The Texas Constitution has always provided for a district attorney who represents the state in criminal prosecutions as part of the judicial branch of government. In 1866, the Texas Constitution was amended to add the county court and a county attorney with misdemeanor jurisdiction to the judicial branch.
Under our Constitution today, criminal prosecution is carried out by county attorneys, district attorneys and criminal district attorneys. Additionally, duties for these positions may vary to a certain degree, depending on specific legislation applicable to each individual jurisdiction.
County attorneys prosecute misdemeanor and juvenile offenses and have additional duties, such as seeking protective orders for crime victims (family violence, stalking and sexual assault) and providing advice to commissioners’ court and elected officials on request. The jurisdiction for a county attorney is tied to an individual county. If the county is in a district that does not have a district attorney, then the county attorney’s office will also be responsible for prosecuting felony offenses.
District attorneys prosecute felony offenses, and their jurisdiction is determined by a specific statute that may include multiple counties.
Criminal district attorneys ( CDA), like in Kendall County, combine the responsibilities of a county attorney and a district attorney. Like a county attorney, jurisdiction is tied to a specific county. Therefore, when a CDA’s office is created, the county attorney’s office is abolished.
Though county, district and criminal district attorneys are elected positions, newly created offices are filled by appointment until the next election. County commissioners appoint county attorneys, and the governor appoints district and criminal district attorneys. While the term for these positions are four years, in no case may a position be filled by appointment for more than two years.
Prior to Jan. 1, 2017, prosecution for Kendall County was handled by two offices: The Kendall County Attorney’s Office and the 216th District Attorney’s Office. The 216th District Attorney’s Office was in Kerr County, and their jurisdiction included Kendall and Gillespie counties and half of Kerr County. The courts that served Kendall County were the Kendall County Court at Law and the 216th Judicial District Court.
The Kendall County Commissioners Court voted to request legislation that was subsequently passed in 2015, changing the courts and prosecution in Kendall County beginning Jan. 1, 2017. The legislation created the Kendall County Criminal District Attorney’s office – therefore abolishing the Kendall County Attorney’s Office – and created the 451st State District Court, removed Kendall County from the 216th Judicial District and abolished the Kendall County Court at Law. Kendall County is the only county in all 254 counties in Texas where all cases are heard within one district court.
I was appointed Dec. 9, 2016 to be Kendall County’s first criminal district attorney. It is an honor and an absolute privilege to serve this community alongside my team of dedicated prosecutors, victim advocates and support staff. I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute monthly with information about our criminal justice system, public safety and criminal prosecution. If there is any specific topic you would like covered, please send a request to The Boerne Star.
Comment
Comments