Texas Judge Arrested and Immediately Pleads Guilty to $250,000+ in Bribes, More Arrests Coming

For seven years, Abel C. Limas presided over the 404th Judicial District Court down in Brownsville, a court where lives were often at stake in criminal matters and which also heard a variety of civil cases, including divorce proceedings.  Now, former Judge Limas has pled guilty to charges that he took over $250,000 in bribes from attorneys in payment for favorable treatment ... doing things like issuing very nice probation orders and even outright dismissal of charges in criminal matters as well as playing favorites in civil controversies. 

Lima's Career Path:  Cop to Judge to Private Practice to Inmate

You'd think Abel C. Limas would know better.  Not only because he was given the honor and privilege of sitting on a judicial bench, wearing those robes and walking into a courtroom where bailiffs had everyone rising upon his entrance.  Nope.  Limas was also a cop in days gone by.  A Brownsville policeman who rose to become a Texas Judge, presiding over that court for seven years (2001-2008), and who will now be a federal inmate.

Everything Happening Quickly Down in Brownsville: Arrest, Guilty Plea Within a Week's Time

Limas was arrested just last Thursday.  He's been charged with racketeering by soliciting, extorting and accepting bribes totalling $257,300 for favorable rulings in various matters.  No long, protracted defense here:  within hours, he was entering a guilty plea before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.  That means no trial.  Sentencing is set for July 2011.

The indictment backing up his arrest included allegations that while Limas worked as criminal district court judge, he took money from a minimum of four lawyers (their names are not released), and two of these lawyers alone forked over $235,000 for favorable treatment in some civil matters.  (Limas' defense counsel's request to keep the indictment under seal for 14 days after Limas' arrest was granted by the federal judge.)

Investigation Results: Limas Isn't The Only Bad Apple

For over two years now, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) along with the U. S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Brownsville Police Department had joined forces to investigate what Judge Limas had been up to ... and his indictment isn't going to be the only result of all that footwork.

The indictment of Abel Limas identifies five (5) other evildoers - but does not name them.  Their activities, while detailed in the Limas indictment, are described as being done by "A," "B," "C," "D," and "E."  No names, just letters. 

Other Arrests Being Made - Longoria Charged Thursday, 3+ Lawyers Still to Be Arrested

Yesterday, Jose Manuel Longoria attended his bond hearing before U.S. Magistrate Felix Recio and was placed under a $100,000 bond after being arrested last Thursday and charged with wire fraud arising from a scheme to defraud and deprive the State of Texas of the right to the honest services of a state district judge.

As part of Longoria being charged and being allowed bond (challenged by the prosecution as Longoria is considered a flight risk to Mexico), he was instructed not to have any communications with three lawyers (identities not made public) and if he were to receive communication from them, he was ordered to notify authorities immediately.

Which means, the FBI is gonna be arresting some lawyers down in South Texas very soon....

How to Change Your Name in Texas

Most name changes occur when an individual either gets married or divorced; however, for various reasons, people may desire a name change at other points in their lives. In Texas, it is possible to change your name in a separate proceeding. The process to change an adult’s name is different than that to change a child’s name and this article will only address the procedure to change an adult’s name. Please visit our blog again later to for information on how to change a child’s name.

For an adult, to change your name you must follow the correct procedure and meet all requirements. The person seeking a name change must first file a petition in the district court in their county of residence. The petition must include very specific personal information such as your date of birth, social security number and a set of fingerprints. This personal information is required because the court must find that the person seeking the name change is not seeking it to avoid legal problems such as criminal convictions or evading debts. After the petition has been filed, the person seeking the name change will need to appear before the judge and give testimony regarding the personal information in the petition. At that time, if the judge finds no problems, he will sign an order changing your name.

After an order changing the name has been signed by the judge, that person should notify the appropriate governmental agencies such as the Social Security Agency and Department of Motor Vehicles to obtain a new social security card and driver’s license. You should also notify relevant private organizations such as credit card companies, banks, employers, and insurance providers. If any agencies or companies require proof of the name change, a certificate can be obtained from the district court clerk.
Blog by Sarah F. Berry http://www.carylippincott.com/Attorney_SarahBerry.php

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Fort Worth Cop Shoots, Kills Local Man In Front of His Three Kids

This past Monday night, a Fort Worth police officer pulled over a SUV driven by Charal Thomas, 32.
Thomas' three kids, ranging in age from 7 to 11, were all riding in the back seat.  There was another adult in the vehicle, but reports aren't clear on who that was.

It started out as a routine traffic stop. It was around seven o'clock on Monday evening, a little after dusk, on Lucas Drive in Fort Worth, Texas. 

We don't have the details on what was said, but we know that routine traffic stop didn't stay that way.  Things went awry -- and for some reason Charal Thomas pulled away, dragging the cop along for a number of blocks, as the police officer held onto the SUV. 

Perhaps the cop held onto the door handle, his feet on the SUV's foot ramps.  Maybe he grabbed onto an overhead rack.  The details still aren't clear.

What we do know is that Mr. Thomas had several outstanding warrants -- and that the Fort Worth cop chose not to let go of the vehicle.  Instead of letting go of the car, the Fort Worth officer chose to pull his gun and shoot Mr. Thomas in the head.  Killing Charal Thomas, 32, in front of his kids -- and as he was driving the vehicle that they were in.

Needless to say, the Fort Worth community is shocked by this incident. 

There was a vigil last night on East Rosedale in Fort Worth.  Candles were lit, people spoke.  People are angry.

And it's not over.  The identity of the Fort Worth officer hasn't been revealed because of a concern over his safety, and he already has a lawyer to speak on his behalf.  According to the lawyer, the cop felt he had to shoot because his own life was in danger.  No explanation yet on why he grabbed onto that SUV, filled with kids, in the first place.

This is going to be a big lawsuit. Another lawsuit against the Fort Worth Police Department for overzealous police behavior...(remember the Tazer lawsuits from last year) ....

Adult Name Changes in Harris County, Texas

Here is the adult name change process in a nutshell:

1. Before you come see an attorney - You pay for finger print cards – you need 2 finger-print cards that are prepared at the Houston Police Department on Main Street & Rusk Street in Downtown Houston. It costs under $50 to have these 2 finger print cards made. You pay HPD for these cards. Then you call me for an appointment.

Warning: If you have any outstanding arrest warrants, you will be arrested when you try to enter the building so be sure that you do not have any outstanding tickets or any other legal problems before you attempt to enter the building!

2. There is some legal paperwork (Title of the Document -- Petition for An Adult Name Change) to be filed at the courthouse in Downtown Houston. The filing fee to do an adult name change is approximately $300 payable to the Harris County District Clerk’s office. This is the only fee that Harris County collects.



3. Then one of the finger print cards must be sent to Austin Texas and that costs under $100 for the agency in Austin to do a state and federal background check to make sure that you are not a “terrorist” and that you do not have a state or federal felony criminal record.  (If you do, the court is not going to issue you a name change & you have wasted your money.)

4. After Austin agency has done their criminal background check, they send their paperwork directly to the Judge. This agency can take up to 4 months to get this paperwork done. (FYI: From my past experience with this agency, it is not in your best interest to attempt to hurry this agency.  They don't like being "rushed".)

5. Then you and I must appear before the Judge and you must swear under oath that you are not a terrorist and that you are doing asking for a name change to avoid criminal prosecution or avoid creditors. You must briefly explain why you want a name change. 



Do It Yourselvers Beware:  I have found that most Harris County judges prefer that you have an attorney present when you are trying to do a name change.  You can certainly try to do this pro se, however, most judges put you at the end of the daily court docket. 



Also, if you purchase the paperwork sold on the internet, radio or television by companies outside of the State of Texas, you are probably wasting your money.  These companies are not using paperwork that the judges in Harris County are used to seeing.  They are not using forms prepared by Texas attorneys.  These forms are prepared by attorneys that have probably never set foot in the State of Texas. 



Also, do not purchase forms from office supply stores.  If you look carefully on the back of the kit, it says "state forms not included".  Therefore, why would you purchase a kit that does not include the forms that you need? 



Lastly, do not call "411" and ask for legal aide.  There is no such "animal" in the Houston area.  The phone number that you are given is not located in the State of Texas and is owned by a person that has numrous BBB complaints against him.  This company sells worthless forms and you will not get your money refunded. 

6. After the judge signs the paperwork, it must go through Harris County “processing”. Then approximately 2 weeks later you get a certified copy of the final document that the Judge signed that approved the name change. 



In order to receive a certified copy you must pay $1 per page.  You go back downtown to the courthouse and stand in line at the certified copy window.



7.  Actually changing your name.  You take that paperwork that the judge signed to the Social Security Administration to get a new Social Security card. Then you can go to the Texas Driver’s License Bureau to get a new driver’s license. After that you can get a new bank account and other accounts with the new name. 



8.  Think carefully before beginning this process.  Before you think about changing your name, remember a name change is a major change.  You must change everything! 



Just to name a few of the things are: Your employer, all of your medical providers, your medical insurance, utilities, car insurance, car title, life insurance, professional licenses, schools, diplomas, bank, real estate, credit cards, all legal documents, etc. 



It is going to impact your credit rating.  Don't be surprised if credit file gets lost in the shuffle! 



Changing your name takes a lot of time and effort. 



True horror story: A major hospital in the Sugarland area lost my chest x-rays because some clerk filed them under my "old married name" (I'd been divorced over 20 years!)  and I almost died when I had a pulminary embolism.  My doctor had to release me from the hospital and sent me to back to try to locate the missing x-rays because she needed to review them.  So a name change can be a life-threatening experience.  (To make matters worst there is another Fran Brochstein & they kept trying to give me her records from her broken arm -- I've never broken my arm!)

Waiving Service of the Lawsuit in Divorce Cases

What does it mean to waive service of the lawsuit in divorce and what effect does it have? A suit for divorce is like any other lawsuit in that the person who filed the petition for divorce must serve a copy of the lawsuit on the other spouse. However, the spouse being sued for divorce can agree to waive service of the lawsuit by signing a waiver.

Depending on the circumstances, there can be several good reasons the parties may want to consider waiving service of the lawsuit, especially in a divorce case. First of all, it costs money to serve the lawsuit. You must hire an independent person (such as a process server or constable) to serve your spouse and they charge a fee for their services. So if your spouse agrees to waive service, you will save a little bit of money.

Second, it can be embarrassing to be served with a lawsuit. The process server may appear at your spouse’s place of employment or home to serve the lawsuit. This can result in embarrassment for some people. If both spouses want to get divorced and are on good terms, agreeing to waive service can spare potential embarrassment.

However, if you are the spouse being sued and are considering waiving service, you need to read the waiver very carefully. Waivers can contain different terms. Some waivers say that you are waiving service of the lawsuit ONLY, but want to be notified of everything else in the case. Other waivers say that you are waiving notice of everything. If you waive notice of everything, your spouse can schedule a hearing or trial and is not required to notify you. This can be very problematic.

Waivers certainly have their benefits, agreed upon divorce cases, but make sure you understand what you are agreeing to before you sign a waiver.

Blog prepared by Sarah Berry.

Texas Judge Busted By Feds for Taking KickBacks During Hurricane Ike CleanUp

Phil Fitzgerald used to be a Texas district court judge, and he used to be a free man. Things change.

The Beaumont Grand Jury issued its 25-count indictment last week of former Judge Fitzgerald along with a contractor (Fitzgerald's brother-in-law, Mark Miksch, 52, of La Vernia) and another Liberty County official (former Liberty County Commissioner Lee Groce, 62) charging the Judge with taking over $600,000 in kickbacks for awarding government clean-up contracts that dispensed federal funds to help with the aftermath of Hurricane Ike.

According to the federal indictment, Judge Fitzgerald allegedly conspired with Commissioner Groce to award $3,200,000 million in debris removal contracts over to contractor Miksch. He also allegedly scarfed up a generator for his personal use that had been paid for by federal monies (allegedly, he kept the power up at his convenience store with the generator during power outages).

Judge Fitzgerald isn't going down without a fight, however.

Fitzgerald has made his position clear by a letter published in the local press, and now routed through the national media, which states in part:

"Had the government allowed us the opportunity to present our side of the story before seeking an indictment, we are confident there would be no indictment. However, because of their refusal, we will now have to have a trial in this case, at considerable expense to Judge Fitzgerald and the taxpayers, in order for us to tell our side of the story."

Fitzgerald and Groce both lost their reelection bids last Fall, two more Democrats falling to Republican replacements.  Groce had served as Liberty County Commissioner for almost 25 years; Fitzgerald had presided over his district court bench for four years. 

This should be an interesting trial, folks.