RESOLUTION TO FORMALLY ADMONISH DISTRICT ATTORNEY KIM OGG WHEREAS, the primary mission of the Harris County Democratic Party is to elect Democrats who support the U.S. Constitution, share our values, and are willing to stand up against extremist Republicans and policies threatening the county and its residents and; 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Summary Outline
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WHEREAS, the DA reneged on her campaign promises to oppose high misdemeanor bail by asking for high cash bail for minor crimes in December of 2017,1 and; WHEREAS, in 2019, the DA openly declared her opposition to efforts to fix the broken cash-bail system,2 and; WHEREAS, the DA has openly attacked Democratic judges who did not agree with her politics during the 2020 election cycle,3 and; WHEREAS, Kimbra Kathryn 'Kim' Ogg, the Harris County District Attorney released a 56 page report in September of 2021 with the express intent of undermining the efforts of elected members of the Democratic Party’s historic efforts on bail reform,4 and; WHEREAS the DA enabled a partisan investigation into local elections in November of 2022,5 and;
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Harris County D.A. Ran As A Reformer. So Why Is She Pushing High Bail For Minor Offenses? https://theappeal.org/harris-county-kim-ogg-bail-reform-jail/ 2 "District Attorney Kim Ogg summons police chiefs to oppose historic ...." 12 Oct. 2019, https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/District-Attorney-Kim-Ogg-summo ns-police-chiefs-14517578.php. Accessed 29 Sep. 2023. 3 "Kim Ogg Wants a Democratic Socialist Judge Thrown Off the Bench." 27 Jul. 2022, https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/kim-ogg-bail-reform-judges/. 4 Why is DA Ogg scapegoating misdemeanor bail reform in crime spike? https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/Editorial-Don-t-make-misdemeanor-bail-reform -a-16504815.php 5 "Harris County DA Launches Election Investigation with 'Eye on ...." 16 Nov. 2022, https://web.archive.org/web/20221206104622/https://www.harrisdemocrats.org/harris-county-da-launches -election-investigation-eye-scoring-political-points.
WHEREAS, Kim Ogg launched this criminal investigation on the very same day Governor Abbott and the Harris County Republican Party publicly attacked our November 2022 election,6 and; WHEREAS, the DA openly undermined gun violence prevention programs forwarded by local city, county, state and congressional Democrats in 2022,7 and; WHEREAS, new investigative reporting from the Houston Chronicle8 in an article in September of 2023 revealed that Kim Ogg also abused the power of her position as the top law enforcement official in the county to bully and intimidate elected officials, judges, and public servants she disagrees with by threatening them with criminal prosecution, draining their bank accounts, damaging their reputations, and intentionally creating a paralyzing culture of fear across local government, and; WHEREAS, the DA openly stated that she would determine whether or not to prosecute the most extreme abortion ban in the nation on behalf of Governor Greg Abbott on a “case by case basis,”9 and;
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"Harris County DA Kim Ogg launches 2022 election investigation ...." 16 Nov. 2022, https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/elections/2022/11/16/437618/harris-county-da-k im-ogg-launches-elections-investigation-asks-texas-rangers-to-assist/?amp=1. 7 "White Woman Tells Five People of Color How To ... - Houston Watch." https://houstonwatch.substack.com/p/white-woman-tells-five-people-of. 8 "How DA Kim Ogg has repeatedly aimed her power at Harris County ...." 19 Sep. 2023, https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/investigations/article/kim-ogg-harris-county-power-18334282.php . 9 "Harris County DA Kim Ogg will consider abortion-related ... - Chron." 24 Jun. 2022, https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Harris-County-DA-Ogg-prosecute-abortions-17264133. php.
WHEREAS the DA has amplified demonstrably false claims from Republican officials that local democrats are “defunding law enforcement”10 despite consistent increases each year in funding for justice and safety led and passed by Democrats11 on Commissioners Court, and; WHEREAS, Kim Ogg, has broken the promise she made to voters to support decriminalizing low-level drug offenses, which disproportionately impact people of color12 by reversing her own policy in August of 2023, and; WHEREAS, Kim Ogg sided with prominent state Republicans including Governor Greg Abbott and Lt. Governor Dan Patrick to promote and lobby for draconian crime laws that disproportionately impact people of color, including an expansion of mandatory minimums laws that fuel our mass incarceration crisis,13 statewide legislation designed to undermine the work of local Democratic judges who are restoring fairness to our judicial system in August of 2023,14,15 and;
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"Kim Ogg accuses Commissioners Court of 'defunding' DA's office ...." 23 Mar. 2022, https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Kim-Ogg-accuses-Commissioners -Court-of-17021404.php. 11 "Harris County Law Enforcement Funding By Year." https://cjo.harriscountytx.gov/. 12 "Harris County low-level drug policy reversed due to rise in fentanyl." 30 Aug. 2023, https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/crime/article/fentanyl-drug-policy-harris-county-ki m-ogg-18335796.php. Accessed 29 Sep. 2023. 13 "Proposed mandatory 10 years for gun crime draws Harris County ...." 6 Dec. 2022, https://www.fox26houston.com/news/proposed-mandatory-10-years-for-gun-crime-draws-harris-county-da-kim-oggs-support. 14 "Harris County DA Kim Ogg discusses new state law prioritizing ...." 30 Aug. 2023, https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2023/08/30/harris-county-da-kim-ogg-to-discuss-new-state-law -prioritizing-murder-trials-initiatives-to-comply/. 15 "Bail Reform Appears On The Verge Of Passage In Texas Legislature." 25 May. 2021, https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/in-depth/2021/05/25/398928/bail-reform-appears-on-th e-verge-of-passage-in-texas-legislature/.
WHEREAS, Kim Ogg has enabled Republican attacks on free and fair elections by opening a criminal investigation led by the Texas Rangers against innocent election workers based on debunked conspiracy theories, innuendo, and outright lies invented and promoted by Republican party officials, and; WHEREAS, Kim Ogg has also stood silent on Republican efforts to enact SB1 and other voter suppression laws targeting only Harris County, even going so far as to bring additional criminal charges against Hervis Rogers,16 a local 64-year-old black man Attorney General Ken Paxton already jailed and prosecuted in 2021 for voting, and; WHEREAS, the DA has accepted thousands of dollars from some of the same notorious bail bondsmen in the country,17 the same bail bondsmen who have enabled the criminals she has failed to prosecute to be released;18 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Harris County Democratic Party formally admonishes District Attorney Kim Ogg for actions and positions that are contrary to the values and principles of the Democratic Party and the interests of the people of Harris County;
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"Harris County grand jurors declined to indict Hervis Rogers." 2 Sep. 2023, https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/crime/article/hervis-rogers-grand-jury-18342499.p hp. 17 Questions Loom Over Ties Between Ogg & Bondsman For Alleged Cop Killer https://houstonwatch.substack.com/p/questions-loom-over-ties-between 18 Ogg Donor Secured Bail For Accused HCSO Deputy Shooter https://houstonwatch.substack.com/p/ogg-donor-secured-bail-for-accused
And BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Harris County Democratic Party confirms its commitment to justice, equality, freedom from corruption or overreach, and democracy. This resolution shall be effective upon its adoption by the Harris County Democratic Party. Undersigned, Daniel J. Cohen, Precinct 272 Ana Luke, Precinct 760 Rebecca Shukla, Precinct 0183 Jane Lesnick, Precinct 293 Kay Shepard, Precinct 0030 Ruth Kravetz, Precinct 57 David Lee, Precinct 434 Lashelle Scott, Precinct 559 Cesar Valverde, Precinct 248 John Cotter, Precinct 670 Cameron Campbell, Precinct 991 Adrian Ozuna, Precinct 296 Egberto Willies, Precinct 758 Ann Rosenwinkel, Precinct 232 Pervez Agwan, Precinct 33 Rosalind Caesar, Precinct 757
William Hunn, Precinct 0776 Sarah Syed, Precinct 518, Chair of SD 7 Mary Friedrich, Precinct 0014 Melanie Jackson, Precinct 0516 Ryan Heath, Precinct 398 Carol Wheeler, Precinct 362 Jacquelyn Hazelwood, Precinct 764 Todd Bonny, Precinct 789 John Floyd, Precinct 360 Kayla Alix, Precinct 703 Tracey Lewis, Precinct 415 Brian Bottorff, Precinct 52 Carly Hudson, Precinct 357 Michael Studdert, Precinct 0020 Kim Krist, Precinct 568 Kody Lyons, Precinct 333 Michael Young, Precinct 378 Flora Gill, Precinct 744 Billie Patterson, Precinct 306 Lyn Greenwood, Precinct 577, Chair of SD 17 Jorge Rodriguez, Precinct 0343 Mohammed Nasrullah, Precinct 718 Jan Adam, Precinct 899 Al Rodriguez, Precinct 721
Felicia Young, Precinct 387 Bill Frame, Precinct 1100 Aimee VonBokel, Precinct 367 Noelle Steber McSherry, Precinct 53 Bernard Sampson, Precinct 409 David Galvin, Precinct 309 Bianca Carrizal, Precinct 850 Melissa Taldykin, Precinct 919, Chair of SD 15 Stephen Abrams Harrison, Precinct 175 John Humphries, Precinct 564 Rufi Natarajan, Precinct 0070 John Patterson, Precinct 0013 Rhett Doberstein, Precinct 414 Toni Middleton Lewis, Precinct 573 Jaime Garza, Precinct 532 Cris Powell, Precinct 1031 Barbara Harrison, Precinct 100 Charlene Shafer, Precinct 909 June Stansky, Precinct 739 Rebecca Shields, Precinct 87 Eddie Pequeno, Precinct 533 Walter Foody, Precinct 501 L. Janette Sexton, Precinct 279 Maria C. Gonzalez, Precinct 931
Rob Hallenbeck, Precinct 38 Ted Weisgal, Precinct 1040 Jennifer Lorenz, Precinct 768 Lonnie Jackson, Precinct 083 Sergio Haro, Precinct 773 Judy Craft, Precinct 113 Susan Cummings, Precinct 249 Nan Toole, Precinct Chair 0130 Liz Steele, Precinct 805 Marsha Kamish, Precinct 1054 Abraham Sanchez, Precinct 389 Gayle Nesom, Precinct 8 Bebe Burns, Precinct 040 Nancy George, Precinct 26 Sherry Burton, Precinct 265 Ehren Laughlin, Precinct 483 Nel Coffey, Precinct 74