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Read my 3rd mailout (Esparza,
Don Flores, EP Times, Alberto &
Amy Ocegueda Lujan)
Supporting Articles:
Dear fellow El
Pasoan,
I write to you
because you are one of the few
faithful. You are a dedicated
voter who takes the time to
inform yourself, go to the
polls, and cast your ballot over
and over again in the hope for
good government. In order for
you to make the best choice
based on the best information
possible, I am writing you this
letter. Once you get to know who
I am and what I stand for, I
hope you’ll see that I represent
the good government we all
desire and indeed deserve.
My name is
Theresa Caballero. I am running
for the office of District
Attorney of the 34th Judicial
District of Texas as a Democrat
in the upcoming primary on March
4, 2008.
This is a
critical race. The District
Attorney exercises tremendous
power. Our own 34th Judicial
District comprises three entire
counties—El Paso, Culberson, and
Hudspeth—and spans two time
zones. The DA’s decisions can
affect, for better or worse, the
lives of every citizen
throughout this broad district.
Even if you are law-abiding, the
criminal justice system still
affects you. Imagine you’re a
victim of crime. You want the
real perpetrator punished. On
the other hand, if you or a
family member has been arrested,
you want to know the DA will act
according to the constitution.
As a taxpayer whose payments
fund the courts and the DA’s
office, you want your money
spent on a system that works.
Ask yourself in light of the FBI
investigation and what you know
to be true in your own hearts:
have you been getting your
money’s worth? You want to know
that if corruption arises, the
DA will prosecute those engaged.
The DA does nothing short of
insure the basic values we all
take for granted—that fair play,
the rule of law, adherence to
the constitution, and equal
justice blind to power and
position, will prevail. Our
future depends on electing a DA
who actually fulfills the duties
of this office. Our future
depends on electing a DA who is
honest, afraid of no one, who
owes no favors, and who loves
the people of this community. I
hope you will see that I am that
person.
Our El Paso has
witnessed an ongoing federal
investigation and intervention
into local public corruption.
But it needn’t have been so.
While local politicians are
selling their votes at our
expense, and while our property
taxes have skyrocketed to fund
those very influence-peddling
sales (El Pasoans pay the third
highest property taxes in
Texas), where has local law
enforcement been? Where is our
elected DA? Why has corruption
been allowed to flourish openly
for years? Why do outsiders view
us as a haven for inside
deal-making among a privileged,
power-elite? Our legal system is
broken and it needs to be fixed.
A diligent, uncompromised
District Attorney would notice
the rampant corruption we as
citizens have known about for
years. A competent District
Attorney would do the job that
needs to be done and not wait
for the Feds to do it for us. We
can clean our own house and
manage our own affairs. We can
locally prosecute the corrupt.
We can preserve our own limited
resources you as a tax payer
provide. We can spare our
community the embarrassment of
failing to prosecute political
corruption and having to call in
others to do it for us. The time
has long passed for us to
rectify our problems by applying
the law equally to all. I pledge
to undertake that mission. I
represent the urgent change we
need. I am seeking to be your
next DA to end the corrosive
atmosphere that has plagued us
for too long, and I am well
qualified for that task for many
reasons.
First and
foremost, I have fought publicly
against corruption throughout my
career. As a private citizen,
and as an independent attorney
in solo practice, I have devoted
all my resources and energies to
bring an end to the malfeasance
we see in our courts and in the
district attorney’s office, in
the arrest process, in the
misappropriation of public funds
on a city and county level, in
rapacious taxes, and in
dishonest public officials.
In 2004, I
initiated a Court of Inquiry, a
criminal investigation into
local politicians. As a private
citizen, I did what law
enforcement officials failed to
do themselves as our elected
representatives. I have appeared
before city council,
commissioner’s court, the public
service board (the water
utility), and before at least
two state bodies, including the
Texas Task Force On Appraisal
Reform where I argued for
taxpayer relief and reform of
the property tax system. I have
been part of the national
congressional legislative
process. I have tried many jury
trials as a prosecutor
representing the State of Texas.
As a defense attorney, I have
represented citizens just like
you in justice of the peace
courts, municipal courts,
military courts, federal courts,
and state and county courts. I
have extensive experience on
both sides of the Bar, which has
given me a full, unbiased view
of our justice system and how it
works, but more importantly, how
it doesn’t work, and how it
should.
My success also
speaks for itself. As a defense
attorney since 1998, with the
exception of one jury trial, I
have prevailed against my
opponent’s office in all other
jury trials. I have never shied
from taking cases championing
those in our community who have
been wronged by corruption. I
have taken on cases even when
they were unpopular. I did this
because I believe in our system.
I believe in our values. I
cherish the rule of law. But
principles are one thing, and
practice another. I have put my
beliefs into practice my entire
life. I have stood steadfastly
by those unjustly accused, and I
have unstintingly stood against
those who actually committed
crimes, no matter how powerful
they might have been. I have
stood by us, as a community,
even in the face of unrelenting
opposition. I will do the same
as District Attorney.
My experience and
education have prepared me for
this moment. I have had the
great privilege of enjoying the
finest education. I attended one
year at Burges High School and
graduated from Loretto Academy
High School. I received my
bachelor degree in Latin
American Studies from Barnard
College, part of Columbia
University in New York City. I
was also fortunate to have
studied Mexican history at the
Universidad Iberoamericana in
Mexico City. I received my law
degree from the University of
Texas School of Law in Austin. I
clerked for the highest criminal
court in the state, the Court of
Criminal Appeals of Texas. I
went on to work as a Democratic
Texas congressional staffer in
Washington, DC. I have also
taught English and traveled
extensively in Asia. This
diverse cultural, educational,
and professional experience I
now offer to the voters of El
Paso who finally have an
alternative choice for District
Attorney after sixteen stagnant
years.
I have a simple
message: good government and
strong democratic values, where
justice prevails under the
watchful eye of an honest
District Attorney. I dream of
one El Paso, not two. I dream of
one community with one set of
constitutionally dictated laws,
applied equally to all.
I will be
addressing you in future letters
over the next few weeks before
the March 4 primary. I also look
forward to meeting you in person
when I visit your neighborhood
as the campaign unfolds. I will
talk to you in greater detail
about the issues I’ve discussed
here.
I began by
talking about the best
information available. As a
dedicated citizen, I know you
want that information. I know
you wish to make your own
choices, based on facts, and not
based on the editorial spins
others would have you mistake as
facts.
My next letter
will discuss why Dionicio
Flores, editor at the El Paso
Times, has failed to inform you
of my platform and the
importance of my message. As we
all know, the El Paso Times
dropped the ball years ago.
Additionally, the management at
that paper has developed a
pattern of picking its
candidates and the reasons for
their selections are not always
clear to the uncritical reader.
Mr. Flores has decided and in
fact has already told you in a
November 2007 editorial that he
plans to run a smear campaign
against me. He said this when he
wrote that I would be “grist”
for future editorials. Ask
yourself: why this vendetta? Why
would a man who has never met
me, never seen me in the
courtroom, who knows I have
fought against corruption,
against unwarranted higher
taxes, and for the rule of law,
a man who exercises monopolistic
control over our single printed
news outlet, be so emotional and
vitriolic toward me? Why would
he seek to attack a candidate
who has done nothing but fight
for decent government? I will
send you information regarding
what goes on at the Times, Mr.
Flores, some of his writers, and
my opponent's office in
connection to the newspaper in a
future mailing.
Trust your own
sense of things. Read
critically. Do what you have
always done. Exercise your
franchise by voting for the
candidate who best represents
your values, your beliefs, and
your ideals. Vote for the
candidate who, like you, wants
to live in my home without fear
I will have to abandon it
because of excessive property
taxes; property taxes which
subsidize ongoing corruption
that should have been prosecuted
long ago. Vote for me, Theresa
Caballero, on March 4, 2008 in
the Democratic primary. Vote for
a better El Paso.
Sincerely,
Theresa Caballero
300 East Main Street, Suite 1136
thcaballero@hotmail.com
El Paso, Texas 79901
915-241-8418
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