Domestic/Family Violence Cases Continue to Increase in Maverick County
By: Jose G. Landa, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2015
Domestic/Family violence cases continue to increase in Maverick County, Texas according to Sheriff Tom Schmerber. During the month of August 2015, there were a total of 23 cases investigated by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department alone. The Eagle Pass Police Department reported a total of 12 cases of Domestic Disturbances between July 28 through August 24, 2015. Between the Maverick County Sheriff Department and Eagle Pass Police Department, a total of 35 cases of Domestic/Family Violence were investigated or reported in Maverick County.
Although local law enforcement agencies, legal and judicial systems, and local providers work on combatting, preventing, prosecuting, and assisting victims of domestic/family violence, a recent review of domestic/family violence cases in Maverick County by the Eagle Pass Business Journal found that there is a lack of a coordinated community effort by all the legal entities and organizations responsible for investigating, prosecuting, preventing, and treating victims of domestic/violence cases which causes many persons responsible of this unlawful, harmful, and deadly conduct to walk away without any serious consequences while leaving their spouses or companions and children injured or traumatized for the rest of their lives. The consequences of domestic/family violence are permanent, lasting a lifetime and often causing permanent health, psychological, physical, and mental damage to the victims of this most heinous crime.
In Maverick County, there have been two murders committed by husbands or boyfriends of local women within the last two years and hundreds of other reported cases. While reviewing the public records of the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department and Eagle Pass Police Department, many of the perpetrators of this serious criminal offense walk away without any serious legal consequences only to commit or be arrested for multiple domestic/family violence offenses against their loved ones, family members, or members within the community. One local law enforcement investigator told the Eagle Pass Business Journal, that they (law enforcement agencies) investigate these domestic/family violence cases but there seems to be a disconnect between the law enforcement agencies and the responsible prosecuting offices-Maverick County Attorney’s Office and District Attorney’s Office-and legal and judicial systems (Courts and Judges). Somewhere between the law enforcement agencies and the prosecuting and legal systems, Maverick County domestic/family violence cases fall between the crack and cause the accused perpetrators or defendants to walk away without prosecution or any serious legal consequences.
Many domestic/family violence perpetrators become embolden and motivated to commit another domestic/family violence incident or attack because they know that nothing happens to them in Maverick County, possibly due to the lack of a coordinated community strategy and plan among all the agencies and entities responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and dealing with this grave community problem.
Until a community and county-wide strategy, plan, training, and conference is held between all the responsible agencies and entities responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and dealing with domestic/family violence is held and this criminal activity is given the highest priority, Maverick County will continue to see an increase in these cases and many more unfortunate victims or family members murdered, maimed, injured, hurt, ruined, or destroyed.
Although the Eagle Pass Business Journal earlier called attention several months ago to the need for a community-wide conference among all stakeholders, no one has taken the task and responsibility of coordinating a community conference to address domestic/family violence within Eagle Pass and Maverick County, leaving the community without a coordinated strategy, plan, and prioritization of domestic/family violence cases.
An Eagle Pass Business Journal review of the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department and Eagle Pass Police Department public records during the past 20 months found a broken system which is unresponsive to victims of domestic/family violence cases and the lack of a community-wide system, strategy, and priority to investigate, prosecute, and treat these type of defendants and cases. The consequences are serious to the victims and their families and to local schools, employers, health care providers, and other stakeholders and costing millions of dollars in healthcare costs, work productivity, absenteeism at local schools, lost hours of manpower, and permanent damages and injuries to victims and their children.
During January 2014 through September 2015 there was a total of 148 domestic/family violence arrests made by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department while the Eagle Pass Police Department responded to 460 domestic/family violence incidents during September 2014 through September 2015.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal found that among the persons arrested by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department for domestic/family violence offenses there are 15 (10%) individuals that have been arrested on multiple occasions for domestic/family violence. These 15 persons have been arrested a total of 41 (28%) times by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department for domestic/family violence incidents during the past 20 months, establishing a revolving door of recidivism due to the lack of any serious legal consequences to them.
For instance, one individual was arrested by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department five (5) different times in a span of six months from March through July 2014 for assault-family violence offense.
Another individual has been arrested on four (4) different occasions during the past 12 months, including twice on charges of assault-family violence on 9/20/14 and 10/05/14, once for violation of a protective order on 10/23/14, and once on 1/09/15 for making terroristic threats. This individual is a prime example of a defendant who committed domestic/family violence, got arrested, got released on bond, had a protective order issued against him, violated the protective order, and continued threatening and making terroristic threats while under a protective order and out on bond.
A 28 year old male adult was arrested on 4/26/15 on charges for assault-family violence. Two months later on 6/29/15 he was arrested by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department for unlawful possession of a firearm and Possession of Marijuana while out on bond.
Another 31 year old male adult has been arrested and temporarily incarcerated four different times by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department for charges of assault-family violence, including on 9/20/14 and 10/05/14 and once arrested for violation of a protective order on 10/23/14, and then arrested on 1/09/15 on charges of making terroristic threats.
A 17 year old male individual was arrested by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department on three different occasions for assault-domestic violence. The most recent arrest occurred on 7/24/15 on charges of family violence/assault. Another arrest took place on 6/23/15 for family violence, and he was also arrested on 3/16/15 on family violence charges too.
Another young 18 year old male adult has been arrested twice in the past year, the first arrest occurring on 4/26/15 for family violence and again on 7/22/15 for violation of a protective order.
A 22 year old male was arrested on multiple occasions in 2014 for domestic violence. During a four month span he was arrested three different times on 9/29/14, 03/9/14 and 02/9/14 for assault-domestic violence.
A 49 year old male adult was arrested twice for assault–family violence by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department in 2014. The male adult was initially arrested on domestic violence charges on 7/22/14 and on 6/23/14 for domestic violence –assault.
A 50 year old male was arrested on 6/1/2014 for evading arrest and assault-family violence. He was then arrested in the month of April 2015 on two different occasions. The second arrest in 2015 was for assault –family violence on 4/09/15 and the third arrest occurred on 4/26/15 for violation of a protective order.
Another male adult, age 36, has been arrested twice for family violence on 4/15/15 and 10/13/14.
On 8/19/14 and 12/03/14, the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department arrested a 26 year old female for assault–family violence.
A 35 year old male adult was arrested on 4/10/15 for making Terroristic Threats, Public Intoxication, and Disorderly Conduct. The same male individual had previously been arrested on 11/19/14 for Family Violence by the MCSD.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal reviewed these persons names and date of births at the Maverick County District Clerk’s Office for any pending indictments or court cases related to their domestic violence arrests. Shockingly, none of these 15 individuals with multiple arrests had any criminal indictments filed against them for domestic/family violence. This is precisely the problem noted by the local law enforcement investigator who complained that there is a disconnection between their agency and the prosecuting and judicial systems in Maverick County.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal’s review of these domestic/family violence arrests by the Maverick County Sheriff’s Department of individuals with multiple arrests without any serious legal consequences to them is a call for immediate action for a community-wide conference between all the stakeholders to develop a community strategy, plan of action, and prioritization before another person or more are murdered, maimed, injured, or hurt by a family member or significant other person. The priority should be to protect the life and safety of victims and family members of domestic/family violence incidents.
The two most recent murder cases in Maverick County are as a result of a domestic/family violence cases perpetrated by individuals whom had multiple arrests or complaints against them by their spouses or victims prior to the unfortunate tragic incident resulting in their deaths.
On December 6, 2013, Jaime Jimenez, age 38, a Kickapoo Tribe member, stabbed to death his girlfriend, Jessica Lenora Colecio, age 37, multiple times in the chest and body at their residence on Bryan Street in Eagle Pass. Colecio had four minor children.
On February 5, 2015, Visiting District Judge Paul Canales from San Antonio, Texas sentenced Jimenez to 25 years in the state penitentiary of Texas for the murder of Colecio in a plea bargain agreement reached between District Attorney Roberto Serna and Jimenez’s attorney, Greg Torres, and approved by 293rd Judicial District Judge Cynthia Muniz in October 2014. Many Maverick County citizens complained that the 25 year sentence given to Jimenez was too low for the murder offense of Colecio arising from domestic/family violence.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal investigation discovered that there were many 911 telephone calls from Colecio to the Eagle Pass Police Department and Maverick County Sheriff’s Department before the tragic incident on December 6, 2013 and that Jimenez had several misdemeanor cases pending in Maverick County Court for assault and terroristic threats against Colecio and was out on bond on these cases before the tragic date of December 6, 2013.
The Jimenez case reflects the law enforcement, legal, and judicial systems inability to stop domestic/family violence cases from happening and reoccurring in Eagle Pass and Maverick County to the detriment of the victim, the victim’s children and family, and the community.
The second murder case involving domestic/family violence was of Eagle Passan Blanca Herrera, age 49, by her husband, Homero Herrera, who stabbed her multiple times on her chest and body with a small knife and later attempting to commit suicide himself but failing to do so. The Blanca Herrera tragic incident was on October 9, 2013. Homero Herrera is out on bond facing murder charges and his case is expected to be heard in the immediate future. The record shows there were many 911 telephone calls to the Eagle Pass Police Department from Blanca Herrera prior to the deadly October 9, 2013 domestic/family violence incident.
Another domestic/family violence case occurred on February 3, 2015 and involves Eagle Passan Luis Flores, age 45, whom is charged with aggravated assault of his wife, Araceli Flores, by physically attacking her and using a box-cutter knife attempting to take her eyes out during a domestic violence incident on Loop 480. Luis Flores attack on his wife’s eyes caused Araceli Flores to lose her vision in one eye while surgeons performed sophisticated surgery in the other eye to save her from going completely blind.
Araceli Flores was granted a divorce from her estranged husband, Luis Flores, on September 22, 2015 at the 365th Judicial District Court by Judge Amado J. Abascal, III. Judge Abascal granted Araceli Flores a lifetime Protective Order against her now ex-husband, Luis Flores.
What is clearly evident from these domestic/family violence cases in the community is that there are insufficient and inadequate law enforcement, legal, judicial, psychological, psychiatric, mental illness, family counseling, educators, and overall support systems to effectively control, manage, and adjudicate domestic/family violence cases in Eagle Pass and Maverick County despite current and existing resources.
The Maverick County Sheriff’s Department is currently waiting for a decision on a grant that if approved will provide the funding to hire on an investigator dedicated specifically to domestic violence cases. This position is greatly needed due to the amount of domestic violence incidents occurring on a monthly basis in our community. Sheriff Schmerber is hopeful that adding such position will help address the problem even further and also assist in expediting such heinous cases in the future.
Eagle Pass Police Chief Alberto Guajardo requests anyone having domestic violence issues to please call the Eagle Pass Police Department at 911 or (830) 773-9044 for assistance.
Likewise, Maverick County Sheriff Tom Schmerber requests Maverick County residents to call the Sheriff’s Department at (830) 773-2321 to report domestic violence and/or for assistance.
In Maverick County, the Wintergarden Women’s Shelter offers counseling, temporary housing, and legal services to victims of domestic violence. Carolina Gonzalez manages their Eagle Pass office and may be contacted at (830) 757-5188 and their office is located at 253 Ruelas Street in Eagle Pass.
Unlike Maverick County, Webb County in Laredo, Texas and Bexar County in San Antonio, Texas have coordinated community-wide strategies, plan of action, and prioritized the investigation of, prosecution, and treatment of domestic/family violence cases between all stakeholders. Maverick County should perhaps seek their assistance in developing a similar community-wide strategy and plan of action to avoid another Eagle Passan or Maverick Countian from being a victim of domestic/family violence, murdered, maimed, injured, or hurt. If one life is saved or protected, it will have been worth it.
