District judge responds to candidate’s claims

To the Citizens and Voters of the 25th Judicial District:

It has been my honor and privilege to serve as your District Judge and, with your support, I hope to continue for many years to come. I regret that for the second time in a week I have to respond to misrepresentations and outright lies; the first by a shady political action committee controlled by my opponent’s Austin-based campaign consultant, and the second from my opponent both by letter and in the newspaper. Until now I did not comment on much of what was said because I do not believe that a Judge should stoop to getting in the “mud”. I ignored the comments about my wife, who works tireless hours as an attorney representing children in child protection cases and otherwise helping people with legal issues. I ignored other statements hurled by my opponent, which question my integrity and judicial temperament. However, her recent comments, regrettably cannot go unaddressed:

1. Individuals who posted my opponent’s application to run, which included her home address, did not get the information from me. While it is public information that can be found either through an information request or on the Internet, I did not authorize, condone or have any part in that situation.
2. In the letter sent out by my opponent that arrived in voters’ mailboxes yesterday, she complains about a letter critical of her behavior in juvenile court. That complaint about her behavior was neither requested by me nor circulated by me, and did not state any facts regarding children or juvenile cases. My opponent is the one using these incendiary examples and, in the process, violating the privacy of the children she claims to be trying to protect. I have never spoken about children in any way in the context of my campaign.
3. My opponent states an outright lie that I requested her personnel file or the complaint letter she describes in her letter. I did not.
4. My opponent knows that I do not handle juvenile cases in Guadalupe County; she knows that I had nothing to do with any cases she was involved in and she hasn’t even appeared in my Court in over a year-and-a-half.
5. The last conversation I had with my opponent was when she came to my chambers on December 13, 2018 and told me face-to-face that she would not run against me or the county attorney.

I have encouraged all my supporters to focus on the positive. I have 32 years of legal experience, 7 years as your judge. 99% of the cases I hear are never appealed; I have resolved over 10,000 cases in 7 years. Of the small number of cases that have been appealed, my rulings were upheld over 91% of the time.

In addition to experience, this election is about integrity. I have not lied or misrepresented the truth in this campaign. I do not accept campaign contributions from attorneys who may practice before me. Any contributions received from attorneys who could practice before me or their office staff were returned (this is reflected in my campaign reports with the Texas Ethics Commission). I take very seriously my obligation to be truthful and act with integrity and do so to the best of my ability.

When you do not have experience, have a questionable voting record, and a questionable residency issue as my opponent does, you sling mud at the incumbent, play the victim and hope people are confused. I ask once again that you not be swayed by the lies. DO YOUR RESEARCH. If you have questions about me, contact me and ask them. You can reach me through my Facebook page (Reelect Bill Old For District Judge) or email me at bill@billold.com. My information is also on my website, www.BillOld.com. If you want information from other sources, ask attorneys who practice in my court or others who know me.