Wednesday, May 14, 2014

HAS ELIA CROSSED LINE IN PUSHING HUBBY'S CANDIDACY?

By Juan Montoya
For the past six or seven months this blog has received numerous complaints regarding 404th District Judge Elia Cornejo-Lopez's role in the candidacy of her husband Leonel Lopez for the Democratic Party nomination for Cameron County Pct. 2 commissioner.
Numerous attorneys told us that Elia was strong-arming them into contributing financially or supporting her husband with their votes. However, none would go on the record since they might one day have cases before her court.
Lopez is in the runoff with local attorney Alex Dominguez garnered 2,197 (or 36.99 percent) votes in the March primary while Lopez got 1,733, or 29.18 percent. Former county commissioner Ernie Hernandez got a little over 18 percent and Gerry Linan go the rest, or a little over 15 percent.
Since no one got 50 percent plus one vote, Dominguez and Lopez are in the runoff. Early voting begins May 19 and continues through May 23. election day is May 27, a Tuesday.
Notwithstanding the fact that Leo Lopez is married to Judge Elia Lopez-Cornejo, the laws concerning the involvement of judges in political races are quite specific.
Canon 5 of the Code of Judicial Conduct, Refraining From Inappropriate Political Activity, states that:
(2) A judge or judicial candidate shall not authorize the public use of his or her name endorsing another candidate for any public office, except that either may indicate support for a political party. A judge or judicial candidate may attend political events and express his or her views on political matters in accord with this Canon and Canon 3B(10).
That seems pretty clear, doesn't it?
When the issue first came up we spoke with Elia concerning her involvement in Leo's campaign and she said she had checked with the state wand was told that as long as she didn't use her title of district judge, she could participate in her husband's campaign.
Fair enough.
But then we started to hear about several incidents in the campaign where she evidently did use her title, position and her judge's office and courtroom to further her husband's campaign in violation of the judicial code.

FIGHTING OVER CAMPAIGN SIGNS:
Elia was angry over the fact that one of her husband's campaign signs had been removed from the frontage road in front of Dr. Manuel Guajardo's medical office and accused Dominguez's supporter Zeke Silva of taking it down.
A sign belonging to Dominguez and another candidate (Steve Guerra, for port commissioner) were not touched.
Assuming that Dominguez supporters had removed Leo's sign, she Emailed him demanding he return it and that she was on her way to view the surveillance cameras. The cell-phone message clearly shows the message came from "Judge Elia Cornejo Lopez (see graphic and message).
It turns out that Dominguez supporter had nothing to do with the removal of the campaign sing and that it was a crew doing some work on the right-of-way that required removing obstructions from there that had forced them to remove the Lopez sign.
In all fairness, Leo never got involved in the matter and it was Judge Cornejo-Lopez who initiated the dispute.

THE VALENTINE'S DAY CAPER:
Since early in the campaign we have been in receipt of messages and accounts of the judge rallying her acquaintances and supporters on behalf of her husband's candidacy. We have been reluctant to accept second-hand information about these instances until we could get first-hand information. That we finally did in the story told by a woman who was invited to attend a gathering at Elia's courtroom on or about January 13 or 14 by a mutual acquaintance. We'll let her tell it herself.
"It must have been January 13 or so when I found myself with a friend in the judge's office and there were a bunch of women with their daughters there. The judge was organizing a Valentine's Day event for mothers and daughters and people were taking pictures. They were going to be used at a campaign event for Leo Lopez that was going to be held the following month on Valentine's Day.
I did not feel comfortable an was almost late for work so I told my friend that I had to leave early. When we got there we first met with the judge in her chambers and then later went out into the (404th) courtroom to take the pictures."
That would seem the most egregious example of a Canon 5 violation.
However, what we didn't expect was a complaint made by another woman who was in the picture-taking session in the 404th courtroom who was dismayed to find a photo of herself and her late mother in a mass mailout made on Leo Lopez's behalf where photos of mothers and daughters are included in a Mother's Day greeting from the Lopez campaign.
"I never authorized that my mom's picture with me be used in that campaign mailout," she said.
A wife supporting her husband's efforts to gain either a job or political office is much to be admired, except when it violates the prohibitions of judicial conduct. Elia can be a tireless campaigner who has been known to be ruthless in the pursuit.
It's not the first time that Leo Lopez has used his wife as a reference for employment. In his application just last year (Sept. 30, 2013) for the position of Supervisor for Pupil Services with the Brownsville Independent School District, Lopez listed his wife as a personal reference. He listed her as Texas 404th District Judge.
And in the Valentine's Day mass mailout, he honors her as one of the women and mothers he admires and for who he is running for office.
As we said, the loyalty and affection a wife feels for her husband is admirable until it crosses over the line of propriety when it comes to a judge's behavior. In this case, it appears that Judge Cornejo-Lopez may have stepped quite past that line and then some. It may just be a matter of time that a complaint will be filed against her with the Commission on
Judicial Conduct.

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

Migdalia Lopez is doing the same thing or worse Montoya. Migdalia is making calls all day to lawyers asking them to vote for Sylvia Garza Perez for County Clerk. I will email you the texts she is sending out and also emails.

Anonymous said...

Big Orca, little Orco. !

Anonymous said...

OYE MONTOYA!!! EL PINCHE BOBBY IS BLEEDING AND ABUSING THE SYSTEM, THE GAY WAS DISCHARGED FROM THE ARMY BUT HE'S STILL BLOODSUCKING THE TAXPAYERS MONEY, HE IS A "DISABLED VETERAN", YES BOBBY BUT YOU ARE A DISABLED VETERAN POR JOTO!! PASS ME THE BUTTER ORCA!!!
UUUUUYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Former county employee said...

Too bad there isn't an attorney with balls to file a complaint or grievance with the Judicial Board or State Bar on her intimidation tactics. We all in the circle of life within the CC courthouse know that this fat piece of shit is very capable of strong arming. This excuse of having a case in her court is a "cop out." Vote Dominquez to get back at her! She's not going to know one way or another how you voted? Leo loses and life goes on in her court, fucked up as it always has!

Anonymous said...

Esa ruca tiene cara de China.

Anonymous said...

Elia has been all over "Lito's" campaign. She has intimidated attorneys who might go before her court and had them walking the streets with her husband. She has been in advertisements for "Lito" and is surely supporting him through her picture, her intimidation of attorneys and friends and by just being Elia. To think her actions are not violations of the state codes on integrity and political support for a particular candidate is a farce. Elia wants her husband to enjoy the benefits of the public tit, just as she enjoys.

Anonymous said...

CHINGUEN SU MADRE TODOS LOS JAMBONES DEL TESORO DEL PUEBLO! SI, TU Y TU Y TU!!! MALEDUCADOS. VALEN SEBO, CARNALES. Y LAS VIEJAS QUE SE ENFRANTAN A LA POLITICA LOCAL SON LAMBISCONAS, NALGONAS Y SEMEJANTE PUTAS!!! HE DICHO. UUUUUUUUUUYYYYYYY

Anonymous said...

Talking about abusing the system....get to work and stay off the blogs on county time Valadez!

Anonymous said...

Just one more Tamale....BOOM!!!

Anonymous said...

Arnold Flores is such a crybaby , he has Eddie Lucio II & III , DA Saenz , and Carlos Cascos making calls for him . Arnold is a puppet for the above mentioned men and has to use the Brownsville bloggers to defeat Sylvia Garza Perez . Arnold Flores committed to his friends , committed to corruption ... UUUUUYYYYY!

Anonymous said...

Do I need to remind everyone what county you live in? The laws and rule differ here, japan rules!!!

Anonymous said...

Hey Elia is being helped by her relative Sofia Benavidez, anyone voting for Mary Ester will vote for Leo. Let see who goes out to vote!

Anonymous said...

Juanito, do you think all your readers are as stupid as Zeke? I can also edit my wife's contact on my phone and rename it from "Mi Vieja Pansona" to "Judge Elia" and then grab her phone and text my phone with some bogus text. No mames.

Anonymous said...

Bola de jambones! Ya dejen a la chiche municipal!!!! Cabrones. Valemos sebo todos. Panochas podridas y chiles en descando! Ha ha ha ah

Anonymous said...

Our American legal system depends on judges have no bias and preference when it comes to attorneys or their clients. They must not only not have bias and preference, but they must avoid anything that might look like they do. This is how good honorable judges conduct the business of the court.

But, hey this is the valley! The American legal system does not reach this far south of the checkpoint. We live in north Mexico and the rules are different. Justice is bought and sold on a daily basis down here. Pity!

Anonymous said...

Someone ought to take the complaints to the FBI.

Anonymous said...

Everyone here us full of hot air. I know Elia can be a pain in the neck, but she is not corrupt . Her husband is 10 times a better candidate for the Cameron County than his opponent!

Anonymous said...

Anyone who knows her well knows she us a bully and as crooked as can be...she bullies teachers, administrators, attorneys...and if you stand up to her she uses her position as a judge to try to ruin people....

Anonymous said...

Elia did not cross the Line. She rolled over it.

Anonymous said...

what I want to know why is Arnold Flores poletiquiando during county time, he should know the policy oh yea I forgot he got hired cause his dad ran to ernie hernandez pleading to give his son the administrators position, he has no experience and no qualifications and all the commissioners and the judge back him up for everything that's why he gets away with politiquiando during county time and is never no where to be found

Anonymous said...

Conoces a Lio? Que Lio? El que te picó el fundio.

chief cool arrow said...

thanks lopez family, you made it easy for me to make the right choice. cca

Anonymous said...

What did you say? English dude! We are in the USA

Anonymous said...

All these comments are all across the board. ..concentrate on the two opponents and leave the rest aside. Every one seems to want to have a word in edge wise....but they all need to just discuss the candidates abilities for the post. Stop the GOSSIP and life gets easier for all. By the way, what's in your own backyard?

Anonymous said...

To clarify as to what country we live in ? It is in Extrangia. That is why we are referred to as Extranjeros. . Our red passports read , "La República de Extrangia. We speak a strange language.

rita