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The Texas Capitol is seen in Austin on Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026.<\/p>\n
Jay Janner\/Austin American-Statesman<\/p>\n
Travis County District Attorney Jos\u00e9 Garza skipped a Texas House hearing Wednesday, where lawmakers criticized his office\u2019s handling of criminal cases and discussed possible subpoenas and even impeachment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The House Select Committee on Governmental Oversight heard hours of testimony from crime victims and advocacy organizations. Witnesses accused Garza\u00a0of failing to hold defendants accused of violent crimes accountable.<\/p>\n
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\u201cHow many people have to die in this city for DA Garza to do his job and prosecute criminals and give defendants and victims their day in court and their justice?\u201d state Rep. Ellen Troxclair, a Lakeway Republican said.<\/p>\n
Garza declined multiple interview requests to explain why he was absent from Wednesday’s hearing, and how he would address mounting scrutiny from lawmakers.<\/p>\n
The hearing came amid a broader push<\/a> by Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dustin Burrows to increase state scrutiny of local prosecutors in Democratic urban areas. \u00a0Last month, the three Republican leaders jointly called for lawmakers to take action during the next legislative session, which starts in\u00a0January. Abbott previously proposed <\/a>appointing a statewide prosecutor who could take over cases when local prosecutors decline to pursue them.\u00a0<\/p>\n The push marks the latest Republican assault on Garza, who has found himself in the GOP\u00a0crosshairs since his 2020 election on a progressive platform of police accountability and less reliance on incarceration. Three years later, lawmakers passed a rogue prosecutor law that set the stage for Garza’s ouster, but efforts have been unsuccessful.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Garza’s office said he submitted written testimony ahead of Wednesday’s hearing\u00a0and offered to meet with lawmakers individually.<\/p>\n That offer did little to assuage the frustrations aired by some of the committee members.\u00a0State Rep.\u00a0Mitch Little, a Lewisville Republican, raised the possibility of impeaching Garza and asked whether the committee could subpoena him to testify. Committee members discussed the options but did not vote to subpoena him.<\/p>\n Some Garza\u00a0allies defended his decision to no-show.<\/p>\n Alycia Castillo, associate director of policy at the Texas Civil Rights Project, called the hearing a \u201csham.\u201d She said lawmakers were not interested in discussing alternatives to incarceration, such as investing in housing, health care and education, and that their focus on Garza\u2019s absence distracted from what she called inaccuracies and political attacks.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cIt was an absolute circus full of inaccuracies and political cheap shots,\u201d\u00a0Castillo said.<\/p>\n But Chuck Devore, chief national initiatives officer for the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank, said\u00a0it could make matters worse for Garza.<\/p>\n “It shows either a stunning level of arrogance or a stunning level of ignorance,” he said. “You are essentially poking \u2014 no, you are poking the bear by not showing up.”<\/p>\n Following the hearing, Burrows issued a warning statement to Garza.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cWhen witnesses like District Attorney\u00a0Jos\u00e9\u00a0Garza fail to attend and answer questions on public safety in their county, it is evident the work of the committee is just getting started,” Burrows said.<\/p>\n Travis County Attorney Delia Garza was also invited to the hearing but did not attend, though her work prosecuting misdemeanor offenses drew much less attention from lawmakers. The county attorney also did not answer questions about her absence, only saying in a statement that she did not attend or send a representative from her office to the hearing.<\/p>\n District Attorney Jose Garza at his office on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025.<\/p>\n Mikala Compton\/American-Statesman<\/p>\n Travis County\u00a0Assistant District Attorney Stephanie\u00a0Gharakhanian, who Garza sent in his place, faced intense heat from lawmakers during the hearing.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Gharakhanian repeatedly told committee members who asked about specific cases that she could not discuss individual prosecutions without reviewing the details and ensuring she could provide accurate information. She offered to arrange private meetings with Garza, but committee members pressed for answers in the public hearing.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that he wouldn\u2019t be here today to defend his own policies, and you can\u2019t give us the facts that you reference, is just proof that there is a massive, organized cesspool that is detrimental to our state,\u201d said state Rep. Shelby Slawson, a Stephenville Republican.<\/p>\n Gharakhanian defended the office\u2019s approach, saying prosecutors base decisions on the facts and law in each case. She said the office regularly secures convictions for violent offenses, citing two murder convictions secured in August. She also said dismissing a case for insufficient evidence does not mean prosecutors are failing to enforce the law.<\/p>\n In his written statement, Garza said the office\u2019s decisions are based on \u201cthe law, the facts, and a prosecutor\u2019s legal and ethical obligations.\u201d He said the office would not share information in a way that could jeopardize ongoing prosecutions or violate laws barring disclosure of certain criminal justice information.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Shannon Edmonds, executive director of the Texas District and County Attorneys Association, said lawmakers could seek information privately from prosecutors for policymaking. He cautioned that publicly discussing some cases could jeopardize them.<\/p>\n Garza also cited Texas Department of Public Safety data showing Austin\u2019s overall crime rate fell nearly 10% between 2021 and 2025, while the volume of violent crime decreased about 18%. Those figures measure different things: the first is the overall crime rate, while the second is the number of reported violent offenses. A previous American-Statesman analysis found that from 2015 to 2025, Austin homicides increased 122%, rape offenses increased 53% and aggravated assaults increased 28%.<\/p>\n Committee members also cited Statesman reporting that\u00a0Garza\u2019s office missed the state\u2019s 90-day indictment deadline 263 times in 2024. Later reporting found that the number of jailed defendants held beyond the deadline had fallen sharply; by June 2025, no defendant remained jailed past 90 days without an indictment.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n State Rep. Richard Pe\u00f1a Raymond, a Laredo Democrat, pressed Gharakhanian on why the office would not discuss high-profile cases publicly.<\/p>\n \u201cPart of why we\u2019re having this hearing is because on the big ones where people die, people have the right to know what the hell is going on,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Texas Capitol is seen in Austin on Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026. 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