Thursday, February 27, 2014

CONVENIENT OMISSION: ROBLES VITA STOPS AT 2009

By Juan Montoya
We didn't believe it when we were told about it.
And like Doubting Thomases or a fella from Missouri, we asked for the proof (to show us).
Just this morning, after some of our P's attended the announcement of Joe Vega for Mayor of Port Isabel, we were handed the goods: a pushcard of Daniel Robles, a candidate for judge of
County Court-at-Law #1 against incumbent Arturo McDonald.
You remember Dan. He quit that year in midterm as County Court-at-Law #3 to go into private practice because he said his salary wasn't enough to feed his family an put his kids through school. So he opted out, left those who voted for him in the lurch, and forced the county commissioners to appoint a replacement to take over the burgeoning court docket.
According to his push card, his next accomplishment in life was the establishing of The Robles Law Firm, LLC from 2009 until present.
Well, what happened between 2009 and 2014? Did he just lie fallow and live off his rents?
We seem to remember quite a bit happened in those five years. Correct us if we're wrong.
He left office to partner with former Texas State Rep. Jim Solis and Austin Attorney Marc Rosenthal.
Yep, the two lawyers who were convicted as an offshoot of the racketeering and bribery trials surrounding the conviction of disgraced (and convicted) District 404th District Judge Abel Limas.
Solis was sentenced to 47 months in federal prison and three years of probation. He was also ordered to pay approximately $119,000 in restitution for his part in the Abel Limas scandal. He pleaded guilty in 2011 to racketeering charges. He previously testified he gave Judge Limas $250,000 in exchange for favorable rulings.
 Rosenthal was sentenced early December by United States District Judge Andrew Hanen to 20 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay $13,288,984 restitution for his role in the South Texas bribery scheme.
It's funny that now Robles cites chapter and verse of his rags to riches story but fails to say that he and his partners once graced the front cover of the Yellow Pages directory distributed all over the Rio Grande Valley.
(That's the Yellow Pages 2010 edition ad for the Solis and Robles, Rosenthal firm on the graphic at right.)
In a letter to his fellow members of the bar sent on September 23, 2013, Robles says that if elected he intends to "work diligently to help restore the public's trust in the judicial system of Cameron County.
"I am convinced that an improvement must be made in serving all who visit this court...," his letter continues.
This from a man who quit after 10 years in office in 2009 and then joined forces with Solis and Rosenthal to form a law firm and work the local courts.
During the course of the Rosenthal and Solis trials, Robles' name came up often and served as a backdrop to some of the racketeering and bribery schemes hatched by the two attorneys who were his partners after he quit his position to go into private practice with them.
Is your memory improving a little now, Danny?

4 comments:

Faithful County Taxpayer!!! said...

Daniel Robles wants to be judge again only so he can park in a special parking spot!!! That way, if someone parks in his spot which is not marked, then he can cry like that little itty-bitty shit that he is!!! Vote McDonald for County Judge!!!

Anonymous said...

The clock stops while you are stealing. There! I explained it.

Anonymous said...

Daniel Robles is not fit to sit on a bench where the integrity in a judge is imperative to obtaining and issuing justice in the name of justice, Daniel Robles does not respect jury decisions, and would be a big mistake for Cameron County, furthermore his ties to corruption are obvious, say NO! to Daniel Robles.

Anonymous said...

Judge Arturo McDonald has and continues doing a good job, let us keep Judge McDonald by re electing him.

rita