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José Garza

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For Mexican convicted drug lord, see José Manuel Garza Rendón.
José Garza
Garza in 2024
District Attorney of Travis County
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 1, 2021
Preceded byMargaret Moore
Personal details
Born
José P. Garza

Laredo, Texas, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Other political
affiliations		DSA
EducationUniversity of Texas, Austin (BA)
Catholic University (JD)
WebsiteCampaign website

José P. Garza is an American lawyer serving as the district attorney of Travis County, Texas since 2021.[1]

Early life and education

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José Garza was born in Laredo, Texas, and grew up in San Antonio. He graduated from University of Texas in 2001. He later graduated with a J.D. from Catholic University in Washington, D.C.[2]

Career

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He was previously the executive director of the Workers Defense Project from 2015[3] to 2021[4] and was the Democratic Party nominee to be Travis County District Attorney.[5][6] Garza defeated incumbent DA Margaret Moore in the July 2020 runoff for the Democratic Party nomination.[6] Garza began his campaign by advocating for significant changes to drug prosecutions, "On day one, we will end the prosecution of low-level drug offenses here in Travis County."[7] Garza ran on a platform of ending prosecutions for low-level drug possession to focus on violent crimes, holding police officers accountable for misconduct, and pursuing restorative justice.[8][9] He has advocated against cash bail and promoted diversion programs to prevent felony convictions.[10] While Garza was the executive director the Workers Defense Project, he worked to pass paid sick-time policies in Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio.[11] He is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America,[11] and his campaign for Travis County District Attorney was largely funded by George Soros through his Open Society Foundations network of entities.[12]

Garza has had a shaky relationship with law enforcement in Austin, and has claimed to be doing more to hold police accountable.[13] He charged police officer Christopher Taylor with murder over the shooting death of Michael Ramos, a black and Hispanic man. Taylor was tried twice, with both trials resulting in a mistrial and the most recent one due to a hung jury. Garcia charged 21 officers with aggravated assault over actions during a May 2020 social justice protest, but he dropped all charges for 17 of those officers in December 2023. Instead, he requested the Civil Right's division of the U.S. Department of Justice to investigation the police response to the protest.[14] In November of 2023, Garza was asked to leave the funeral of fallen Austin Police Officer and SWAT Team Member Jorge Pastore. This was due to Garza’s history of prosecuting police officers.[15]

Of the 100 attorneys working for Garza's office, 19 of them had resigned by December 2021 due to the pace and level of change in his office. He has also fired several prosecutors over alleged misconduct. Other progressive district attorneys have seen greater turnover in their offices. Police unions and local activist have accused Garza's policies for the uptick in the homicide rate in Austin, which is higher than it has been in decades; though, supporters of Garza maintain this trend is not unique to Austin and has other causes, including an increase of fire arms and strained community-police relations.[13]

In 2024, Garza was challenged in the Democratic primary by Jeremy Sylestine whom was initially believed to be a long shot candidate but gained momentum after several six-figure donations and far out-raising Garza in the primary election. Elon Musk emailed Tesla employees urging them to vote for a district attorney who will "actually prosecute crimes." Sylestine's campaign claimed the policies pursued by Garza had undermined public safety and received a mix of support among both Republicans and Democrats, with many of the former pulling Democratic ballots in the primary to support Sylvestine.[16] Ultimately, Garza won the primary in March 2024 with an over 30-point margin. Garza is expected to defeat Republican nominee Daniel Betts in heavily Democratic Travis County in the November 2024 general election.[17][18][19]

In 2023, Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into law House Bill 17, which allows for courts to remove district attorneys for "official misconduct," which would include refusal to prosecute certain criminal offenses, with the goal of holding "rogue district attorneys accountable." The law came after some progressive Texas district attorney's, including Garza, would not prosecute abortion laws under Texas statutes. The law limits prosecutorial discretion. On April 8, a Travis County resident petitioned for Garza to be removed under the law "due to incompetency and official misconduct." The petition is moving forward in the 433rd district court in Comal County.[20] The prosecutor for the state has moved to dismiss the claim.[21]

References

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  1. ^ Nichanian, Daniel (November 3, 2020). "Austin and Orlando Elect Prosecutors Who Vow to Fight Mass Incarceration". The Appeal. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  2. ^ Kamp, Amy (December 25, 2015). "Jose Garza takes the helm". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  3. ^ Barragan, James. "New Workers Defense Project leader at home in fight for workers' rights". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  4. ^ WD_ADMIN (February 11, 2021). "Board Presidents On Next Co-Executive Director National Search". Workers Defense Project. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  5. ^ Nichanian, Daniel (July 15, 2020). "In Austin Prosecutor Races, Wins for the Left and a Milestone for Drug Decriminalization". The Appeal Political Report. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Winkle, Kate; Travis, Avery (July 14, 2020). "Incumbent Margaret Moore concedes to José Garza in Travis County DA runoff after early results". KXAN. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  7. ^ Nichols, John (July 16, 2020). "Austin, Texas, Just Voted to End the Drug War". The Nation. ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  8. ^ Barajas, Michael (November 2, 2020). "José Garza Redefines 'Progressive Prosecutor'". The Texas Observer. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  9. ^ Nolan, Hamilton (November 30, 2020). "The Man Building the Bridge Between Labor Rights and Criminal Justice Reform". Workday Minnesota. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  10. ^ Leffler, David (June 29, 2021). "How DA José Garza is Transforming Criminal Justice". Austin Monthly Magazine.
  11. ^ a b Day, Meagan (July 25, 2020). "Austin's Likely Next District Attorney Vows to End the Drug War". jacobinmag.com. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  12. ^ https://www.wsj.com/us-news/elon-musk-texas-da-jose-garza-oust-atempt-206db043?mod=hp_lead_pos9
  13. ^ a b Satija, Neena (December 18, 2021). "Travis County's district attorney vowed to hold law enforcement accountable. Now he's in a showdown with Austin police". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  14. ^ Melhado, William (December 4, 2023). "DA drops most charges against Austin police officers accused of excessive force in 2020 protests". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  15. ^ "Progressive DA Reportedly Asked to Leave Slain Officer's Funeral". policemag.com. November 20, 2023. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  16. ^ Thompson, Maggie Q.; Mar. 6, Wed. "José Garza Wins Democratic Primary in Contentious District Attorney Race". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved May 18, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  17. ^ Lin, Serena. "Incumbent José Garza wins Democratic primary for Travis County district attorney". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  18. ^ "José Garza (Travis County, Texas)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  19. ^ Asher, Price. "Travis County DA José Garza triumphs". Axios. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  20. ^ News, By Becky Fogel, KUT (April 20, 2024). "Travis County district attorney faces removal attempt under Texas' "rogue" prosecutors law". The Texas Tribune. {{cite web}}: |last1= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  21. ^ Austin, C. B. S. (June 10, 2024). "Prosecuting attorney moves to dismiss petition to remove Travis County DA". KEYE. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
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