The Texas Observer

Given the Texas Youth Commission’s history of inmate abuse and scandal is true reform even possible?

The tales of horrifying incidents—the Observer’s expose on sex abuse at a TYC facility in West Texas, the stories of indiscriminate use of pepper spray by guards, an ACLU lawsuit detailing mistreatment of girls at TYC’s Brownwood facility—while upsetting, hardly surprise anymore.

In fact, the agency’s bad rap sheet stretches back almost 30 years, to the Morales v. Turman federal lawsuit that aimed to reform the Texas juvenile justice system. Unfortunately, the suit was to be the first of many in an ongoing cycle of abuse, exposure and promised reform.

Perhaps the agency has been so hard to rehabilitate because its problems extend beyond a handful of troubled facilities or a flawed approach to juvenile justice. Mental health advocates blame public officials’ failure to recognize the importance of early intervention programs within the mental health system statewide as a key culprit.

“If we addressed these problems early on, with community and school-based programs, these kids wouldn’t end up at TYC,” says Jodie Smith, public policy director of Texans Care for Children.

But, in Texas, a state ranked 49th in the nation for mental health funding, kids in need often don’t get any psychiatric help until they are already deeply entrenched in the criminal justice system.

“Our aim is to rehabilitate these kids, but many of them have never been ‘habilitated’ in the first place,” said Jim Hurley, TYC spokesman. “They never received adequate education or care.”

TYC has undergone massive reforms in the past year, including instituting 300 hours of required training for each staff member and increasing agency transparency, says Hurley.

The fact remains, however, 38 percent of its youth have serious mental health problems, and another 72 percent come from “chronically chaotic households” (a condition often linked to later development of PTSD, depression and addiction)—shifting the culture and practices of the agency to meet such a large need takes money, resources and time.

For the ACLU, who recently filed another lawsuit against the agency, time was the problem. “We felt progress of reform was too slow, and that filing suit was the best way to meet our clients pressing needs,” said ACLU of Texas Executive Director Terri Burke.

There’s little doubt seclusion and restraint practices only exacerbate any mental problems adolescents may have. And, the ACLU accounts of the treatment of these juveniles, which (among many heart-wrenching scenes) cite instances of TYC officers making fun of suicidal young girls, are, without doubt, devastating.

Immediately after the suit was filed, TYC made changes to their guidelines for conducting strip searches, says Burke.

But these changes likely will not be enough.

Until there is a shift in thinking and dollars toward early intervention, not at TYC, but at the legislative and societal level, says Smith, these problems will continue.

by Elisabeth Kristof

Four months have passed since the Observer’s Hole in the Wall story came out. The story focused on the struggle of 72-year old Eloisa Tamez and 76-year old Daniel Garza to save their properties, which have been designated for destruction by a border fence. Meanwhile, the planned fence will bypass the wealthy in the area, such as Dallas billionaire Ray Hunt. (According to Forbes magazine, Hunt ranks at number 292 on their list of the richest people in the world.)

The Observer article prompted much debate and discussion as to whether the border fence was biased toward lower income people. A working group of faculty and students at the University of Texas at Austin Law School have now released a statistical study that illustrates a divide between rich and poor when it comes to the border fence placement.

The group has submitted their findings to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, an intergovernmental body of the Organization of American States. The Commission monitors compliance by member states, including the United States, with issues of human rights and international law.

Dr. Jeff Wilson, assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences at The University of Texas at Brownsville, conducted the statistical study. He found that “The border wall and the necessary taking of property resulting from its construction will disproportionately impact poor Latino immigrant families.”

Wilson analyzed data for the Cameron County portion of the fence.

He divided the study into “gaps” and “fence” to determine if there was any significant statistical difference between those who will have the border fence on their property and those who won’t get a fence. Wilson found that the group who won’t get the fence are older, wealthier, more likely to be Anglo and not recent immigrants.

Many landowners like Tamez say that Secretary Chertoff and Homeland Security have never adequately explained to landowners why their houses are being targeted for a fence while other properties are not on the list.

Landowners have felt for some time that income level and ability to defend oneself, eg. the number of lawyers one can hire, has something to do with the equation.

The group also found other human rights abuses including: violations of the rights of indigenous communities, and severe degradation of the environment.

The working group is asking the Commission to bring up their findings at its July meeting and to hold a hearing on the Texas-Mexico border wall in October.

by Melissa del Bosque

Hamlin attorney Isaac Castro, the Republican running against state Rep. Joe Heflin (D-Crosbyton) in House District 85, has been accused of fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, and negligence in a complex lawsuit in Stonewall County, the Observer has learned. The litigation centers around two brothers, John and Bob Denison, who have been fighting for a decade over their mother’s estate, which includes a 6,200-acre West Texas ranch, oil and gas royalties, and an historical courthouse in the ghost town of Rayner. As probate matters often do, things have gotten nasty between the Brothers Denison. (Read the suit. Warning: large .pdf file.)

Bob accuses John of driving the estate into insolvency and profiting off illegal transactions, including the secretive sale of the ranch to T. Boone Pickens, the legendary Texas oilman-turned-water-baron. Castro, who served as John’s attorney, was added as a third party defendant to the suit in December 2006.

The suit claims that Castro “unlawfully aided” Brother John in exploiting the estate for personal gain. For example, Castro allegedly helped John obtain a loan from the Hamlin National Bank (Castro was also acting as an agent for the bank) backed by Bob’s half interest in the estate. At the time, the estate owed delinquent property and federal taxes and was subject to a federal lien. Castro “facilitated [John Denison’s] fraud and breach of fiduciary duties” and “collected attorney fees, or benefited in some other disguised manner, such as commission or property,” the suit states.

In a statement to the Observer, Castro said: “It is unfortunate that in Texas today people can still file frivolous lawsuits with no legal justification. The fact that I represent my client vigorously and with due diligence should never mean I should be party to this frivolous lawsuit. This is yet another reason why I am running for state representative, because we need thoughtful legislators who will work to bring additional lawsuit reform to our state’s honorable legal system.”

In a court filing, Castro argues the claims against him are “without merit” and “brought for the purpose of harassment.” Specifically, Castro complains in the filing that the “allegations are so general” that he does not have “fair notice of the claim.” He asks the judge to throw the suit out.

(Note: a second suit -titled 4848 Aspermont LTD v. Alamo Title Company, et al - in which Castro is also named as a defendant was filed in Dallas County in May. The Observer has not been able to obtain a copy of the suit but sources say it is related to the Denison case.)

The outcome of the Castro-Heflin match-up will be pivotal for control of the House. Reached by phone today, Rep. Heflin - an attorney himself - said he had no plans to make the lawsuit an issue in the race at this point.

by Forrest Wilder

Port Arthur (population: 58,000) has produced more than its fair share of ridiculously talented people - Janis Joplin, Robert Rauschenberg, Clifford Antone, Jimmy Johnson, and Pimp C to name a few. Maybe there’s something in the water.

Unfortunately, mostly what’s in the water, air, and soil in Port Arthur these days is an unhealthy gumbo of toxic crap released by the petrochemical companies abutting the town’s West Side. And now a French-owned company, Veolia, wants to import 20,000 tons of toxic PCBs from Mexico for incineration in its Port Arthur facility. Despite a decades-old law banning the import of PCBs into the United States, the EPA has granted preliminary approval to the idea. Now, some locals and enviros are crying foul.

Today, the EPA is holding a meeting in Port Arthur (more information) to hear from the parties. Judging from some of the public comments submitted to the EPA already, regulators will be getting an earful. One letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson begins, “Dear Whore for Vested Corporate Interests…” Another impolitic valentine compares the Mexican PCBs to the immigration of “ILLEGAL MEXICAN ALIENS.” (By the way, what is it with anti-immigrant types and CAPITALIZATION?!)

Most damning are comments from Adlene Harrison, a former administrator for EPA’s Region 6, which includes Texas and Arkansas. In an affidavit circulated today by the Sierra Club, she reflects on her own approval of PCB incinerators in Arkansas and Texas during her tenure.

I would not make the same decision today. I have since come to the conclusion that incinerators of PCBs, Dioxin, and hazardous wastes, if such incinerators are to be used at all, should not be located in populated areas nor should they be located in areas where farming is done, where livestock is raised, or where they might otherwise contaminate the food chain.

Later in the affidavit she writes:

During my tenure as Region 6 EPA Administrator, it was clear that I had the authority, and the obligation, to delay approval of a trial burn or final permit, or to deny approval, if I received information that indicated the trial burn or incinerator operation might pose a significant health risk… There is no doubt in my mind that the current EPA Administrator and Regional Administrator have this same authority and obligation.

by Forrest Wilder

Anger and frustration are pulsing through the Republican state convention in Houston. The festivities are winding down today; the third, and final, general session will begin within the hour. But for two days, an unusual amount of discord — at least by Texas GOP standards — has roiled the convention.

Supporters of congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul have caused trouble at every turn. Upset that their candidate has been ignored by party leaders, they have continually used parliamentary actions to delay the convention — hurling points of order and parliamentary inquiries at beleaguered party chair Tina Benkiser. As a result, It took hours for delegates to complete the convention’s most rudimentary business: adopting rules, settling nominations, electing a party chair (Benkiser easily bested a Paul supporter) and finalizing the platform. Both the general sessions ran two to three hours late.

But it’s not just the Ron Paul delegates who are upset. Many in the party’s grassroots aren’t happy. Delegates told us they’re dissatisfied with how Republican elected leaders have been governing. Many delegates don’t like the Trans-Texas Corridor – nearly everyone here sports an anti-TTC sticker.

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, attuned to the anti-corridor sentiments among the grassroots, condemned the project in his speech to the convention on Thursday. “You can’t build toll roads in rural Texas,” said Dewhurst, who, in 2003, pushed the Trans-Texas Corridor legislation through the Texas Senate and has done little since to change it. “And, for heaven’s sake, don’t mess with Texas’ private-property rights!”

(Dewhurst was lustily booed later in the speech when he proposed putting Texans’ fingerprints on drivers’ licenses. We can’t remember the last time an elected Republican was booed at the state convention.)

Many delegates are still angry over Gov. Perry’s effort to mandate the HPV vaccine last year, and, the expanded business tax that Perry pushed through the Legislature in 2006.

The party platform, finalized yesterday, calls for repeal of what one delegate termed “Perry’s unconstitutional business tax.” Many believe the business tax is a de facto income tax and thus violates the Texas Constitution. “Gov. Perry and the Legislature broke their promise on taxes,” said another delegate. “It’s the largest tax increase in the history of the state.”

In a passionate and well-received speech, Robert McDonald, a Ron Paul supporter and candidate for the Republican National Committee, warned delegates that, “It’s time to stop demonizing Democrats and to start figuring out what we stand for.” He said, “Some seeds have been sown here [that] if not addressed will bear a bitter harvest.”

by Dave Mann

The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), that scourge of the Hill Country, recently bought a stake in a new coal-fired power plant. Why invest in coal? LCRA Chair Rebecca Klein defended the decision in a press release thusly: “As the Central Texas economy and population continue to grow, so does the need for new sources of cleaner power.” Because for a new source of “cleaner power,” it’s hard to beat a good ol’ fashioned coal-fired power plant, right?

Klein, a Gov. Perry appointee, went on to explain that: “Adding coal-fueled base-load generation helps reduce LCRA’s reliance on power from natural gas, which has more price volatility.”

While the second sentence is true in the strictest, most bloodless accounting sense (coal is “cheaper” as long as you avoid taking into account the health effects of air pollution and the impacts of climate change), it’s hard to get around the notion that a coal-fired power station is a “new source of cleaner power.” It’s just not. The coal plant in question, a joint venture between L.S. Power and Dynegy Inc. near Waco, would emit thousands of tons of sulfur dioxide, mercury, smog-forming gases, and carbon dioxide. Locals and environmental groups bitterly oppose the plant.

Before her appointment to LCRA, Klein was mixed up in nearly every corporate energy venture around. From 2002-2004 she served on the Texas Public Utility Commission, overseeing the transition to deregulation, which has given a huge boost to coal power. In 2004, she re-branded herself “Rebecca Armendariz Klein” to run in an Hispanic congressional district against Democratic Rep. Lloyd Doggett. The telecom and energy sectors backed her campaign. After she lost badly, Klein went back to being simply “Rebecca Klein” and carved out a nice niche in Republican corporate, government, and non-profit circles.

Her main gig is with the Loeffler Group, a lobbying and lawyering firm headed by former Texas Congressman Tom Loeffler, who stepped down as John McCain’s finance co-chair last month. Klein is also president of RA Klein & Co., an energy, defense, and telecom consulting firm.

But Klein is also versed in making some energy outfits appear greener than they actually are.

Last year, in the heat of a grassroots movement to kill an onslaught of new coal plants in Texas, Klein launched a corporate-backed nonprofit called Power Across Texas. The group’s Web site warns ominously of “pending power shortages, the potential of rolling blackouts and the traumas associated with lack of energy supply” and calls for “environmentally sound approaches for ensuring reliable power at the lowest possible price for all Texans.”

But Power Across Texas’ allies aren’t exactly typical tree-huggers. It’s backed by the Clean Coal Technology Foundation of Texas, a group tied to Big Coal; the right-wing, anti-environment Americans for Prosperity; the Republican-oriented Hispanic Alliance for Progress; the Biodiesel Coalition of Texas; Jupiter Power Company, L.P.; and Cyclone BioEnergy LLC.

Jupiter and Cyclone are run by one Jill Warren, a principle in the Patriot Group, a profoundly ideological, Republican lobby shop with offices in Austin and Washington, D.C. Patriot Group lists Power Across Texas as one of its clients, as well as the coal-crazed Association of Electric Companies of Texas and the Hispanic Alliance for Progress.

The steering committee of Power Across Texas includes Erle Nye, the former chairman of TXU, some guy from mega-utility AEP, and that noted greenie, state Rep. Phil King (R-Weatherford), the chairman of the House Regulated Industries Committee and a proud global warming denier.

Klein is involved in another astroturf group. She serves on the steering committee of the brand new Nuclear Energy for Texans, an industry-funded “green” campaign to convince Texans that new nuclear power plants are needed. That should please her husband, Dale Klein, who heads the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the federal agency responsible for approving new nukes.

by Forrest Wilder

The theme of the two-day Democratic state convention — which wrapped late this afternoon in Austin — was supposed to be unity. Nearly all the elected officials and party leaders who addressed delegates in the main convention hall and in the many smaller caucus gatherings offered messages of togetherness.

And while there were hints of genuine unity, many delegates made clear that the divisions from such a passionate primary campaign won’t dissipate quickly.

Chelsea Clinton was one of many who urged delegates to coalesce around Barack Obama. She told the convention Friday night that her mother would “re-affirm her life-long commitment to electing Democrats.”

Later on Friday, state Reps. Rene Oliveira (a Clinton supporter) and Yvonne Davis (who backed Obama) took the stage together and clasped hands in a show of unity. The huge crowd — the largest at a Democratic state convention in years — rose and chanted “Yes, we can” in unison.

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, the first governor to endorse Obama for president, told delegates they had to work together because “there’s never been an election with more at stake in my lifetime.”

Saturday’s program was interrupted so delegates could watch Clinton’s concession speech from Washington, broadcast on the convention hall’s giant screens. The delegates gave Clinton a long-distance standing ovation as she formally endorsed Obama. But the broadcast feed was lost after a few minutes — it just wouldn’t be a Democratic convention without some technological snafu.

A little while later, state Sen. Royce West of Dallas commanded Obama and Clinton delegates to rise and take each other’s hands in a “We Are the World” moment. (West’s appeal for unity was far more appetizing than state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, who went the too-much-information route: “Anyone who’s been in a relationship knows that eventually you stop fighting, and you get back together….As my husband, Pete, says, the makeup sex is really good.”)

Despite the many calls for unity — in interviews with delegates a different story emerged — animosity between the two sides lingers, and may remain for a while.

Some Obama supporters were still muttering about Clinton remaining in the race so long after her chances for victory had dwindled.

Meanwhile, many Clinton die-hards weren’t quite ready to embrace Obama — though most said they eventually would. One Clinton supporter was seen toting a sign that read, “Small-town, gun-owning religious Democrat bitter about Obama.”

Nearly every Clinton delegate we talked to said they wanted Hillary to be the vice presidential nominee — and that Obama can’t win without her. That sentiment could prolong the discord if Obama chooses someone else. We heard that at least one Clinton delegate who announced that she was switching to Obama was denounced as a “rogue” delegate.

“I’m disappointed. I don’t like [that Obama’s the nominee].” said Kevin Rice, a Clinton delegate from San Antonio. “I guess I have to vote for him because I’m a Democrat. I will politic for him. But it’s going to take some time. It’s almost like a mourning period. Our campaign died, and we’re in mourning. Once that mourning is over, then it’s back to work.”

by Dave Mann