A Jeffersonian In East Texas

Whatpartofno.com had a short piece on the Tyler paper poll this morning, I have been wondering how it would come out, and the results show that 65% of the people who took the poll believe that the jail proposal will fail! The poll in the Tyler paper will be wrong for some obvious reasons. My guess is that we will see something more along the line of 75% opposition when the voting is done.

It is my personal belief, that when this happens, our County Judge and commissioners court should withdraw all opposition to the Attorney generals ruling, and save the taxpayers any further cost in supporting this “windmill tilting” exercise,  and then, offer their resignations immediately! They are obviously out of touch with what the public wants and needs, and should clear the way for new officials with more clear headed thinking and transparency!

County and city government in Tyler and Smith county Texas needs to be put back into the hands of the people. It is no place for secret, clandestine meetings designed to prevent the public from having input in the system. We need to remember this, after the last vote is counted. There will still be desperate attempts to resurect this issue, and we should continue to fight it until more reasonable methods have had a chance to work, and until transparency in county government has been sufficiently demonstrated to insure that no further “behind closed door” dealings poison the democratic process!

If you watch the news, or read the newspapers, especially when Smith county attorney Robert Davis is speaking, you would know that Tyler attorney Ken Good, and Judge Cynthia Kent are the epitome of evil in today’s world! They are the cause of all disasters both natural and otherwise. I know that sounds a little ridiculous, but it is no more ridiculous than other statements such as this one, direct from the mouth of Mr. Davis: “Ken Good would love nothing more than to be able to give bail bond companies and criminals detailed security plans for our correctional institutions.”

No, seriously, he really said that! No, I am serious, stop laughing!

What is the truth? Well, it goes like this: The commissioners, who are by and large, responsible for the past jail overcrowding, developed a plan in secret, violating a number of laws related to open records and open meetings, in an attempt to sneak a jail proposal onto the ballot. They got caught! Mr. Davis was hired at our expense, to defend them against the Attorney General of the State of Texas, and against our right to know. The floor plans to the jail, are just the final bit of evidence showing that they had in fact developed this plan in secret, an admission already made by county Judge Baker.

Why is this important?

It is important, because our right to know what is going on in matters of public trust is the last defense we have against corruption in government, followed by tyranny! If public officials can hide matters of this nature from us, what else are they hiding? This is not a minor infraction, it is not like carving a name in the tree of liberty, it is a direct attack at the very root of constitutional government, and it cannot be tolerated!

Recent developments in the Smith county jail, “Jailzilla” saga and the “Commissioners Gone Wild” comic drama give rise to numerous questions.

Some of these questions are legal, and I do not know the answers, but I will raise them anyway in the hope that someone will.

• The admission that the plans for the latest Smith county jail proposal were prepared in secret, as I understand, is equivalent to an admission of guilt. This law allows for both civil and criminal penalties for violation. In a county bent on maximum penalties, in a state bent on maximum penalties, can we expect maximum penalties for those involved in this crime and cover up?
• Can we expect resignations to occur soon?
• What will become of this jail proposal, or any jail that might be built as a result of this proposal, now that we know that the plans were formulated in violation of state law?
• Will there be an investigation to see what other open meeting and open records laws were violated?
• What other issues, projects, proposals, contracts, or other matters could have been done under cover of darkness, and behind closed doors, and will there be an investigation including an audit?

This situation is the worst sort of behaviour in public officials, secret meetings and cover ups strike at the very heart of why the open records and open meeting laws are in place.

Let’s be clear on one thing:

There is no risk to the deputies of Smith county, or to the people if the floor plans to the new jail are released as the Texas attorney General has said they must. I am certain that Mr. Good will not turn the plans over to the mafia, or for that matter to anyone else. This is a legal matter, to prove a legal point, and the ridiculous demagoguery should stop!

I have become even more ashamed of the county commissioners (I didn’t think it possible to be more ashamed) for attempting to use such fear tactics.

The real reason for standing in the way of this order, is that it will prove without a doubt that the county officials who participated in the clandestine meetings to plan the new jail project, did so in willful violation of the law! It is my understanding that if they did indeed file finished plans with the State Jail Commission (what good would unfinished plans do) on the date in question, that having the floor plan is just a legal formality. The law has been broken, and further legal actions should be taken!

In a move that strikes everyone as being bizarre, Smith county commissioners are filing suit against the State Attorney Generals office in an attempt to keep the Smith county jail plans a secret.

Their reasons? Ostensibly, to keep the jail details from falling into the hands of criminals who might be planning some future jail break! The facts are a little more complicated.

If, as attorney Ken Good believes,  “A fully completed and detailed architectural drawing submitted to the Texas Commission on Jail Standards before the plan was even made public would demonstrate that Judge Baker and Commissioner Fleming violated the law.” , it would mean that the county commissioners involved had in fact, violated the open meetings act, and would be subject to civil and criminal penalties. This would seem to be the real reason for filling suit against the AG.

A.G. Says they must supply the Docs

Commissioners can’t keep their jail plans secret!

So Says the Texas Attorney General, the “What Part of No” committee revealed today. My question: What made them think that they could make plans in secret, violate the open meeting act, then violate the open records act, and get away with it? Do they think that their positions make them above the law? That is precisely the arrogant attitude that we have spoken of so many times before, and the reason that if you do a Google search of the term “official arrogance”, you will find the them mentioned at number 6, and still holding strong in that position for almost a year!

What other secret meetings were held?

The jail issue was being watched pretty closely by a lot of people. What other secret meetings went on under the radar? It is a fair question! If their arrogance is such as to make them think they could get away with keeping something that is this public a secret, what would have prevented them from carrying on other illegal activities in secret?

Related Questions

Related rumors have it that the finances of the “Finally a Jail We Can Afford” committee, are coming from people who may have a direct financial stake in the building of the new jail! It would be nice to know more. All in all, it sounds like just a regular old day of doing business in and with Smith county. You know, secret meetings, questionable dealings, etc.

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Interesting cases: Does the 4th amendment protect an individuals right against unlawful search and seizure if the unlawful search was done by a bungling boob, and not malevolently?