PRIORITIES FOR THE DA'S OFFICE

Justice belongs to everyone, regardless of your race, gender, or tax bracket. I will maintain and expand the civil rights division—holding law enforcement accountable and ensuring hate crimes are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

For the DA to prosecute a crime, someone has to report it. The community must feel safe reporting crimes without feeling like they’re making themselves vulnerable to prosecution or retaliation. Today, the main factor keeping many from reporting is ICE, which I will oppose in our community.

Conditions in our jail are unacceptable, and overcrowding is the primary cause. As DA, I would support the proposed Bexar County Diversion Center to keep folks out of our jail who don’t need to be there. I would also look to create deflection programs that address the root causes of crime upstream—keeping certain non-violent individuals out of our justice system to begin with.

Intake is where a case's trajectory is set, so I would overhaul the system to speed it up. One major proposal is no longer accepting at-large filing cases. This policy— which exists in several Texas counties—rejects cases that law enforcement brings without the necessary evidence to prosecute. This reduces the influx of cases while ensuring that dangerous criminals can be fully prosecuted. 

I will install accurate risk assessment tools when bail is being set. That way, we can reliably keep our community safe from violent offenders without punishing first-time, non-violent offenders simply because they can’t afford bail.

The DA’s office is underfunded and understaffed. To attract and maintain quality prosecutors—while still funding new programs—I will direct the office to pursue more grants and reimplement asset forfeiture in major drug crimes. I would also work with the Bexar County commissioners' court to continue formally increasing our budget.

When I’m elected, I’ll hire a statistician to provide our office with critical performance metrics. Knowing what works and what needs retooling in real time will allow us to deliver justice more efficiently and effectively.

As long as a case doesn’t involve violence or children, I would recommend sentences (or pursue pleas) that address the unique root causes that led someone to commit a crime.