OSCAR BECOMES NEW JUDGE, OLVERA'S HEALTH WOES

By Juan Montoya
The day after Oscar X. Garcia was sworn in as the new 357th District Court Judge, word got around town that witting judge Rolando Olvera Jr. – also a Perry appointee – had traveled to Houston to determine whether he was suffering from leukemia.
Garcia was appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to replace Leonel Alejandro who resigned his position just prior to him being mentioned during the Abel Limas-Armando Villalobos racketeering and bribery trials. Although he was never indicted, testimony from witnesses indicated that he was aware of the manipulation of cases and willingly accepted cases from Limas' court after the no-convicted jurist was defeated by Elia Cornejo-Lopez in 2010.
Those cases for the most part were cases that were filed by also-convicted Austin attorney Marc Rosenthal and others like former state representative Jim Solis, who was also convicted in federal court.
However, when he resigned three-quarters of the way through his term, Alejandro stated that it was for "personal" reasons.
That allowed the governor to fill the unfinished term with Garcia, just as he had appointed Olvera twice before to unfinished terms in two different courts before.
Olvera's acquiantances say the judge had been feeling poorly this past week and his father, Rolando Olvera Sr., a pharmacist, suspecting it might be aq form of leukemia, insisted that he consult with a specialist in Houston. Sources say that the Olveras traveled there this Saturday for a conultation.
Some likened Garcia's appointment with Olvera's, but other say that there is one important difference. Olvera ran as a Republican twice after being appointed to the courts while Garcia – whom we are told was asked specifically by Perry's vetting team if he would run as a Republican if appointed – had not even been sworn in before he announced he would be running as a Democrat.
In both cases, Olvera's bid for the couirts were foiled by Democratic candidates. During a Democratic Party meeting prior to the third election, Olvera publicly took the Democratic oath.
The Garcia defection to the Democrats set off a fierce firestorm within the GOP loyalists who have been trying to make inroads into  traditionally-Democratic Cameron county.
Except for County Judge Carlos Cascos, commissioner James Matz, former Ambassador to Mexico Tony Garza, and a stray constable here and there, the Republicans have not been very successful in inducing local voters to pull their lever.
We hope that Olvera's physical condition does not decline soon, but if his health makes it difficult for him to carry out the duties of his court, there could be a flurry of activity to find someone to replace him on the bench. Some of those that were in the running for Alejandro's court might get a second look such as Patricia Garza, whose mother Adela is a TSC trustee, among others. Garza was one of those interviewed by Perry's team.