Slaughter Lacks The Experience
I am a lifelong Republican, criminal attorney and former Harris County prosecutor with dozens of felony prosecutions under my belt. The last thing I want in a district court judge is a lack of experience supported by a healthy dose of naiveté. Such is the case with Michelle Slaughter.
Harris and Galveston counties have been successfully using the Progressive Sanctions model — STAR and Sanctions Toward Effective Probation — for years and saving taxpayers a lot of money.
Ms. Slaughter is the only one of the four candidates for the 405th Circuit Court who speaks out against the STEP Program. She is also the only one of the four candidates who has no criminal law experience — zero. What makes her more qualified than the three other candidates? Nothing. No wonder she shamefully focuses her campaigning on party affiliation and not legal experience.
Acting is a profession that affords you the luxury of being naive without bringing harm to anyone; but being a district court judge and still possessing that same naiveté is dangerous for all of us.
I met Judge Wayne Mallia this past summer and was very impressed. He has an excellent reputation for a reason. Galveston should keep a good thing going.
Eileen Bogar
Houston
What Works For 1 Should Work For All
I find it amusing Galveston County Republicans are upset Wayne Mallia is running as a Republican, but he doesn’t have the same values because he used to be a Democrat.
He hasn’t assaulted his wife, hasn’t run up against nepotism laws or provided alcohol to a minor, etc. That can’t be said about all of the new tea party office holders who swept into office in 2008. Maybe Bob Fields, John Dreiss and all other partisan Republicans should ask these people to resign. I’m not holding my breath. Hypocrisy, anyone?
Bruce Wallace
Bacliff
10 Reads For Black History Month
Here is a list of 10 books readers might want to buy or check out of the library. This is not a top 10 list. It is just a few I have in my personal library. They are not ranked in order or preference. The first two have Galveston ties.
1. “Papa Jack,” by Randy Roberts;
2. “Island of Color,” by Izola Collins;
3. “A Hand to Guide Me,” by Denzel Washington;
4. “We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball,” by Kadir Nelson;
5. “Up from Slavery,” by Booker T. Washington;
6. “Race Matters,” by Dr. Cornel West;
7. “The Souls of Black Folks,” by W.E.B. Du Bois;
8. “Black Wall Street,” by Hannibal B. Johnson
9. “Invisible Man,” by Ralph Ellison; and
10. “The Audacity of Hope,” by President Barack Obama.
Sam Collins III
Chair, African-American Heritage Committee
Galveston Historical Foundation
