Eagleton claims Garcia is biased
HOUSTON – Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia weathered a storm of controversy after posting two proposals concerning looking into Constable’s offices practices. Precinct 3 Constable Sherman Eagleton confronted the Commissioner at the regular county meeting.
The Commissioner wanted a look into contract deputies programs and how constable deputies were dispatched. The proposal did not include the same for the Sheriff’s office, which Garcia had held from 2009 until 2015.
The Contract Deputy Program is one in which deputies from either Sheriff’s or Constables’ offices are retained to provide extra patrol to an area that pays directly for that service. The deputy is still in service to the county and can go elsewhere nearby should the need arise but the contractee has extra law enforcement patrol on hand to deter crime and fulfill the services for which they are contracted.
It had been rumored for some time that Commissioner Garcia had suggested that his employee, Ken Jones, run for the position he vacated by retirement again. Now, Eagleton who had about 48% of the vote to Jones 16%, is in a run off. Eagleton had held 53% for most of the night and would have avoided the run-off.
But it was about the Commissioner’s activities on the Court that Eagleton addressed defiantly, “Tried to stop my deputies from watching over kids playing in the playground but I kept them there anyway.”
“Since I’ve been in office, you’ve been doing everything you could to undermine my office, and it’s time it stopped,” Eagleton announced with a point of hand.
Harris County Precinct 3 Commissioner Steve Radack outwardly accused Garcia of having a vendetta against constables.
The various Harris County Constables directed a series of suspicions at Adrian Garcia especially in regard to “contract deputy elimination,” ideas that enable employing more sheriff’s deputies.
In the end, Commissioner Garcia decided to withdraw both proposals for studies and apologized for the manner in which the proposals were put forth and denied any vendettas.