speiers, Precinct 87 chair.

Mr. Stolzenburg's post also named Shandon Phan, former candidate in the Texas CD-22 GOP primary and Hilario Yanez, National Press Secretary for the Republican National Hispanic Assembly.                                               

Yanez is a DACA recipient  (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) --a foreign national, unlawfully present in the United States but allowed to work and obtain a drivers license and protected from deportation under an Obama executive order.

Foreign national Yanez is also tied to a Republican advisory board that issued THIS LIST of endorsements in Congressional and Judicial candidates prior to the March 2020 Super Tuesday GOP primary.

The Harris County GOP CD-7 precinct leaders could jeopardize Republican wins across Texas if evidence of foreign meddling in U.S. elections continue to surface.

Did Yanez' presence on the advisory board  influence the selection process any endorsement decision on the issue of support for a DACA amnesty?

ICE Houston deports three illegal aliens wanted for homicide in Mexico

While Harris County, Texas residents were distracted by mandatory mask-wearing orders issued by a child county executive, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Removal Operations in Houston sent three illegal aliens ---adios fellas---back to Mexico where they are all wanted for homicide.

“These individuals fled Mexico to escape prosecution for their alleged crimes and have continued to engage in criminal activity here in the U.S.,” said Paul McBride, acting field office director of ERO Houston.

 "By working together with our foreign law enforcement partners, we have safely returned them to their home country where they will stand trial for their alleged crimes and made our community safer.”

From the ICE press release:


HOUSTON — Officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in Houston, Texas, removed three fugitives Wednesday wanted for homicide in Mexico.

Alfredo Medina-Martinez, 29, Guillermo Vazquez-Saenz, 51, and Eduardo Antonio Perez Don Juan, 53, all citizens of Mexico, were escorted to the Laredo, Texas, Port of Entry where they were presented to Mexican law enforcement authorities.

Medina-Martinez is wanted by Mexican authorities for homicide. Vazquez-Saenz and Perez Don Juan are wanted for aggravated homicide.

Medina-Martinez has been removed from the U.S. to Mexico on three previous occasions; Jan. 5, 2019; Feb. 27, 2019; and May 10, 2019. He was ordered removed by an immigration judge Dec. 30, 2018. Medina-Martinez was convicted of illegal entry Jan. 2, 2019, and illegal reentry Feb. 26, 2019, and Oct. 15, 2019. He is a documented member of the Mexicles, a Mexican street gang allied with the Sinaloa Cartel.

Vazquez-Saenz, a documented member of the Zetas Drug Cartel, was administratively removed from U.S. to Mexico May 14, 2013. On Jan. 22, 2018, he was encountered by immigration officials after illegally reentering the U.S. An immigration judge ordered him removed from the U.S. to Mexico Aug. 24, 2018. He was convicted of escaping from custody July 15, 2002, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas and driving while intoxicated in Collin County (Texas) June 2, 2006.

Perez Don Juan has previously been removed from the U.S. to Mexico on four occasions; April 17, 1999; Oct. 25, 2002; March 25, 2004; and Dec. 10, 2009. He has multiple criminal convictions in the U.S. including a conviction for attempted burglary in Dekalb County (Georgia) June 26, 1998, illegal reentry March 24, 2003, driving while intoxicated in Galveston County (Texas) Nov. 30, 2009, and illegal reentry March 27, 2020.

Read it all here.

An accidental endorsement? Texas pay-to-play slate recommends YES vote for a second questionable candidate

County Examiner finds a second compromised Republican candidate endorsed on a pay-to-play slate.

Yesterday County Examiner brought to light a pay-to-play GOP endorsement slate arriving in the mailboxes of thousands of Harris County, Texas -area Republican primary voters. This blog highlighted the problematic recommendation that Harris County, Texas-area GOP primary voters put former Judge James Lombardino back on the bench, only this time put him on the bench as Justice, 1st Court of Appeals, District Place 5.

You can read about it here.

Today, County Examiner highlights a SECOND problematic recommendation; only this time  that voters in Texas House District 138 mark their mail-in ballot or pull the lever for  questionable candidate Josh Flynn.

Why does a GOP primary win for Flynn put Harris County Republicans in a precarious position?

Mr Woodfill, as we revealed yesterday, self-identified as the President, Conservative Republicans of Harris County--the very entity behind the endorsement mailer. 

Where on this mailer has Mr. Woodfill disclosed to the voters he represented Josh Flynn in a civil court case? Is that little tidbit of information shown on this mailer? Conflict of interest, much?

Mr. Woodfill represented Josh Flynn in a case challenging Flynns eligibility to run for the HD 138 race, due to multiple factors surrounding Flynns resignation from the lucrative office of the Harris County Department of Education prior to filing run for the State Legislature.

For now, a court injunction prevents Paul Simpson, Chair of the Harris County Republican Party, from removing Flynn's name from the ballot.

Should Flynn win the March GOP primary and go on to the November general election, I expect Texas Democrats will hammer Texas Republicans over their choice of Flynn and pursue getting his name taken off the November 2020 ballot over this very issue, meaning Texas Republicans could conceivably LOSE this State Representative race to whoever gets the Democratic nod.

So have Steve Hotze and Jared Woodfill endorsed Flynn teeing up a Republican WIN in this race in November or endorsed Flynn setting up Republicans to LOSE this race in November?

Texas Republican pay-to-play slate accidentally endorses a compromised Republican---so he can lose?

Two Harris County-area Texas "Conservative" Republicans running an opinion "pay-to-play" endorsement slate have accidentally highlighted a compromised, (IMHO) GOP primary candidate and recommended him in the Republican primary--did they endorse him to win or did they endorse him to lose?

A slate endorsement arriving in the mailbox of tens of thousands of unsuspecting Harris County, Texas-area GOP primary voters is suggesting Republican primary voters vote YES for a certain Republican judge who wants get back on the bench. 

That judge is James Lombardino, the former judge of the 308th District Court. You see, Lombardino was booted off the bench in 2018; more on that in a moment.

The two Texas "Conservative" Republicans running the pay-to-play endorsement slate and their recommendation of Lombardino are shown in the two photos below:

What does Pay-to-Play mean in the context of a political endorsement in Texas? 

Well, Dictionary. com refers to "pay-to-play" as situations where one must exchange money to engage in an activity or to earn favors or influence, meaning money is exchanged for the purpose of extending the reach of the candidate.

How? By influencing the voter to take the "sample ballot" into the voting booth or complete their mail-in ballot using the above as a guide.

Why is their "sample ballot" suggesting a YES vote for Lombardino so problematic?

We'll let the eagle-eyed former Houston TV investigative reporter Wayne Dolcefino explain it to you:

Do you agree? Should judges avoid real or perceived impropriety and disclose potential conflicts of interest to everyone appearing in their courtroom?

Should Lombardino win the March GOP primary and go on to the November general election, I expect Texas Democrats will hammer Texas Republicans over their choice of Lombardino on the appearance of impropriety that caused him to lose his reelection bid back in 2018--meaning Texas Republicans could conceivably LOSE the race for the 1st Court of Appeals, District Place 5 in the November general to either Democrat Amparo Monique Guerra or Tim Hootman.

So is this endorsement designed for the Republican to win in this race or for the Republican to lose in this race?

Does Texas Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia still want to "Abolish ICE"? Visa overstay sentenced on child pornography charges

An investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) and Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force led to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston securing a guilty plea from a Mexican man for the receipt and possession of child pornography. 


Now Houston, Texas residents must ask themselves; "does Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia really want to Abolish ICE?"

On June 24, 2019 Houston Talk Radio personality Ken Webster posted a video of Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia marching in the Houston PRIDE parade holding a banner that read "Abolish ICE" noting:

From the ICE press release:

"ICE is an organization that stops human trafficking and captures people guilty of heinous crimes, including child pornographers, rapists and murderers, but Sylvia would apparently prefer those people walk free, as she's openly advocating to abolish the institution that arrests a countless number of criminals every year."

Fast forward to October 22, 2019 when both U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement ---that would be ICE----- and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston issued dual press releases announcing the guilty plea and sentencing of a non-U.S. citizen on child pornography charges.

 "A 54-year-old Mexican man who illegally remained in the United States after his temporary visa had expired was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison Tuesday for receiving and possessing child pornography.  

This investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. 

Alberto Bernal Garcia, who illegally resided in Houston, Texas, pleaded guilty to the criminal charges April 16. He was sentenced to 10 years each for the receipt and possession convictions, respectively. These sentences will run concurrently.  

Garcia legally entered the United States from Mexico on a temporary visa in 1997. However, he overstayed that visa.  Following his release from federal prison, he is expected to face removal proceedings."

Let's see Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia defend her "Abolish ICE" position. 

Oh sure, there's virtually no chance Garcia will be ousted come the November 2020 elections. Representing Texas' 29th Congressional District, although it's solid blue President Donald Trump and other America First Congressional candidates within Harris County Republican circles can blast the movement calling to Abolish ICE and point to Garcia as a local example of an elected official supporting a policy protecting child pornographers from deportation.

Houston Community College named as defendant in dispute over land purchase for Katy, TX campus

Houston Community College is named one of two defendants in a legal dispute over land the College purchased for their new Katy, Texas campus. 

A review of public records reveals the lawsuit was originally filed March 4, 2019 in Harris County Court at Law No. 4 and was moved into Federal court under a claim of inverse condemnation; the taking, damaging and / or destruction of property for public use without adequate compensation under the Texas Constitution.

According to public documents, Houston Community College and a second party named as a defendant in the suit consented to moving the issue into Federal court.

The underlying basis for the suit lies in a covenant attached to a deed pertaining to the subject property which is located at the northeast corner of Grand Parkway and the Katy Freeway,

Documents associated with the original cause filed in Harris County Court at Law 4 describe the existence of a deed recorded in Harris County, Texas in which Westside Ventures, LTD sold the property to Kickerillo Company Inc. in October 2007.

The deed included a covenant applicable to Kickerillo and its "successors and assigns" limiting development of the property to single-family residential homes. 

In its filings, Houston Community College asserts the single-family use restriction does not apply to them or is not enforceable against them or any entity the property may be assigned to.

A pre-trial conference is scheduled for October 4, 2019 at 02:30 PM in Judge Hughes's Chambers in Downtown Houston.

The case is 4:19-cv-02928

Update: County Examiner received a statement from HCC Trustee Dave Wilson:

“Had the HCC administration made the Board aware of the covenant limiting development of the property to residential housing, hopefully the Board would have voted against purchasing the property in December of 2018. The original Board action barely passed with 5 of 9 members voting for.  

The HCC Board should re-visit, yet another bad real estate deal, and resend this purchase.  HCC has a long rich history of shady real estate deals.”

Harris, Hidalgo counties top May list of inmates with immigration detainers in Texas county jails

Harris, Hidalgo and Travis County jails together accounted for 39% of the inmates with immigration detainers housed in Texas County jails for the month of May 2019, reported the Texas Commission On Jail Standards.

In its report dated July 18, 2019 4728 inmates with immigration detainers were housed for a total count of 101,124 inmate days in Texas County jails for the month of May. Topping the list of county jails housing the most inmates with immigration detainers were Harris, Hidalgo and Travis counties with 976, 544 and 343 inmates respectively.

Harris, Dallas and Hidalgo counties were the top three counties with 1095, 862 and 569 inmates respectively on the April  2019 report.

As noted in the report, Texas Senate Bill 1698 authored by former State Senator Tommy Williams became law following the 82nd regular session. SB 1698 mandated the reporting of the total number of inmates with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainers housed in jails under the Commission’s purview as part of the monthly population report.

The complete list of Texas county jails, number of inmates with ICE detainers and number of inmate days for the month of May 2019 can be found here. 

UPDATED: Dr. Laura Pressley responds - Fort Bend County commissioners court to conduct workshop on new voting systems; will the systems produce paper backup records?

Fort Bend County Commissioners Court will conduct a workshop to view four new voting systems certified for use in the State of Texas; will the Commissioners ask for confirmation the machines can produce paper backup records?

According to Item 34 posted on the agenda for the Tuesday August 13, 2019 court meeting the commissioners will discuss these systems:

• ExpressVote Marker

• ExpressVote Tabulator

• Hart Verity Voting

• Hart VerityHybrid 

Fort Bend County Commissioners and constituents attending the workshop should ask:

1. Which voting systems produce the statutorily required ballot images required for manual recounts, including storage and printing?


2. Please confirm which systems support the statutorily required ballot images contain the legal components of an official Texas ballot, such as the election name and date, each candidate’s name, voting squares, and a unique serial number as defined by the Texas Constitution?

3. Please confirm each voting system comports with Texas Election Code statutes 66.023 supporting the printing of Early Voting tapes  that report the precinct returns for that location.

Surely no one wants the Texas Secretary of State in a position to ever issue waivers for counties that do not print backup/ results tapes for Early Voting and Election Day, nor does anyone want the Secretary of State to ever issue waivers to all 254 Texas counties NOT to audit paper ballot results.

A County Examiner source revealed that adjacent Harris County, Texas is strongly considering the acquisition of new voting equipment that can produce paper backup records, and we hope Fort Bend does the same.

Updated: Dr. Laura Pressley responds:

Even with a paper ballot backup, voters and candidates must remain vigilant, step up to perform checks on voting results, be central counting station watchers, and hold election administrators accountable to all Texas election laws.

We must ensure the new systems strictly adhere to all Texas’ paper trail  laws:

• Counties must provide for mandated consecutively numbered paper ballots to voters to prevent vote duplication or removal (Texas Election Code 52.062),
• Election Judges must print mandated results tapes for Early Voting (Texas Election Code 66.023) and Election Day (Texas Election Code 66.022 and 66.024),
• Secretary of State, Election Administrators and Central Counting Station Watchers must ensure audit logs of central counting computers record all electronic entries (Texas Administrative Code 81.62(b)).

Election laws shall not be compromised.  Voters and candidates must be courageous to file

election lawsuits when discrepancies and illegalities are discovered.

Dr. Laura Pressley is the Founder of True Texas Elections, LLC and is an advocate for legal, honest, and transparent elections in Texas and across the country. Donate to the effort here.

Loss of millions in grant money at stake for one Texas county urging Congress issue ID’s for illegals

The Harris County, Texas Commissioners Court is urging “national leaders” aka Congress to enact a plan allowing people not lawfully present in the United States that includes providing them with legal identification. On Tuesday July 30 a resolution (see page 35) is on the court agenda that, if adopted, would amount to an estimated loss of over $22 million dollars in Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) grants affecting over 94 FTE's (full-time equivalents) for the county.

“now therefore be it resolved…that Harris County Commissioners Court calls on national leaders to adopt legislation that comprehensively reforms immigration policy, including enactment of a plan that allows people without permanent legal immigration status, and who have demonstrated a desire to remain in the United States, to gain a status that permits them to remain in the United States, work and obtain legal identification…

Note also the resolution acknowledges over 412,000 persons in the county are estimated to be not lawfully present in Harris County.

So how much in grant money would Harris County stand to lose should Commissioners Court adopt this resolution?

An internal memo obtained by County Examiner reveals an analysis of over $22 million in grants funds affecting over 94 FTE (full-time equivalent Harris County employees) are at risk. These funds, listed in the table below, affect the budgets of the:

• Harris County District Attorney
• Harris County Juvenile Probation
• Harris County Constable Precincts 4, 5 and 7
• Harris County District Courts
• Harris County Judge
• Harris County Sheriffs Department
• Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences
• Harris County Protective Service; Children and Adults
• Office of County Court Management

Read the entire memo here.

Harris County Commissioners Court meets Tuesday July 30 at 10 a.m. at 1001 Preston Street, Suite 394, Houston, TX 77002.

Better get there early.

Sex Offender Pleads Guilty to Immigration and SORNA violations

Headlines such as these result in ever-increasing numbers of U.S. citizens opposed to passage of any laws granting amnesty or temporary protected status from deportation to anyone in the country illegally.

Read the full news release here.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A 57-year-old Guatemalan national has admitted to two federal felonies after sexual assault conviction, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.  

On or about July 19, 2002, Jose Paxtor-Chiroy was convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a five-year-old child in Harris County. Following his state prison sentence, federal authorities ordered he be deported from the United States and to not return. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender.

He had previously faced removal proceedings on two other occasions.

In the early morning hours of Feb. 27, 2018, authorities located Paxtor-Chiroy walking through a ranch near Sarita. He was attempting to avoid the Border Patrol (BP) checkpoint. At the time of his arrest, he admitted he unlawfully entered the United States by traveling across the Rio Grande River near Hidalgo County.

Under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), convicted sex offenders must provide registration updates annually or quarterly, depending on the reportable conviction. Today, Paxtor-Chiroy admitted in federal court that he failed to do so as required. He also pleaded guilty to illegal re-entry into the United States after deportation.

U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos will impose sentencing Nov. 6, 2019. For the immigration offense, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison, while the failing to update his sex offender registration carries a potential 10-year-term of imprisonment. Both convictions also carry a potential $250,000 maximum fine. Not a U.S. citizen, he is again expected to face deportation proceedings.

Harris, Dallas counties top list of inmates with immigration detainers in Texas county jails

Harris and Dallas County jails together accounted for 34% of the inmates with immigration detainers housed in Texas County jails for the month of April 2019, reported the Texas Commission On Jail Standards.

In its report dated May 16, 2019 5,742 inmates with immigration detainers were housed for a total count of 113,917 inmate days in Texas County jails for the month. Topping the list of county jails housing the most inmates with immigration detainers were Harris, Dallas and Hidalgo counties with 1095, 862 and 569 inmates respectively.

As noted in the report, Texas Senate Bill 1698 authored by former State Senator Tommy Williams became law following the 82nd regular session. SB 1698 mandated the reporting of the total number of inmates with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainers housed in jails under the Commission’s purview as part of the monthly population report.

The complete list of Texas county jails, number of inmates with ICE detainers and number of inmate days can be found here.