Sometimes, one just has to wonder how people get to the positions they hold. I'm speaking specifically of county judges in Dallas County. For an unknown period, they've been using the wrong forms when a convicted person completes probation or parole. Instead of just releasing the offender from the terms of the probation/parole, they've been granting pardons and wiping their records clean. No one seems to know how many criminals have a clean slate as a result of judges siging forms that they don't even read.
Aurelio Castillo is a beneficiary of this incompetence. He was convicted in 2000 of receiving an illegal campaign donation. In 2007, Judge Ernest White signed the order which set aside his conviction. So he filed and ran for Dallas County Clerk -- something he could not have done as a convicted felon. Judge John Creuzot (I've written about some of his outlandish decisions before) has also wiped out some criminal records. Judge Creuzot says he was perfectly aware of what he was doing. If he was or he wasn't, he's not the kind of judge we want on the bench. Judge White was not available for comment. I wouldn't have been, either.
"Paperwork mistake led to accidental pardons." The Dallas Morning News; February 27, 2010; p. 1A.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment