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2007 News

Fall Judicial Session Scheduled

The ’07 Fall Judicial Session of the Texas Judicial Academy is slated for November 14-16, 2007 at the Moody Gardens Hotel in Galveston. The Fall Administrative Session will take place on the afternoon of November 13. The Judicial Session will include sessions covering Ethics and Judicial Conduct, the Juvenile Probation Commission, Civil and Criminal Contempt – both Direct and Indirect, Probation Revocation, Prosecutorial Diversion, Jail Diversion and Mental Health, Guardianship, Driving While License Suspended, Standard Field Sobriety Tests, Searches in DWI and Possession Cases, Search Warrants for Blood Samples, and Judicial Legislative Update. For more information call the TAC Judicial Education Department (800) 456-5974.

Rural Courts DWI Project

Working with TXDOT, TAC has begun a DWI Docket program aimed at improving the approach to DWI cases in rural counties. Gene Terry is the Project Director, Dwayne Holman is the Project Manager and Angela Laidacker is the Project Coordinator. Since the inception of the program, sessions have been held for 25 County Courts.

West Texas Conference Held

The Judicial Education session of the West Texas Judges and Commissioners Conference was held at the YO Hilton Hotel in Kerrville on March 21. The session consisted of one class on “DWI Courts – Strategies For Addressing the DWI Offender” and another on “The Professional Guardian.”

Probate College Planned

The Fall convocation of the Texas Probate College will be on September 6 -8 at the Hotel Derek in Houston. For more information call the office of Judge Guy Herman at (512) 854-9258.

South Texas to Offer Judicial Education

Four Hours of Judicial Education will be offered to judges attending the South Texas Judges and Commissioners Conference at the Omni Bayfront Hotel in Corpus Christi on June 18-21. The topics will be “DWI Courts --Strategies for Addressing the DWI Offender” and “The Paid Professional Guardian.” For more information call Lee County Judge Evan Gonzales at (979) 542-3178.

2006 News

Ninety-eight Inducted as Fellows

Ninety-five judges and four special honorees were honored as the first group of Fellows of the Texas Judicial Academy at the Awards Dinner at the Spring Judicial Session in Lubbock on March 30.  County Judges who achieve at least twice the required number of judicial education hours are named as Fellows of the Academy.  Judge Giles Dalby, Judge Maxine Flatt, Judge J. A. Garcia, and Judge Sam Seale were also named as Fellows for providing “exemplary service to improve judicial education.”

The Honors Dinner was attended by registrants of the Spring Judicial Education Session, 7th Court of Appeals Chief Justice Brian Quinn, Justice Don H. Reavis, Justice Macky Hancock, and Justice Donald R. Ross of the 6th Court of Appeals.

Juvenile Law Videos Produced

The judicial education department produced a class on Juvenile Hearings on July 19 and 20.  Fourteen county judges took part in the class which was filmed in the Travis County Courthouse.  Travis County Associate Judge Leonard Saenz presided over the hearings, Juvenile Probation Commission Counsel Pierre Williams acted as the prosecutor, Travis County Probation Officer Emir Perez was the probation officer, Education Department Attorney Gene Terry served as defense counsel and C.T. (Jay) Echols IV sat in as the juvenile delinquent.

After post-production and editing, the DVD will be distributed to all county judges.  It includes sections on juvenile magistrations, adjudication hearings, and disposition hearing and should be a useful tool for judges

Fall Judicial Education Session Scheduled for Austin

The Fall Judicial Education Session will be in Austin at the Doubletree Hotel.  The Administrative Workshop will be on November 14 and the Judicial Sessions will take place on November 15, 16, and 17.

Banquet to Honor Retiring Judges

All judges who will be leaving office this year will be honored at a Retiring Judges Banquet on Thursday, November 16 during the Fall Judicial Session at the Doubletree Hotel in Austin. At least 126 judges will not be returning in January.

Judicial Education Offered at All Regional Conferences

Four hours of Judicial Education credit were offered at each of the regional Judges and Commissioners conferences this year. The West Texas event was held in Wichita Falls where Judge Mike Brown of Tom Green County served as Judicial Education moderator. Judge Roger Harmon of Johnson County served as Judicial Education moderator at the North and East Texas session in Plano. The last of the regional conferences was the South Texas meeting in Galveston where Lee County Judge Evan Gonzales served as Judicial Education moderator.

Far West Conference to Offer Judicial Education

The Far West Texas County Judges and Commissioners Conference will offer three hours of judicial education for judges. The judicial topics will all be DWI related.  The Conference will meet at the Big Bend Motor Lodge in Terlingua on October 4, 5, and 6.

Judicial Education Rules

The Rules of Judicial Education require that all active judges earn at least 16 hours of judicial education credit each fiscal year (September 1 through August 31).  New judges must earn 30 hours of judicial education credit their first 12 months in office plus 1.33 hours per month until the end of the fiscal year.  These hours must be earned through events sponsored by recognized judicial education venues: The Texas Judicial Academy; the National Judicial College; the Texas College of Probate Judges; the Juvenile Probation Commission Annual Conference, the V.G. Young Institute; the State Judges and Commissioners Association Annual Conference or the regional judges and commissioners conferences.

Judges may be reimbursed for attendance at one Texas Judicial Academy session (Spring or Fall session, computer class, special video production class) or Texas Probate College session per fiscal year.  This reimbursement will cover grant allowable transportation, meals and lodging.

Judges who do not perform any judicial functions are exempt from judicial education after signing and submitting an affidavit to the County Judges Education Committee.