OF GIRL SCOUT COOKIES, LAS VEGAS AND ELIA CORNEJO

By Juan Montoya
Remember earlier this month when State District Judge Elia Cornejo Lopez was removed from presiding over cases against Aroldo H. Cadriel after his attorney objected to her being involved?
The state filed the first case against Cadriel in July, charging him by indictment with indecency with a child by contact and aggravated sexual assault of a child.
The second case was filed in September, charging him with two counts of sexual assault.
Judge Linda Yañez removed Cornejo Lopez from the first case.
She was removed from cases where attorney Nat C. Perez represents Cadriel. Perez claims that she is biased against him, and that this would affect the right of his client, Cadriel, to a fair trial.
Fifth Administrative Judicial Region (Fifth Region) Presiding Judge J. Rolando Olvera subsequently stepped in, removing Cornejo Lopez from the second case, and ending her involvement in the cases.
Perez filed the motion for Cornejo's removal after he complained that when Judge Cornejo-Lopez saw him in the halls of the courthouse, she directed him to see her court coordinator about a matter.
Perez complied, only to be solicited to buy Girl Scout cookies to support the fundraising efforts of the girl's troop.
When Perez refused, he charged that he suffered harsh reprisals in the courtroom, stating in his motion that on at least three occasions Cornejo-Lopez prevented him from practicing his craft in her courtroom.
"This conduct is an open, blatant and obvious indication of Judge Elia Cornejo-Lopez's animosity, dislike and disdain for counsel and her desire to not have counsel practice in her court before her, possibly exacerbated by his refusal to purchase a case of Girl Scout cookies from her daughter's troop," Perez charged.
Now, we have learned that there has been at least another case not involving Perez that shows that the judge has been looking after her personal efforts to help her daughter's GS troop. In an order modifying probation judgement in the 2006 case of a felony theft (Third Degree) against Lyford resident Noe Treviño Romo (05-CR-00001531), Cornejo-Lopez said she would overlook some 77 hours left from a 150 community service hours condition she ordered him perform back when he was placed on probation if he would donate a trip to Las Vegas to the Girl Scouts.
We're not kidding.
In the order signed by Lopez-Cornejo on Oct. 22, 2102, under the title of Conditions, the judge ordered that: "As per the Honorable Court's order of Oct. 4, 2012, the defendant will donate a trip to Las Vegas to the Girl Scouts in lieu of the remaining Community Service Hours.
How paying for a trip to Las Vegas to the Girl Scouts will rehabilitate Romo or pay back the community for his crime is not explained in the order, but if it was mean to enhance the fundraising efforts of Elia's daughter's troop fundraising activities someone may deem it appropriate. We don't know what form the payment and subsequent fundraising activities resulted from this order, but we doubt that either Elia or her daughter traveled there as a result. Perhaps, some of us think, it was a raffle to raise funds for her daughter's troop. We may never know. It could be legit as far as anyone is concerned.
Yet, coming on the heels of the Perez complaint and the judge's removal from his case, it shows a pattern of placing personal interest above the dispensation of justice in her court.
For example, the Cameron/Willacy Counties Community Supervision and Corrections Department community supervisor officer Jose Luis Cavazos states in response to the state's motion to adjudicate guilt hearing that Romo had not complied with the conditions of his 2006 guilty plea as of Feb 6, 2011.
Neither had he paid his probation fees of $1,807, or even paid any restitution to his victims totaling $26,894 or PreSentence Investigation (PSI) fees of $390.
In fact, Cavazos' probation report indicates that "when he appeared (in court) on June 7, 2012, the case was reset for August 8, 2012, to give him more time to do his community service hours and to liquidate his arrears. The defendant was referred to do his community service hours on May 2012. He dropped the paperwork at the agencies that he was referred to but he never went back to do any of the hours. He has also failed to make a single payment since January 29, 2010.
Nonetheless, the probation department agreed to adjudicate "the defendant and keeping him on probation (so) we will be able to collect more restitution for the victim in the case."
We'll see how that goes, but if the defendant's behavior is any indication, he may end up being jailed in Hidalgo County. The probation report indicates that he "was arrested in Hidalgo County for Theft after his probation should have expired."
Perez, when contacted by El Rrun-Rrun, refused to comment on his motion or the removal of the judge as well as on any other matter involving her or the Girl Scouts.