Travis County Commissioners Court
November 10, 2009,
Citizens Communication
Citizens communication is first, this item gives residents an opportunity to address the court on any matter not on the agenda.
gus pena is number 1 followed by morris priest, who will be followed by jimmy castro.
>> judge?
>> yes, sir.
>> before we go into citizens communication, I would like to basically take a moment of silence for the -- for the families that have experienced a great loss at killeen and fort hood.
and if the court doesn't mind, before we start these proceedings this morning, I would like to maybe just take a moment of silence and --
>> okay.
a moment of silence beginning now.
>> thank you.
>> thank you, judge.
>> good morning, judge, Commissioners, proud united states marine corps veterans.
we lift up those who have answered call to duty on land, sea in the air.
because of your kindness towards us we live in freedom today.
we thank you for letting us live in this land where only love and family take precedence over love of country.
we thank for you the victories given to us and the liberty we enjoy because of courageous service to our veterans, may we always be the land of the free and the home of the brave, amen.
first of all, shout out a happy birthday to the united states marine corps, born November 10th, 1775 in philadelphia.
all of the marines celebrate this birthday at a ball.
we went there, it was real nice, kudos to our united states marines.
even though it is not memorial day, it is a special time for our family, friends, fellow veterans to not only recognize current military members but also our current comrades.
my classmate at zavala elementary school, allen, junior, and johnston high school serve understand -- served in vietnam.
he was the last one to die in vietnam.
also toby rodriguez, my fellow united states marine corps member, died in vietnam.
health care, affordable housing, real affordable housing, ptsd, post-traumtic stress disorder treatment, reinterview counseling, transitional housing, employment and reentry programs.
40% of the homeless population are military veterans.
this is according to the statistical data from the department of veterans affairs and h.u.d.
i will tell you this much as what happened in killeen and fort hood, things are happening now because our veterans are not getting services they need from the veterans departments and affairs.
homeless veterans I'm naming off, homeless veterans on the streets.
this is a disgrace.
this is supposed to be the most -- most richest country in the world, here we are homeless veterans.
not good.
whatever your position on the iraq, afghanistan war, please support our military troops in iraq and afghanistan.
if you see my fellow brethren, sister, brothers in arms in uniform, go hug them, tell them that you appreciate them, thank them for the service to our country.
we trained in brutal conditions, I trained with the republic korean marines, also british royal marines.
it was brutal training, they prepare you for war.
nobody wants to fight, but as the marines say thank god we know how to fight.
please pray for our veterans, help them, support them, give them the help they need because they are sure not getting it now.
this is me back, I'm not going to mention the words, this is me at 18 years old, marine corps veterans, proud.
i'll hurry up, mentors and students, we need for our students so they can grasp the subject matter in math and reading.
please help them volunteer our time.
we don't want to lose our students to the dropout rate, it is very gigantic.
god bless america, our veterans, veterans day tomorrow, please sustained.
>> [ applause ]
>> thank you, morris priest is next.
>> thank you, judge, Commissioners, morris priest for the record speaking on my own behalf.
i do think some of the best entertainment that you can find, I don't even think that you can buy this kind of entertainment is to go to a campo meeting.
i went to a campo meeting last night and, you know, some of the things that many of the people such as myself have told them, part of the problem is our funding crisis.
and these toll roads we knew that they would generate the debt, negative debt streams and we have all of these rescissions from the federal government because of poor planning by txdot when other Texas department of transportation agencies in other states get over 100% of their gas tax funds back.
texas sometimes doesn't even manage to get 80 percent of their gas tax dollars back from the federal government.
before they started doing the rescissions, Texas had lost billions of dollars just due to the fact that -- well, they should have been sunset a long time ago.
but looking at the fundings that campo is showing us now, they are saying that we are only going to have $9.5 billion available from -- from between 2010 and 2035.
and the projections that I have looked at recently were this yellow highlighted areas for new projects, I do believe that txdot has overlooked maintenance on some of these roads and I would just, you know, for future reference let you know ahead of time that I have told you this like I did in 2002 when garnett coleman down at the capitol were helping us when they were trying to do these phase 1 toll roads, they blocked funding.
but this shaded area here should all be maintenance.
that's how far behind we are in our transportation area, but if txdot would or campo would hired a uni-weed manager as I have suggested, they would save probably billions of dollars.
they would at least save a billion dollars.
so I'm going to keep recommending that they hire a uni-weed manager.
and if they don't know what it is, I'll help them out.
we have an -- intersections in our city, traffic signals, traffic markings, things that would be very inexpensive to do, would fix our transportation, but one of the things that's really appalling to me is that we have to come to the Commissioners court and talk about how we have people on decker lane or wherever, various parts of this community, that have to walk for a while just to get on a bus.
some of these things would generate more tax dollars if we could get more people on the bus with the capital metro having a 92% tax base in their budget, bear is only making up 8%.
it seems like all of the funding mechanism that's they are trying to use and utilize are working against themselves and there's some corrections that -- that I think maybe that they will start listening since they don't really have any money to do anything anyway.
so I think we are having an effect.
>> thank you, mr.
priest.
mr.
castro is next, would john brady and gloria suhami please come forth, as well as ronnie reeferseed.
mr.
castro.
>> thank you, judge.
good morning, judge Biscoe, Commissioners.
my name is jimmy castro here to speak on my own behalf.
for those high school students planning on a summer job next summer, looking for a job now, now is the time to add those business skills employers are looking from Austin community college continuing education.
like this first slide shows Austin community college administrative assistant program.
this provides students with skills for technical administrative support positions.
it is a series of 13 continuing education classes, students can register for the entire series or the individual courses such as -- keyboarding, eight hours.
the introduction to -- to computer keyboard.
windows and file management.
8 hours.
microsoft word introduction and microsoft word intermediate.
>> [reading graphic] for more information you may contact the administrative assistant program at the continuing education department at Austin community college, 5930 middle fiskville road, right behind highland mall, or you can call them at (512)223-7542.
finally, Austin community college not only wants to help you apply for that job, they want to help you get that job.
thank you, judge and Commissioners.
>> thank you mr.
castro.
ms.
suhami and mr.
brady.
>> good morning, I'm here representing the Travis County alive team.
back August 12th of 2008 the court was presented with a motion by -- by sheriff greg hamilton and the court passed that motion, giving support to the program.
i wanted to give you around update on what's occurred over the past year.
and thank you for your support of the program.
we couldn't have done a lot of these things without you.
we -- on September 11 we were able to train 14 instructors to teach this class.
the class is a team defensive driving course that has been highly successful throughout the nation.
graduates have experienced a 75% decrease in -- in vehicle fatalities.
so pretty significant number.
in -- we're -- there's representation, the instructors are made up by the sheriff's office deputies, Austin police department, department of public safety, precinct 3 constable and Austin Travis County e.m.s.
so that makes up the instructors.
we were incorporated October 21st as the Travis County alive team.
and received our designation as a 501 c 3 non-profit as of March 8th.
the all state foundation then underwrote us for $100,000.
so -- so we -- since then we have been able to make huge strides.
we have -- we have continued -- with the continued support of chief acevedo in a.p.d., they have committed six instructors and officers to teach a class during duty hours.
continued support, of course, from judge -- just promoted sheriff hamilton
>> [laughter] but sheriff hamilton, the Travis County media department, the Travis County attorney's office underage drinking prevention program which gloria represents and the current status, we have the u.t.
communications department, developing an advertising campaign for us, excuse me, we're involved with numerous agencies, committed to public safety throughout Travis County.
as I mentioned, the a.p.d., d.p.s., just received a certificate of appreciation from the city of Austin -- city of Austin for -- for our participation in the national night out.
of course the Travis County attorney's office underage drinking prevention program, the aisd police department, department of -- department of transportation and the national safety council.
currently, presenting classes of at least 20 students weekly.
and currently have over 200 graduates of the program.
and we -- we weren't able to do a whole lot over the summer just because school was out, so we got a number of schools -- supporting the program and implementing it within their programs.
so again thank you, appreciate your support, couldn't have done it without you.
>> thank you.
>> good morning, I am just here to just as an aside to support the alive at 25 program, just let you know by your support of our underage drinking prevention grant, the underage drinking prevention task force, alive at 25 team and all of the other agencies we work with, we have a very strong presence in Travis County for teen driving safety.
we are a model for many, many other states that call my program on a regular basis to say, hey, I heard what you are doing here in Travis County.
so -- so we're doing the best we can.
we hope our numbers go down each year.
thank you again for your support.
>> thank you.
>> phillip a.
dick, ronnie reeferseed, jennifer riggs.
please come forward.
>>
>> good morning judge and panel.
as you know, I have been working on obtaining my final judgment and my final orders for my civil lawsuit that was granted to me by the honorable judge patrick o keel on November the 23rd, 2004.
i'm not going to give out the cause number, but I have been trying to, you know, get this resolved.
i have written to the open records and I see where my -- it was sent over for revision and to be revised.
this is my final judgment here, I found out, where it went.
and this is where the attorneys checked out or filed it and claims that phillip a.
dick is appealing cause number.
that cause number is my civil lawsuit.
now, I'm the
>> [indiscernible] of the lawsuit, why would I appeal it?
this is just not true.
i'm a disabled person and I can't afford no attorney, so I have been faxing and -- all of my information to the white house.
and I've asked my president mr.
barack obama and the first lady ms.
michelle obama to please intervene and help me resolve my issue of -- of -- of the -- of the collecting my final judgment money.
assist I said, I am really ready to go shopping.
as I said, I have sent this information about my son, mr.
roosevelt hutchins, because he was innocent of those 15 years of drug charges.
same drug charings now they done charge my son shutting in this prison jail -- sitting in this prison jail right now.
my son was stopped by your officers, mr.
chief acevedo on March 18th, 2009.
and they beat my child.
they beat my child and as a result of that beating my son is blind in his eye.
now they put the drug charge on him, I guess, because of the beating.
police officer one day called me, a few days -- a few weeks after this had happened, asked me, well, ms.
dick you wasn't there, there was no witnesses, how do you know what happened to your son step by step?
i told him there was a witness.
and they have questioned me and wanted me to tell who the witness was and I told them.
and I have not seen ms.
patricia accaberry since.
i would like to know chief officer acre vedo what have your police officers done with my eyewitness.
there's supposed to be an investigation going on.
i want to know why all of these files are so corrupted and so mixed up.
and I have proof that judge -- that judge bob perkins sentenced my son to six months in Travis County jail.
he did not sentence my son to no 15 years in state prison able to judge's name were switched up to -- to judge wither.
now it's claiming that judge wither
>> [sic] is the judge who sentenced my son to 15 years in state prison.
i asked judge wisser about it, he tells me something is really wrong with these records because he didn't, you know, he didn't really do this.
>> thank you, ms.
dick.
>> thank you.
>> you're welcome, sir, I would like to get it straightened up.
>> ronnie reeferseed.
>> thank you.
>> thank you, judge.
yes, this is ronnie
>> [inhale] reeferseed.
saying kids, cherish your childhood.
don't waste it.
don't waste it with doing drugs.
i mean that's real obvious.
but our very own elected traitors in the u.s.
house of representatives surrendered to big-time to big pharma, those very same drug pushers who have to burn billions of each year to continually counter productive to maintain this continually counter productive war on pot smokers and hemp enthusiasts thus keeping their market share for their own costly often harmful chemical con coxs on the market.
on the other hand the miraculous range of non-toxic medicinal uses for thp from marijuana is beyond comparison in the real world of medicinal drugs.
my own experiences of the rejuvenative properties I found in my own ongoing recovery from my own coma inducing traumatic brain injuries, makes me share with the voters why we can still say no to any reform to the entire health care schemology that does not include and emphasize medicinal marijuana for a focus of freedom and good health.
only our enemies benefit from all of this continually counter productive wars on family farms and other hemp enthusiasts.
wake up obama-noids, demand freedom.
we must demand that real reform, real beneficial change in our lives.
not another shuffle of schemes to benefit big pharma at the sacrifice of public health.
death panels are a big part.
they will be made by doctors and not family members in england right now for example, if you are over 60 years old, no eye surgery for you.
read former prime minister tony blair's words and ideas about this, or read ronpaul.org in contrast for his ideas.
we can see into the future if we listen to tony blair's ideas about life cheap penning spasms of schemologies, obama regime of death care programs.
yes, it's death care, not health care when bureau crats enforce life and death medical decisions mandating their convoluted schemology which is absolutely inherent to any medical care with a socialistic collectistic decision making protest.
we do not know what we do not know about traumatic brain injuries, for example, such as I know from deep in the core of my being that we should always choose life despite our own potential inconvenience to treat each other with the same love we hope to receive in times of need.
thank you, j and of course (888)322-1414 dr.
paul weekly updaylight.
>> thank you.
>> thank you.
jennifer riggs.
>> thank you.
>> I'm here because I cannot be here at 11:00 and I notice that late Friday --
>> is this citizens communication or that item?
>> it is that item and I just have a couple of handouts and I wanted to thank the Commissioners court.
we weren't here last week after the -- after they came out of closed session.
>> we will have to ask you to make it real quick.
>> I'll be within the 3 minutes, sir.
>> we deviated from the policy last week because you told me that your people would focus on long-term remedies.
>> that's correct.
>> they ended up talking about the posted item.
our policy is citizens communication is supposed to be for discussion of matters not on the agenda.
>> id.
>> so if you -- if you make a very, very quick.
>> we will, yes.
>> and ms.
>> [indiscernible] will be here at 11:00, I couldn't be here at 11:00.
she will be here to answer any questions, I think we are close to agreement on that issue.
we still had matters for clarification we were trying to get clarified all week.
we couldn't.
i do have the capital area quarter horse association did provide a memo for us for your information for purposes of -- of looking that the long term.
we also have a copy of ms.
manroe's comment that she will have at 11:00.
i will hand these both to the Commissioners court now so we can provide you copies.
again I just wanted to emphasize we didn't come asking for a handout, simply for fairness, not to change the rules after having planned an event.
we are asking for the commercial rates, what does fairness mean to us?
a commercially reasonable rate, that a rate not be changed after there's already an agreement in place.
that we are treated the same as others who are similarly situated.
and so we just ask -- ms.
manroe will be here this afternoon for ask for clarification.
but just for emphasize this issue of outlets, water usage, electric usage, it's kind of the equivalent of a landlord saying to a tenant who has always had an all bills paid rents, well, your house has a shower faucet, it has a water faucet in the bathroom and in the kitchen and one in the back yard, front yard, we are going to start charging you 20 bucks apiece for those.
$100 day.
it's going to go from included all bills paid to $3,000 a month.
just so you get an idea of the magnitude of the change.
but we do appreciate you folks working with us.
we are happy to compromise and we have already stated to staff, to ms.
aldridge that we're happy to pay some of the additional charges that were approved and compromised on.
but ms.
manroe will be here later this morning to address the items specifically, we really just need clarification on some of these points that we have been trying to get it all week.
thank you so much for working with us, I'm sorry I couldn't be here at 11:00.
i will be available by telephone if ms.
aldridge or any of you have questions of me.
>> thank you.
>> justice spillman and Sarah black.
>>
>> [inaudible - no mic]
>> thank you, mr.
spellman for -- for complying with county policy.
ms.
black?
>> yes.
thank you, Commissioners and the citizens of Austin.
i don't know how to say this, but to say -- Travis County let my people go.
i submitted documents to escamilla's office back in April about the Texas workforce commission altering and concealing my records dealing with my unemployment claim.
daniel bradford, who was assigned the case after more than 31 days, he claimed that there was no criminal, no -- anything for his office to investigate.
i then took my -- my complaint to the district attorney's office.
since the Texas workforce commission's administrative offices are in Travis County, then Travis County has jurisdiction to -- to prosecute criminal acts by that state agency.
when I took it to the district attorney's office, I got this letter dated September the 10th from beverly matthews.
she basically said my complaint, you know -- all of the offense abouts which you complain are misdemeanors and this offense does not -- well, she says this offense does not have jurisdiction to prosecute these kind of cases, that doesn't make sense.
i was basically told to take this letter and go back to david escamilla's office because they would prosecute the misdemeanors because any interference in my twc claim is considered a misdemeanor.
but the tampering, which there's an example of in this packet that I gave you, this shows me sending the hearing officer a communication dated January the 6th.
i faxed it, of course, I faxed it from Travis County, that's that fax received.
but when you look at the government record generated by the officer, I mean by the hearing officer, she actually says she didn't even get that communication.
that was consistent.
that's been consistent throughout my twc case.
they are concealing documents.
her writing this report as if she didn't even receive it and then when I appealed this decision, the decision right here that you have a copy of, I appealed they gave me until January the 28th.
on January the 28th I faxed from Travis County law library, I faxed my appeal of this decision.
and when I got to the hearing on March the 5th, the t.w.c.
hearing, the hearing officer provided me with a copy of a document that showed -- two received dates.
the January 28th received date and then on top of, above it was a date that says February the 9th.
so even though I had faxed receipt from t.w.c., I mean from Travis County showing that I faxed it on the 28th, they altered that date, they tampered with that record and said no you actually sent it February the 9th.
so if tampering is good enough for
>> [indiscernible] flores, it's good enough for t.w.c.
and I'm being prosecuted for the criminal acts against me.
>> thank you, ms.
black.
that does it for citizens communication.
The Closed Caption log for this Commissioners Court agenda item is provided by Travis County Internet Services. Since this file is derived from the Closed Captions created during live cablecasts, there are occasional spelling and grammatical errors. This Closed Caption log is not an official record the Commissioners Court Meeting and cannot be relied on for official purposes. For official records please contact the County Clerk at (512) 854-4722.
Last Modified:
Tuesday, November 10, 2009 1:40 PM
