Juvenile Board to Discuss Chief Juvenile Probation Officer Bruce Ballou at Meeting

By: Jose G. Landa, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2015

The Juvenile Board of Maverick, Dimmit, and Zavala Counties has scheduled a meeting on Wednesday, November 25, 2015, at 12 Noon at the Dimmit County District Courthouse in Carrizo Springs, Texas to discuss Chief Juvenile Probation Officer Bruce Ballou in Executive Session and take possible action on Ballou’s evaluation in Open Session, as well as discuss and take possible action to appoint a Chief Juvenile Probation Officer.

Chief Juvenile Probation Officer Ballou was temporarily suspended with pay, together with two other Juvenile Probation Department employees, Orvando Freeman and Jose Perez, by the Juvenile Probation Board on July 6, 20015 while the Board investigated allegations of exploitation of juvenile probationers from Maverick County, Texas.

At the July 6, 2015 Board meeting, 293rd Adult Probation Officer Juan Carlos Segura was appointed Interim Administrator of the Juvenile Probation Office pending the investigation.

Ballou was appointed as the 293rd Judicial District Chief Juvenile Probation Officer on April 1, 2011.

According to the Agenda posted publicly, the Juvenile Board may possibly be ready to take definitive action on the employment status of Chief Juvenile Probation Officer Ballou and appoint a new Chief Juvenile Probation Officer after the almost five months long investigation.

It is unknown if the on-going temporary suspension of Chief Juvenile Probation Officer Bruce Ballou will either be lifted or an action of a permanent separation of employment will be decided by the Juvenile Board.

The Juvenile Board of Maverick, Dimmit, and Zavala Counties is composed of 365th Judicial District Judge Amado J. Abascal, III, 293rd Judicial District Judge Cynthia Muniz, Maverick County Judge David R. Saucedo, Dimmit County Judge Frank Ponce, and Zavala County Judge Joe Luna.  Judge Amado J. Abascal, III, is the President of the Juvenile Board.

The two state district judges and three county judges Juvenile Board appointed Dimmit County Deputy Sheriff and Constable Ruth Ceniceros to conduct the investigation of the alleged exploitation of juvenile probationers from Maverick County. It is believed that the investigation over the allegations has been completed, thus warranting the meeting of November 25, 2015.

Ballou is a native of Lubbock, Texas and previously worked as a Chief Juvenile Probation Officer in other counties in Texas. He was named Mr. Amigo in 2013 for the International Friendship Festival by the Eagle Pass International Good Neighbor Council.