Thursday, October 17, 2024

TEXAS COMMISSION ON JUDICIAL CONDUCT PUBLICLY REPRIMANDS CORNEJO-LOPEZ; FINDS HER "WILLFUL AND PERSISTENT" CONDUCT DISCREDITS JUDICIARY

 Special to El Rrun-Rrun

The Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct has issued a public reprimand to former 404th District Judge Elia Cornejo-Lopez after she admitted that she had answered a motion for her to recuse herself from the custody case of Jasmine B. Cuellar, who was represented by Brownsville attorney Reynaldo Garza III, with a 120-page scathing denunciation of Garza on issues irrelevant to the case.

The case, labeled Adam T. Garcia, Jr. vs. Jasmine B Cuellar, Case No. 2012-DCL-07509, a family law case regarding the modification of the parent-child relationship. The commission issued its ruling October 9, 2024.

On October 1, 2020,Garza filed a Motion to Recuse Cornejo-Lopez from the Garcia case. The following day, October 2, he filed an Amended Motion to Recuse. 

In both, he alleged that Lopez should be recused "because her impartiality can reasonably be questioned, and she has a personal bias or prejudice against the subject matter such that recusal is necessary. Judge Lopez and her staff (Court Coordinator Sandra Betancourt) have interjected themselves into the litigation in a manner inconsistent with the role of the judiciary."

On October 6, 2020, Lopez issued a Ruling on Motion to Recuse in which she recused herself' from the Garcia Case but responded to the allegations Garza made in the Motion to Recuse and the Amended Motion to Recuse.

"In her 120-page Ruling on Motion to Recuse, Judge Lopez made very personal and disparaging statements about Garza which included, but not limited to, that Garza was mentally ill and corrupt and that he violated attorney-client privilege. Also, Lopez provided information regarding five other active cases where Garza was the attorney that she believed were examples to support her statements about Garza."

Later, on October 6, 2020, Garza filed an Agreed & Unopposed Emergency Motion to Seal with Judge Missy Medary, presiding Judge of the 5th Judicial Administrative Region, asking that Lopez's Ruling on Motion to Recuse filed in the Garcia Case and the other five cases should be sealed. Garza asserted that the Ruling on Motion to Recuse should be sealed because Lopez's response was irrelevant to the issues in the Garcia Case, served no legal purpose and appeared to be aimed at causing harm to Garza.

Garza stated he wanted both the Motion to Recuse and the Amended Motion to Recuse to be sealed because or reasons that impact the continuing litigation between the parties' and the parties' desire to move forward in the litigation unencumbered by any issues associated with the recusal in the Garcia case.

On October 7, Judge Medary granted Garza's motion and sealed the Garcia case and the other unrelated five cases.

In her written response and testimony before the Commission,  Lopez stated she had filed the Ruling on Motion to Recuse in the other cases involving Garza because she was explaining the reason why she was sua sponte (on her own accord recusing herself from those cases... and did not want her impartiality to be questioned in Garza's other cases.

She testified she signed an order granting an Order to Recuse for the Garcia case, but stated the Ruling on Motion to Recuse was "accidentally" filed...

The commission determined that (Lopez) "should be publicly reprimanded for: 

(1) failing to be patient, dignified and courteous towards Garza when she purposefully made very personal and disparaging statements about Garza in a response to the motions to recuse in the Garcia Case; and 

(2) willfully filed the response to the motions to recuse in the Garcia Case and five other cases in which Garza represented a party for the purpose of sua sponte recusing herself from those cases. (Her) failure in this respect constituted willful or persistent conduct that is clearly inconsistent with the proper performance of  her duties and cast public discredit upon the judiciary or the administration of justice, in violation of Canon 3B(4) or the Texas Code on Judicial Conduct and Article V, Section 1-a (6)A of the Texas Constitution."

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

pigs should NOT be judges

Anonymous said...

La culpa no la tiene la india, sino el quien la hace comadre

Anonymous said...

There's a story in there somewhere.

Anonymous said...

3. not following the law because she favors criminals
4. not thinking about her actions and how in the future those she favored would hurt others
5. continue working in Brownsville like if she has not done nothing wrong against the good people of Brownsville

These were accidentally left out of the list.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Truth, you left out the fact you vilified Garza for the complaint and defended Louis Sorola for his part in the mess. How much did Louis pay you to keep his name out of this?

Anonymous said...


The power of that office is incredible.


Anonymous said...

jees, look at that woman you know her blood pressure is sky high and so are her blood sugar levels. of course shes impatient and rude. blood reveals all

Anonymous said...

Oh, now the Judicial Conduct board issues a reprimand to the fugly pig? Why didn't they take away her license? Everyone in Cameron County knew that you could buy the fugly pig! Now, I got to go vomit what I've I seen today!

Anonymous said...

2008 Elia Cornejo Lopez First female appointed as a municipal court judge in Brownsville

August 2008 Elia Cornejo Lopez interfered with the defense witness in the Proenza Case (The judge wanted Dr. Carol Grannum to say YES that she could have seen a child that was sick but that the mom was away in Minnesota and the uncle was left to take care of the child without proper authorization) Su clinica said NO, we can not see the child without the parents’ consent. Judge Elia Cornejo Lopez stated that her own doctor sees her kids without her authorization and just her brother or sister as the adults. Article 38.05 Texas Criminal Procedure prohibits a trial judge from telling the jury her opinion of the case.

Anonymous said...

2008 Elia Cornejo Lopez First female appointed as a municipal court judge in Brownsville

2010 Elia Cornejo Lopez does not agree with the Court and appeals a judgement in favor of Norma Linda Castellano and her son Cesar Roel Perez. Cornejo Lopez appeal is denied. The trial court was not found to be mistaken.
Lopez v Castellano No 13-08-00336-CV

Anonymous said...

2011 Nat Perez filed a recusal motion against Elia Cornejo Lopez> Nat Perez did not buy Girl Scout cookies from Elia’s daughter and the judge removed Nat Perez from cases in her court. Nat Perez was told to buy a case of cookies but he did not because his daughter was also selling cookies.

Anonymous said...

2011 Elia Cornejo Lopez ordered a criminal to donate a trip to Las Vegas to the Girl Scouts instead of doing Community Service Hours. Noe T Romo did not do his hours, did not pay anything and he did not follow his probation rules. Elia Cornejo Lopez a judge for the criminals.

Anonymous said...

Agree. This blog is sucking air. Writing is only getting worse!!!

Anonymous said...

The woman is a Bitch
The grace of a Jackass

Anonymous said...

It happened again!!! Last night at a popular restaurant, the wife and I were eating when a fat bitch walked by on her way out and farted!!! I mean, we and people at three other tables heard it clearly!!! WTF is going on????

Anonymous said...

2017 Judge Elia Cornejo Lopez files a suit against BISD for:
her right to free speech and not letting her speak in executive session and a leaker gossiped to local bloggers about her situation and that BISD violented HIPPA and teachers made false statements and also AP exams are for only some students.
Thank God she did not go after the cafeteria food. I love the Cafeteria food at BISD.

Anonymous said...

That lady is smarter than any other person I know, this had to be a set-up or done with intent. Respectfully, we all know the Judge Lopez doesn’t work like that.

Anonymous said...

So what???!!!

rita