Now there are maps- Texas Redistricting

Federal judges in San Antonio unveiled maps for the state's congressional delegation and for the state House this afternoon, and they did it in time to allow the state to hold its delayed political primaries on May 29. The court also signed off on Senate plans agreed to earlier this month.

The court has not ordered a May 29 election, but on Monday it asked the political parties to detail the election law waivers they would need in order to hold their primaries on that date. The judges put out the maps early enough to take comments from the various parties on them, but they didn't immediately seek those comments, and aren't required to do so.

Attorney General Greg Abbott said these maps are much closer to those originally approved by the Texas Legislature last year. "I consider these interim maps to be a substantial improvement over the maps previously issued by the San Antonio court," he said. "The court properly rejected demands by some plaintiffs to draw drastic and over-reaching maps."

The state objected to the court's first maps because the judges started their drawings from the current political maps instead of starting with the maps approved by the Legislature last year. The U.S. Supreme Court kicked those back, telling the Texas judges to start from the Legislature's work, correcting for violations of the Constitution and the federal Voting Rights Act.

Gov. Rick Perry blamed the Democrat judges for the delay in the state's primary elections. "As the Supreme Court has agreed, the federal court in San Antonio overstepped its boundaries when it took it upon itself to draw new maps," he said in a press release. "Had the federal court done it correctly to begin with, the time, costs and inconvenience to our state could have been avoided, and we would be having our elections on schedule."

Children in Need...

There are some things in this world we can almost all agree on. One of those things is rescuing children from unhealthy and abusive situations. In stark contrast to our political writing and our normal confrontational and expose’ format, please find below excerpts from an excellent article written by Kevin Ladd and shared with the community via The Cleveland Advocate and The Dayton News that encourages helping children in the most vulnerable situations:

The number of foster children in Liberty County has risen dramatically in the past few weeks, depleting supplies at the local Rainbow Room and prompting Children’s Protective Services to seek additional donations — both monetary and essential items for the room.

CPS Board President Helen Green says the numbers have been stunning.

“We now have 230 children in foster care in Liberty County,” she said. “At Christmas we had 160. Eleven children were removed from one home in Dayton recently. Of course there are many other children under supervision that have not been removed from their homes.”

You can find the full story at: http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/cleveland/news/cps-board-seeking-donations-for-rainbow-room/article_cce6d789-1334-5564-94da-0b20bad89fda.html

HO HUM, WHEN WILL IT COME

For decades now, Americans have heard every four years how “this is the most important election of our lifetime”. Now that we have finally arrived at an election that fits that billing, Texans are being subject to the “sore loser” behavior of the state’s donkey party. Many conservative Texans have gone from feeling like nostril burning thoroughbreds waiting for the gate to open at the Kentucky Derby to more of a ho-hum, when will it come attitude toward the primaries because of a small coven of liberal magistrates holding up the final decision on re-districting maps.

The Democratic judges who have perpetrated this drug-like slumber on Texas voters may have lessened the impact conservative voters in the Lone Star state have on choosing the Republican nominee for President, and they may even lowered the overall turnout in both primaries, but trust me – the slumber will end. In November the idea that this is the most important election in the history of this country will drive Texans to the polls to weigh in on the fundamental changes President Obama has promised to America.

Local and state primary races in many Texas counties will be important to the Republican dominated state because of inter party efforts to elect true conservatives and not allow the recent popularity of the party be co-opted by candidates who are Republican In Name Only, or RINO’s, as they are disparagingly referred to by longtime conservatives.

As for the nationwide contest for President, there is little doubt the Republican nominee for President will win easily in Texas. But Texas voters are likely to want to send a message to the more liberal of the fifty states by squashing Obama and the liberals in record numbers. Election night, regardless of a few liberal judges from the central part of the state, will be anything but ho-hum. For many it will either be a victory for Republicans in the most important election in history, or it will be the last straw of an ever intrusive unconstitutional attack on what America has been for over two hundred years.

Santorum steals spotlight in Arizona Republican debate

MESA, Ariz. — Rivals heaped criticism on surprise front-runner Rick Santorum in a debate among U.S. Republican presidential candidates on Wednesday, hoping to stall his surge at a pivotal period in the 2012 campaign.

Mitt Romney and libertarian congressman Ron Paul tried to raise doubts about Santorum and questioned his fiscal conservative credentials based on his time in the U.S. Congress when he was an easy backer of government spending projects deemed wasteful by critics.

Paul, asked by CNN moderator John King why he had launched a campaign ad that labelled Santorum a "fake," responded: "Because he's a fake."

Romney, scrambling to make up for a deficit in the polls to Santorum, put the former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania on the defensive for backing a much-derided $400 million "bridge to nowhere" project in Alaska that was eventually abandoned.

Santorum fired back that Romney, as chief organizer of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, had sought similar government spending items known as "earmarks" and often deemed wasteful spending.

"When I was fighting for the Olympics, you were fighting for the 'bridge to nowhere,"' Romney told Santorum.

"You don't know what you're talking about," Santorum snapped back. He insisted that earmarks do enjoy public scrutiny and can be useful, although there has been a move among congressional Republicans to ban them.

Santorum needs to build on his momentum going into the Arizona and Michigan primaries on Feb. 28 and pave the way for Super Tuesday on March 6.

Santorum and Romney are in a close race in Michigan, according to opinion polls, with most recent surveys showing the two divided by four percentage points or fewer. A victory in Michigan is critical for Romney as he needs to prove he can win in the state where he was born.

An NBC/Marist poll on Wednesday had Romney at 37 per cent to Santorum at 35 per cent among likely primary voters in Michigan, a statistical dead heat.

The poll gave Romney a lead of 42 per cent to 27 per cent over Santorum in Arizona. A Time/CNN poll on Tuesday found Romney ahead by 36 per cent to 32 per cent there.

A Quinnipiac University poll also released on Wednesday showed Santorum up nine percentage points nationally against his Republican rivals, at 35 per cent compared to 26 per cent for Romney. It showed Gingrich with 14 per cent and Paul with 11 per cent.

Liberty PD Nabs Burglar

The Liberty Police Department has taken a Hurricane Katrina evacuee, arrested and charged with theft elsewhere on Feb. 13, into custody and charged him in connection with driving the getaway van in a Feb. 20 burglary of the Brookshire Brothers grocery store located at 2325 N. Main St. in Liberty. Meanwhile investigators have been following leads left in the van in the search for three other alleged burglars who fled the vehicle.

Ronald Wayne Harvey, 35, had been uncooperative, as of deadline, in helping investigators to identify and to locate the other three suspects who fled the vehicle that he was driving on Highway 90 near Crosby, where Harris County Sheriff’s Department deputies set up devices that snagged a tire and stopped the vehicle, according to Liberty Police Department Lt. Chip Fairchild. Harvey, held at Liberty County Jail, has been charged with burglary of a building and felony evading arrest or detention with a vehicle. Police have recovered 20 cartons of cigarettes and clothing.

The Liberty Police Department received a call from store security at about 2 a.m. Security noticed that three subjects — their heads, faces and hands covered — had broken into the store. They had tried unsuccessfully to enter the pharmacy.

“What [security] reported to us was that they had surveillance going on of people in the store at that time,” Fairchild said. “Officers responded; we had a less than two-minute response time. Upon getting to the store, three individuals were coming out of the store, jumping into a silver-colored van. As the officer approached the van, the subjects fled.”

Deputies were ready for them.

“They crossed FM 2100 on Highway 90 where Harris County had set up spikes in the roadway,” Fairchild said. “One of the tires was punctured. They exited at the first exit on Highway 90 at the San Jacinto River bridge. At that point, three subjects exited the vehicle. One subject, the driver of the vehicle, was apprehended when the vehicle stopped. The three subjects that fled were actually the three that had been in the store.”

Deputies and officers have continued to pursue the trio, which, according to the lieutenant apparently had been a “part of a group that has been burglarizing stores all over this part of Texas,” based on previous similar arrests.

Courtesy HCN Cleveland

BOBBY RADER SAYS THE SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT CAN DO BETTER

The first forum of the political primaries was conducted recently and candidate for sheriff Bobby Rader was there to make his case to the voters how a vote for him would be a vote to improve Liberty County’s sheriff department .

Bobby Rader moved to Liberty as a Texas Department of Public Safety Officer and worked in that position for seven years. He then went into business for himself in the field of insurance. He ran for office in 1998 as a Republican and has served as a judge of the Justice of the Peace precinct #1 for 13 years.

Rader told the audience he has more civil and criminal experience than his opponents combined. He also said as a business man he has been successful managing people and budgets and he believes he can use that experience to help the morale problem and the high turnover rate in the department.

“Unless they are trained to the best of their ability, morale goes down,” he said.
Pointing again to the problems deputies have because the sheriff has not exposed them to needed training, Rader wade in with his perspective as a judge, “A lot of cases are dismissed because we either didn’t have the evidence or we didn’t do it right.”

Rader said that his first priority would be to work with local law enforcement agencies. He claimed that the sheriff’s office has no relationships with local city police departments and that the sheriff’s office does not participate in their monthly meetings. Rader said that he wants to improve the communications between the county and the local agencies.

Judge Rader also pointed out that the county needs to catch up on serving warrants. Liberty county currently has over 6,000 open warrants.

PATTERSON WANTS FOUR MORE YEARS AS SHERIFF

The first forum of the political primaries was conducted recently and incumbent sheriff Henry Patterson was there to make his case to the voters to give him four more years.

In the forum, Patterson explained he has 33 years at the Cleveland Police Department. He said that he started at the bottom and rose up from a Cleveland patrolman to assistant chief. As assistant chief of the Cleveland Police Department Patterson decided more of the focus of the Liberty County Sheriff’s Department needed to be on helping fight crime in the Cleveland area. With that in mind, Patterson ran and lost in the 2004 Democratic primary. With four more years experience in the Cleveland Police Department, Patterson decided to run again in 2008.

“I decided to run four years ago to improve on equal law enforcement throughout the county,” said Patterson. “It was selective and lacking on the north end.”

Patterson has now served as the Liberty county sheriff for 38 months. When each candidate was asked to identify their goals for the department for the next four years, Patterson said, “I’d like to continue the route we are on now”.

When challenged that the “route we are on now” is not all it has been cracked up to be, Patterson pointed to case clearance rates for his department. Patterson noted that the percentage of cleared cases in 2009 - 2011 were 34%, 40%, and 37% respectfully. When Patterson pointed out that those clearance numbers are calculated by the state and signed off on by Rick Perry, it was pointed out that the actual raw data comes from Henry Patterson and the LCSO. There are ways to improve a rating without actually solving a crime. Cases can be cleared by being dismissed or when people die.

When Patterson was challenged again on his decision to not utilize training opportunities for his deputies, he again refuted the charge. He claims his deputies were not under trained. He said that more than 50 percent of deputies have intermediate or advanced certifications in law enforcement. Patterson never addressed why the sheriff’s department, under his leadership no longer attends joint meetings and training with other law enforcement agencies.

"The one thing you have got out of me in the last three years is the best I have to offer,” said Patterson. “Our numbers are factual. We are working hard and arresting a lot of people. There are things we have no control over. If you want things the way they are, in control, I’m the person for the job.”

For more of the story see the Cleveland Advocate.

MIKE JACKSON RUNNING FOR THE U.S. HOUSE

Mike Jackson is running for the House of Representatives to represent this area. We hope you will read his thoughts on the issues below and begin to prepare to vote in the Republican primary.

First Principles

Every decision an elected official makes should be based on core principles. Too many of the politicians in Washington have forgotten this simple premise. As your Representative in Congress, these are the principles which will guide my every vote:

You Cannot Ignore the Constitution and Protect Liberty

As the Founding Fathers so justly recognized in the Declaration of Independence, each of us is endowed by Our Creator with Liberty and we, the people, allow elected officials to be our voice – we must never let them forget that their authority is received FROM US and we expect them to follow the Constitution.

Following the Constitution means following ALL OF THE CONSTITUTION. As an avid hunter and proud Member of the Texas State Rifle Association, I will always fight to protect our 2nd Amendment rights.

You Cannot Grow Government and the Private Sector

Every time Barack Obama and his liberal allies call for tax increases, they are saying “We prefer a stronger government than stronger private enterprise”. If we ever hope to grow our economy and limit the power of the federal government, we must stop this misguided belief that the earnings of small businesses belong to the government.

In order to truly inspire the private sector to create more jobs, Barack Obama and liberal leaders in Congress must be defeated. Only then can we begin the process of dismantling the excessive regulations, over-bearing mandates (like Obama-care), and stifling atmosphere that has private enterprise fleeing our shores for greener pastures.

Lower corporate taxes, less regulation, and a smaller-less intrusive federal government will help us forge economic expansion that will provide more jobs, more taxpayers, and stronger businesses for all our communities.

You Cannot Spend Your Way Out of Debt

If raising the debt ceiling allowed our nation to lower our federal debt and control spending, then why has it NEVER worked? It is time to stop the spending carnival in Washington.

In Texas, we are Constitutionally mandated to have a balanced budget. During tough times, it means we have to make tough decisions and set critical priorities, but it prevents us from being bankrupt as a government. We deserve to have a Balanced Budget Amendment for the federal government as well.

While I support the budget put forward by Budget Chairman Paul Ryan, we need to have a Congress and a President who show the courage and leadership necessary to preserve, secure, and reform Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Without real reform – recognizing that these programs are going bankrupt and face trillions of dollars in unfunded liabilities – we will condemn our children to a debt burden which will crush our nation and leave them utterly dependent on the federal government.

You Cannot Have a Strong Nation Without Strong Families and a Respect for LIFE

Our families are the bedrock of our nation – without strong families, America would never have grown into a world leader. I will always stand on the side of strong families and that means protecting the Sanctity of Life and Marriage.

You Cannot Have a Secure Nation With Weak Borders and Weak National Defense

I have NEVER seen Congress get serious about border control and I will make it a priority for a conservative-led Congress to stop the flood of illegal immigrants that cross our border every year.

And I have been appalled at the massive, ill-conceived cuts that are now weakening American military strength. We cannot proceed with these drastic and absurd cuts if we are to defend our nation along our shores, our borders, and abroad.

You Cannot Control Your Economic Future if You Do Not Control Your Energy Future

For too long, Washington politicians and enviro-liberals have driven our energy producers out of America. It is time Congress led our nation to a vast energy expansion so we can better control our economic future, energy prices, and stop sending hundreds of billions of dollars to unstable Middle East nations.

ROBERT NICHOLS for DISTRICT 3 STATE SENATE

First elected to the Texas Senate in 2006, Robert Nichols represents several counties including the greater part of East Texas and Liberty County.

Nichols serves as vice chair of the Intergovernmental Relations Committee and sits on the Transportation and Homeland Security, Natural Resources, Health and Human Services, and Nominations Committees. He was also appointed last year to the influential Sunset Advisory Commission.
During his two sessions as a state senator, Nichols authored important legislation to protect landowners' rights, increase educational opportunities in East Texas and reform transportation policies. He was designated as a top legislator by Texas Insider and a Champion of Free Enterprise by the Texas Association of Business. He was recently elected by fellow GOP senators to chair the Senate Republican Caucus.

Before running for Senate, Nichols served as a transportation commissioner for eight years where he established a reputation for increasing efficiency without compromising quality.

Nichols is a businessman from Jacksonville, Texas. In his hometown he served on city council, was elected mayor, built four successful manufacturing facilities, earned 32 U.S. patents, and created more than 900 jobs for East Texas families.

Working his way through college by selling fireworks and ironing clothes for other students, Nichols earned a bachelor's degree from Lamar University in 1968. He married his high school sweetheart, Donna, and they are the proud parents of three children: Brittney, Joshua, and Collynn'rae. He is a member of the First United Methodist Church in Jacksonville, Texas.

Occupation: Engineer -- Plastics manufacturing
Education: Lamar University, B.S., Industrial Engineering, 1968
Legislative Experience: Senate Member, 2007 - present
Hometown: Jacksonville, Texas
Party: Republican

Liberty PD Announces Community Education Classes

(LIBERTY, TEXAS) January 16, 2012 - Liberty Police Department is now hosting community education classes on the 2nd Thursday of every month. The classes are free and open to anyone in Liberty County. The class schedule is listed below, followed by the rules of attendance.

Car Seat Safety – State law and regulation, installation, reasons for car seats
February 16
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: Sergeant Jeanne Marie Ewing

Sexting – Acronyms kids are using, different gadgets they use to text without a phone
March 8
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: Kelley Koch

Internet Safety for Parents – Safety techniques parents can use to monitor children’s use of the internet
April 12
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: Officer Jennifer Bowles

Teen Drinking – Statistics on teen drinking and collisions, ways to help teens
May 10
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: TBA

Predators – Sex offender laws and registration, warning signs
June 7
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: Frances Wood

Self Defense – Strategies, tips and techniques
July 12
6pm – 7pm
Liberty Center in City Hall
Instructor: Officer Wes O’Hanlon

Crime Prevention – Tips to protect your property from burglary
August 9
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: Lt. Philip Fairchild

Self Defense – Strategies, tips and techniques
September 13
6pm – 7pm
Liberty Center in City Hall
Instructor: Officer Wes O’Hanlon

Fire Safety – Tips to protect your home from fire
October 11
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: Jacob Cantu

Holiday Crime Prevention – Safety tips for shopping, and home protection
November 8
6pm – 7pm
Liberty PD Training Room
Instructor: Lt. Kenneth Taylor

If you would like to register for classes, contact Training Assistant Frances Wood at 936-336-5666, fwood@cityofliberty.org or you can visit www.cityofliberty.org and look under the police department tab.

Texas' Election Primary Update

(02/15/2012) SAN ANTONIO - The Texas primaries, which were once key to emerging from next month's Super Tuesday elections with the momentum and backing to win the Republican presidential race, may be pushed into May - and perhaps out of relevance for the race - because of a dispute over the state's proposed redistricting maps.

Although the chances of an April primary are not officially extinguished, even the judges acknowledged those prospects are fading because of logistics. Elections workers from some of Texas' largest counties are pushing May 22 as the next earliest date if maps can be settled quickly.

U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez at one point suggested that June 26 may make the most sense for the primary elections. That would make Texas among the last states in the nation to hold a primary but would also ensure that maps would reflect any Voting Rights Act issues that a Washington court is still deciding.

But Democratic and Republican party officials said they would prefer a vote in late May.

Other news sources are reporting a primary target date of May 29, 2012. No Texas Primary Election date has been written in stone as of today.

TWO LOSERS PREDICT WHO WILL WIN THE SHERIFF’S RACE

Often you will see my name and then a comma and then “Former three term Liberty County Republican Party Chairman”. For people that have lived here a long time and know any the history of Liberty County politics, holding this elected office is no claim to fame. It is just a claim to being active longer than most. In fact, if others want to put it in the fewest words, holding that title guaranteed they could call me one more “loser” in a long line of loser chairmen. Over 100 years of nothing but losing is what I signed up to try and help change. And my chairmanship, along with the people that ran on the Republican ticket before 2004 was - well we were forerunners at best to what is now the dominant party in the county. We had that one victory that we pointed to and said that would be the start of the Republican Party being the dominant party in Liberty County. That victory was Bobby Rader. He knew the odds were against him and that if he ran as a Democrat he could probably win easily, but Bobby is not that kind of person. He made a clear statement. That he "read both platforms and watched both parties" and he "identified with the Republican party... win or lose.”

One of the candidates that ran back in those days was Eddie Shauberger. He ran for County Judge and then for State Representative several times. I was the County Chairman when he was seeking office. Recently Mr. Shauberger made a calculation. He heavily invested himself and his time in an all out effort to re-elect Henry Patterson sheriff. His efforts and the efforts of others who either do not live in Liberty County or they have just recently moved here, are far and above the efforts most people have ever made to elect someone. I had no idea Shauberger had such a personal interest in the sheriff’s race until I hinted that I would support Bobby Rader. I knew Mr.Shauberger tried to use our friendship and the idea an incumbent almost always wins to twists my arm to support Patterson. And I also knew Mr. Shauberger was relentlessly trying to sell Ray Akins on the idea almost every Republican would go to the polls and vote for the incumbent. I knew he kept saying it would be good for him and Ray to be associated with Patterson and the Outsiders. It was weird how his focus almost seemed to be solely on this race. We had no idea why it was so important to him. Our alliance and our commitment to each other was to work hard to elect the best conservatives we could find ("no matter what happened to us") – but Shauberger never argued anything but some mysterious personal interests.

Readers could stop here and say who cares who we were for, but (even though I agree) again I beg you please read on. I made up my mind early that even though this might be an ugly political year that most anyone that knows Bobby Rader  knows he is not only a good man, but a highly qualified energetic man that could help make our sheriff department better. Since Ray had met with Harry Patterson several times I thought I better get busy if I wanted to convince Ray to vote for Bobby. But it wasn’t long before Ray went from a skeptic to a Rader backer. Ray was easy to convince. I told him to consider Patterson’s record and that definitely helped. Then I pointed to Rader’s experience and the general public feeling and my personal knowledge that Rader has a great deal of integrity and… their record of party affiliation was important because it helped prove his integrity: “Rader ran as a Republican and risked everything when he could have won as a Democrat while Henry ran the first time as a Democrat”.

Ray switched to being a Rader fan early, but told me not to tell Eddie because he did not know what Eddie was up to but that this race had some kind of unusual hold on him. We played along with Eddie but thought we knew his motivation must go beyond some ridiculous idea that ANY sheriff could help the legal problems involving Eddie’s company. The legal cases would be completed before the outcome of all these elections. (Read further and find out how that our suspicions that Eddie was abnormally committed to this race were verified!)

I tried to get a feel for the race so I could change Eddie’s vote. I addressed Eddie’s issues – Eddie had said Pattterson was an incumbent and that incumbents almost always win. He called him a shoe-in. But as I began to do my research as near as I could tell there were no prosecutors in the District Attorney’s office or the County Attorney’s office who thought Patterson deserved re-election. The County Clerk, the District Clerk, the”Black Robes". Nobody I talked to seemed impressed with the job Henry Patterson was doing as sheriff. As a matter of fact, on the streets talking to average people when I could more openly ask people about the race, I rarely found anyone that would say they were voting for say “Patterson”, almost 100% said Rader. So I tried to persuade Mr. Shauberger that if his intent was to work to elect the person most of the people in the courthouse and in Wal-Mart, and at the ball game were voting for, then he had the wrong side. Whatever his point about “Being on the same side as the Outsiders was” I still don’t understand. Other than he told Ray and me over and over he was helping them investigate a long list of Liberty County citizens.

Here is what I want people to know (not who Richard Pegues is voting for or who Eddie Shauberger is voting for– people could easily look at my track record as Chairman and Eddie’s track record and say who cares – these two men are losers. But they should also look at my record of activism and conclude my interests are what they have always been... like or not, I have worked to elect Republicans for almost two decades and it has cost me, not benefited me). I want you to know while Shauberger was still acting like a good friend, he was recording meetings he had with us and meetings he had with Bobby Rader. He was telling people my wife is a “whore” and that I used her and political connections to get our son out of trouble years ago. He was cursing my name as bad as any sailor has ever cursed a man. He was doing this while he was calling Bobby Rader “brother”. He was doing this to me and my family – when the closest thing we have come to any kind of public scandal is our public defense and friendship with Eddie Shauberger. He was doing this while he was stiffing Ray Akins and leaving him paying almost all of the legal bills and still lying to Ray about his ownership in IHHC years later. He was doing this while he was being ordained a Baptist preacher down in Oak Island.

When I arranged to meet Mr.Shauberger and to attempt the steps set out in the Bible to settle differences, I knew he was taping me. I very purposely made sure to mention several times what he called my wife and the threats he made toward my son and how it made me feel like hitting him in the face. I tried to make sure this man would have a chance to listen to his stupid tape and think how some jury he was preparing for or his buddy the Sheriff would view HIM in the tape. I tried to give him a chance to stop whatever devious plan he was involved in. I tried to get him to stop calling my wife names and threatening my family when he knew I had done just the opposite of what he was saying he would allege if I continued promoting Rader on the internet. But Shauberger shut the tape off eventually and admitted what he had done (I have proof of what he said without his tape). But later he said if I try to bring blackmail charges or defamation charges against him, he will play his tape. My conclusion: he was not there to come clean and stop whatever it was he was up to. He was there to try and get something to fight off a possible lawsuit. He must have loved me saying “What I ought to do.......”. He must have really thought it was clever saying what poor health he was in and how me saying I felt like punching him in the face caused him so much angst. This man who had the audacity to say what he said about my wife and say half the courthouse was involved in some plot to make a teenager’s case turn out like almost every other similar case,was now saying he was somehow the victim?

Whatever Mr.Shauberger is up to it appears to be more comprehensive than we originally thought. He has laughed at Ray and me for reminding him to stick with our original pact and push to elect the best conservatives we can elect. He has focused on the legal problems he has connected to his ownership of a home health care company. He has now been heard bragging that Rader will be shown to be associated with Ray Akins and that he has cut all kinds of deals with people in his criminal and civil lawsuits to make Akins take a fall right before the primary. He has also intimated in the past that they “Will make Bobby look like a real slime-ball before election day”. And in case you haven’t seen it this group of terrible people have already used the internet to cover me with all kinds of reasons I should lose my job and go to jail. All lies. All baseless and ridiculous.

Politics can be an ugly business. Especially when good ole boy politics is being uprooted. Mr. Shauberger and a very imaginative, very black-hearted re-election team have plans for getting people to see people the way they need them to. They have plans to continue to demonize two easy targets – Ray Akins and me. And we accept their attempts to lump us in with some of the people who truly have committed criminal acts around here as part of the price of being so involved. We are honored to have served as a decoy from some of the public officials they have clearly prepared to target..... even though their tactics seem like they add up to an ignorant political strategy

But it is the next stage that is not acceptable. The effort to divert attention away from all of those reasons people have in the back of their minds of why we need a new sheriff. The effort to whitewash and embellish Patterson’s record as sheriff and to suddenly come up with all kinds of new revelations never before heard about a long time justice of the peace - it is all too much! We are proud to say we would like Rader to be elected sheriff - just as we thought the best candidates in the last election were Brown, Shivers, Morefield, Chambers, Cain, Warner, and others. It is too much to say what these people are suggesting. They want to tell voters our support of Bobby Rader is a reason to vote for Patterson  because there is not any better reason to vote that way.

Contributor, Richard Pegues

CULT LEADERS MAKE MOVE TO INFILTRATE LIBERTY COUNTY

As our readers are aware we posted a recent story on one of the leaders of the “Outsiders” named James Donald Farmer. He is a candidate who signed up to run for Liberty County Attorney against the incumbent Wesley Hinch. Farmer’s "Permanent" scam address is a vacant garage apartment on 2621 1/2 Cos Street in Liberty Texas.  The Farmer story we published is -here-.

2621 1/2 Cos Street, fake vacant scam candidate address of James Donald Farmer

James Famer is the legal mind and right hand of the “Outsiders” leader Clifford “Fuddy” William. Again, Liberty Dispatch has also published a story related to Clifford “Fuddy” William -here- and his questionable and bizarre prior candidacy for Texas Supreme Court Justice without a law degree.  James Farmer listed his "Permanent Address" as the scam/false 2621 1/2 Cos Street address- on government documents -here-.

Younger picture of James Farmer 40's

The real question about the “Outsiders” cult seems to be why Liberty County? The answer to that question lies with current Sheriff Henry Patterson. Many allegations swirl around why Patterson invited the “Outsiders” into Liberty County but one thing is for sure, he did invite them into Liberty County. The main reason Patterson invited the “Outsiders” into Liberty County was to help in the defense of Sheriff Patterson’s close friend, ally and Lieutenant, Harry Kelly. Patterson told people he was “In over his head” and felt like he needed to bring in the “Outsiders” cult. As of this date it is clear that Patterson brought in the “Outsiders” out of desperation and has effectively sold his soul to them. Sources indicate that Patterson knew the “Outsiders” cult had success evading and harassing the IRS/Agents and could help him with his perceived Liberty County Government enemies. Sources also indicate that the “Outsiders” cult is an anti-tax splinter anti-government group comprised of Clifford “Fuddy” William’s different churches. It is alleged that Henry Patterson illegally paid Clifford “Fuddy” William under the table as a “Consultant” to help in the investigation and arrest of Liberty County ADA Joe Warren. Outsider underlings Eddie Shauberger along with Robert “Eggplant” Valdez perpetrated an illegal investigation against Joe Warren -here- then ran to open a blog “after the fact” to make it look as if they were news investigators, when in reality they were doing illegal investigations for Henry Patterson without a Private Investigator’s license.

Side note: To date, Henry Patterson has refused to make an accounting of his 2011 and 2012 slush fund/assets...

The “Outsiders” cult has obviously figured that since they are defending “defunct loser” current Sheriff Henry Patterson, they might as well create their own list of candidates- overtly and covertly. Liberty Dispatch has identified many of the “Outsiders” cult political candidates in our “Do not vote list”. Liberty Dispatch was told by reputed “Outsiders” cult writer/underling Roberto Francisco “Eggplant” (tax cheat) Valdez that the “Outsiders” cult want to make Liberty County their national base of operations but needed to “own” the Liberty County Government.

Somehow or another “Outsiders” cult leader Clifford “Fuddy” William along with his wife Shirley Thomas has acquired lots of Liberty County property formally owned by John Stockton and Russell Fairchild. All the properties are titled in the name of “Shirley Thomas”. Liberty Dispatch is suspicious that maybe John Stockton and Russell Fairchild have become unwitting victims of the “Outsiders” cult.

Shirley Thomas' scam candidate address, 2944 Hwy 105 Cleveland Texas. Many "Outsiders" using this address.

As for Shirley Thomas, Clifford “Fuddy” William’s wife- It is very odd that no part of her name connects to William in any way. Either they aren’t actually married or they have a marriage of some questionable convenience. Shirley Thomas has been witnessed as sitting in on private “Outsiders” meetings and making decisions as a reputed “Outsider” cult leader.

Clifford "Fuddy" William's truck used when he visits Cleveland. Truck listed in alias name.

Going back to the fact that the “Outsiders” cult are now running their own candidates in Liberty County it’s interesting to note that Shirley Thomas is running for Liberty County Republican Judge Precinct 2. What’s bizarre is how she is scamming Liberty County just like James Farmer. You will see the picture below of the many travel trailers the “Outsider” cult has moved into Liberty County. From this link you will see that Shirley Thomas is using the address where the cult travel trailers are parked- she listed this address as her "Permanent" Liberty County Judge Precinct 2 address -here-. Her address is just like that of “Outsider Leader” James Farmer, a scam on Liberty County voters and Republican Party along with making false statements on government documents according to records.

Probably even more disturbing is the Liberty County property “Shirley Thomas” has listed in her candidate form is filled with travel trailers of more probable “Outsiders” cult members moving into Liberty County.

Clifford "Fuddy" William and Shirley Thomas' property and alleged "Cult Temple" in the background.

If no other candidate signs up to run against “Shirley Thomas” as the Republican Party Precinct 2 Chair, she will win that position and the “Outsiders” cult will own another piece of the Liberty County political machine.

Shirley “Hunt” Thomas like James Donald Farmer, both “Outsider” cult members are trying to pull a fast one on Liberty County and the voters should be concerned. They are also trying to inject their sinister dogma and control into Liberty County through threat and intimidation.

NOTE: CLICK ON EACH PICTURE TO ENHANCE.

IS THE EGGPLANT A FRUIT OR A NUT (CASE)?

“The Eggplant That Ate Chicago” is a psychedelic jug band song about alien invasion by Dr. West's Medicine Show and Junk Band. Recently, a citizen of Liberty County told Liberty Dispatch that the weird imagination and the deceptive rhetorical efforts of Fresno Texas’ own Robert Valdez efforts to shape Liberty County politics remind him of the this song that is on “top fifty list of all-time weirdest songs.” Here are some of the lyrics:

For he may eat your city soon.

You'd better watch out for the eggplant that ate Chicago,

If he's still hungry, the whole country's doomed.

He came from outer space, lookin' for somethin' to eat.

He landed in Chicago. He thought Chicago was a treat.

(It was sweet, it was just like sugar)

You'd better watch out for the eggplant that ate Chicago,

For he may eat your city soon (wacka-do, wacka-do, wacka-do)

You'd better watch out for the eggplant that ate Chicago,

If he's still hungry, the whole country's doomed...

When asked what specifically about the song reminds them of what they have read by, or read about Robert Valdez, here was the reply:

“Well, while Valdez is obviously one of Sheriff Patterson’s biggest fans, there is not much else about him that will be remembered here after Liberty County votes in the April primary. It is like he and his buddy Fuddy and his amigo Eddie feel like they are some grand accomplished conquering special ops team invading Liberty County under cover of darkness and anonymity. When it is all said and done most people in this community will never have read one word of his blogging or have even a hint of all of his lame investigating, but right now he and his whacko friends are roaming around like they should be feared and like they have single-underhandedly made it clear to us all that Henry Patterson is the greatest sheriff in the universe.”

Voters in Liberty County may only know of Robert “Eggplant” Valdez because of reading about him on here. Unless his wacka-do world successfully twists the election in Liberty County, this article may be the only claim to fame he has in Liberty County to any kind of fame.

Good night “Eggplant”. Try to go to sleep even though you are excited someone mentioned your name again.

Dear Liberty Dispatch.

In a world full of irony and in an election year full of deception, I must say we have some folks here in Liberty County that have some nerve to ask voters to believe their crazy nonsense. The most recent nonsense they are promoting is that this website has constantly aimed its criticism at the deputies in the Liberty County Sheriff’s department.

Liberty Dispatch has written and written and written about Sheriff Patterson and what they have called a cult-like group of men that are influencing him and they have not once in the two years I have been reading pointed their writing at any of the deputies in the Liberty County Sheriff’s department. They have talked about the morale in the department created by an almost endless investigation of their own department by Sheriff Patterson and Steve Green. They have questioned and poked at the decisions made to hire captains from outside the county that already have problems on their work records.

Is he serious? Is Sheriff Patterson actually going to sit quietly and allow his campaign team to deflect the criticism many of us have for him and his leadership and his choices towards the men and women who risk their lives daily to protect and serve? Is he going to push the complaints about him over to the men and women who make less than half of what he is paid and who are just trying to put food on the table for their families and keep their bills paid?

And is he going to allow this crazy attempt that passes on negative implications about the department to the lowest rookie deputy on the totem pole so his political team can try to sell him as their defender? You have to be kidding me. The deputies in the LCSO have a pretty good reputation these days. I have gone back and looked at Liberty Dispatch’s articles about the LCSO and they are almost all zeroed in on the leadership.

So here is a suggestion to our sheriff. Stop the politics. Show up for work. Show up at crime scenes. Show up to things that show your deputies you care. Tell your media consultants to take a break. Talk to the public yourself and let us know what is happening in the criminal world. I can see why you probably don’t like Liberty Dispatch, but please realize real live people write into and read this website and you have a whole lot of changes you need to make to earn the support we freely gave you last election.

Name withheld due to possible reprisals by Henry Patterson and his cult group supporters.

DISTANCE YOURSELF FROM THE BULLY SHERIFF PATTERSON

From its inception, one of the main goals of Liberty Dispatch was to tell the other side, or the rest of the story that was never carried by a local media that seemed perfectly satisfied with having a leadership role in protecting the good ole boy system in Liberty County. That goal was accomplished early on as people wrote in to the comment section and began to voice their concerns and their suspicions and their experiences that up until the advent of this medium were never given a place to be seen and heard by a larger audience. While Liberty Dispatch has never claimed to be perfect and the comment section has been an easy target to be criticized as everything from “just the comments of a small handful of radical misfits” to “people spreading unfounded gossip”, we should all be able to now say the other side of many situations is no longer buried under the ego and agenda of a few “news people”.

In an odd twist, Liberty Dispatch is now aware that we were used and abused by one individual and we inadvertently had the effect some of the local media has purposely had for many years around here. The effect referred to here is the effect a media outlet can have as an intimidator or as someone everyone tries to stay on the good side of. That can be a good thing, if that role is used to encourage people to do the right thing. In fact, the whole concept of the freedom of the press protected in the Bill of Rights is to force people to always consider what they are doing could have the scrutiny of the public eye because tomorrow’s newspaper may tell the world about it.

Now that more people are beginning see that Liberty Dispatch has become one of the main targets of the threats and intimidation of Eddie Shauberger as he brags about spending his time and efforts working on “Outsider investigations” for Henry Patterson, we are starting to hear things we never knew went on with Shauberger. More specifically, we are beginning to hear that Shauberger has enjoyed intimidating people long before he and the Outsiders started all of their “investigations” aimed at our local citizens.

Tuesday February 7, 2012 Liberty Dispatch began to hear from law enforcement about Shauberger:

“It had gotten so bad out in Hardin that if there was a Shauberger involved, I passed the case on …….” one member of the Liberty County Sheriff told us.

After multiple troubling events having to do with one of Shauberger’s sons and law enforcement deciding to just back off and not do what they normally would do because of Shauberger’s intemperate threating attitude, the law finally was forced to confront the growing Shauberger problem. The boy was finally arrested for breaking into a church and the school.

A law enforcement officer told us this week that he knew if Eddie Shauberger was involved and he was confronted in an incident, he felt it was probably not worth confronting him because of all of the trouble Shauberger could cause.

When asked what kind of trouble, the officer looked up and said, “It use to be trouble on the internet.” When asked about what kind of trouble now, the officer said, “let me put it this way, I would rather someone else deal with that man.” When asked if the officer was referring to Shauberger’s friendship with Sheriff Patterson, the officer declined to comment further.

Liberty Dispatch was founded to give WE THE PEOPLE a chance to effectively confront public officials’ abuse of office and misuse of the power and assets taxpayers entrust them with and to fill the hole a complacent and sometimes complicit local media has left open. Shauberger used, and is stilling using, different people to achieve his own selfish and sometimes perverted goals. While it is true it took a parting of the ways with Shauberger before we heard of his bullying, we are now aware of his behavior. We wish we had been told these stories before, but we are glad to no longer count ourselves among his list of enablers.

We challenge Sheriff Patterson to publicly disavow Shauberger and to distance himself and any efforts Shauberger and the Outsiders have from our sheriff’s office. We also challenge Sheriff Patterson to publicly lay down the law and to enforce it concerning anyone doing “investigations” in the name of Liberty County and anyone violating the civil rights of anyone in this community.

CANDIDATE: Libby Simonson for JP 1

Libby Simonson is pleased to announce her candidacy in the upcoming Republican Primary Election.

She is seeking the position of Justice of the Peace Liberty County Precinct 1. Libby will be on the ballot in boxes 5, 6, 18, 19 and 27.

This is a judicial position that requires real life experiences and common sense.

Libby Simonson will be tough on dangerous criminals and repeat offenders, but will be compassionate with families in conflict. The Justice of the Peace sets the amount of bonds and she will protect your family.

Libby is a strong advocate for public safety and will make a difference and keep your family safe. Libby will work closely with the District Judges to ensure that no bond is set too low.

She will listen carefully and will rule fairly based on the law and the facts.
Libby Simonson currently serves the citizens of the City of Liberty as a City Councilwoman.

She is a college graduate with a degree in Business and has been a successful small business owner for over 30 years.

Libby has lived in Liberty County for over 30 years. She is married to Al Simonson.

Libby and Al have a large family and have always worked diligently in and with the community.

Libby Simonson is a serious candidate and is a strong and decisive individual who will work hard to make our community a safe community.

Libby Simonson asks for your support and vote in the upcoming Republican Primary for the position of Justice of the Peace Liberty County Precinct 1.

FARMER’S HAS NO FURNITURE AND NO CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORT

James Farmer, the Houston attorney recruited by Sheriff Henry Patterson’s campaign gurus, has failed to file the campaign finance report that was due weeks ago. According to officials within the County Clerk’s office, Farmer called and admitted he knew it was overdue. He was referred to the internet to get the blank forms, but he continues to be missing in action.

According to eye witnesses, the residence James Farmer claims in his campaign finance report continues to be empty. This mysterious man from Houston continues to fuel speculation that Sheriff Henry Patterson will either abandon his bid for re-election or distance himself from the people who have caused so much chaos in his campaign by pulling in Farmer and making other major tactical blunders such as telling voters to vote for everyone Liberty Dispatch was against. Or announcing his intention to run for District Attorney and then signing up to run for County Attorney. Strange moves by strange people.

The public is yet to see a picture of James Farmer or a political sign but Liberty Dispatch has been told repeatedly that money is no object to the people driving the Patterson and Farmer campaign.

REBUILDING OAK ISLAND STRONGER THAN BEFORE

The oak tree has always been a symbol of strength and resilience and deep rooted permanence. Oak Island, the small coastal community a few miles south of Anahuac and the community hit hardest by Hurricane Ike, wears the name of the mighty tree well as they continue to provide sanctuary to people after the storm. Oak Island has not only survived the bad weather, they have strengthen their culture and given their community more choices and one of the most obvious examples of that is obvious as you drive through town and look at the new construction on the left.

Long after Ike has blown threw and long after all of the government money has been spent and the news cameras have shown the carnage of the disaster, anyone traveling to Oak Island can look at a flat, previously barren field and see how hope for many has begun to spring forth on long solid peers of wood anchored above the flood plain. Mark and Darlene Pagels have stood tall in their community as they have clung to the all-powerful God they serve through all of the struggles that have come, and continue to come Oak Island’s way. Like a port in the storm three crosses stand in the breeze of the gulf wind reminding us of the painful death Jesus endured with a thief on each side of Him. Behind the crosses passersby can see the tangible evidence of a church building, The Christian Fellowship Church, which was berthed long before by God Himself in the hearts of the Pagels. This place is a sanctuary where storms are kept on the outside, a place where the peace and joy of serving our mighty Creator is promoted by faithful servants.

The people of Oak island can look back at a time when their houses may have been lost but a time when many rediscovered their faith. This community may have smaller savings accounts but they have come through a historic storm and decided to build up their treasure by strengthening their faith. The Pagels are examples of a community that will never give up, but they instead they have decided to look up. The Christian Fellowship Church is a great place to invest one’s time and their efforts as God through His church seeks to show His love and His power in a sin torn world of hurting people.

SHERIFF HENRY PATTERSON’S CAMPAIGN SUGGEST WHO VOTERS SHOULD ELECT

In a strange move for a politician, Henry Patterson’s supporters are now suggesting who voters in Liberty County should vote for in ever race. Here are their picks:

SHERIFF:
Henry Patterson (?)
(OUTSIDERS' CANDIDATE)

COUNTY ATTORNEY:
James Farmer (?) 
(OUTSIDERS' CANDIDATE AND OUTSIDER LEADER)

DISTRICT ATTORNEY:
Logan Pickett (?) (They really hate Joe Warren)

COMMISSIONER PCT. 1:
Todd "Obama" Fontenot (D)

COMMISSIONER PCT. 3:
(OUTSIDERS' CANDIDATE)

JP PCT 1.:
Larry "Wacko" Wagnon (?)

CONSTABLE PCT. 3:
Darrell Wayne Elliott (?)  
(OUTSIDERS' CANDIDATE)

CONSTABLE PCT. 6:
James McQueen (?)  
(OUTSIDERS' CANDIDATE)

In addition, Patterson’s people suggest that Judges Cain, Chambers, Morefield, and McNair should be defeated next time. Also District Clerk Donna Brown and County Clerk Paulette Shivers should be defeated.

Readers may have noticed Patterson’s people are against everyone Liberty Dispatch is for. We can only assume that means Patterson will return to his Democratic Party roots and support Barack Obama since we are for the Republican nominee.

Reader Letter to LD

Liberty Dispatch readers need to read this letter we received and decide for themselves what to make of of it. We will let our readers decide whether this is the little pro Patterson people trying to plant inaccuracies so they can come back and point their finger at us or if the letter has legitimate complaints. Neither can we speak to the accuracy or truthfulness of the letter to Liberty Dispatch.  If the story is true, the actions of Sheriff Henry Patterson should be a real concern to the people of Liberty County.

I am only a citizen and I live in Cleveland Texas in Montgomery County area,  but I am concerned about the neglect going on with Liberty County Sheriff's office. This specific issue concerns a missing person's case. Larry Baker of Cleveland Texas, missing in Liberty county Texas since Jan 29. 2010. It came to my attention that 2 informants have reported to Sheriff's investigator Brian Bortz that they had specific knowledge that Larry Baker was killed and was buried at his residence at 400 Co. Rd. 325 Plume Grove Rd.,  Cleveland, Texas. Informants gave the name Kelly Nickerson as the one who committed the murder of Larry Baker and afterwards buried his body at the above residence. Kelly Nickerson (alleged murderer) was the brother in-law of missing man Larry Baker and Baker lived in a trailer on Nickerson's land so the they shared the same address. Kelly Nickerson has since died in Pa in a traffic accident and these informants waited until Nickerson left for his home town in Pa. before they reported what they knew. This was back in Sep. 2011 when it was reported to investigator Brian Bortz and it has been totally ignored by Liberty County Sheriff's office. I see no other way to do anything more about this except to expose the neglect of this case and maybe that will serve to get them moving to dig up the grounds. That's why I am contacting this media. I have also contacted Fox News of Houston but so far not heard back from them. I want to share the below story with you from "Missing Person's Of America". There has been little media on this story other than the first few days after he went missing. No other follow up.

I want these law enforcement officers exposed for their neglect on such important issues and I want them to do their work so I beg for you to expose this to the public.


Unnamed

THE FAMOUS MR. ED (Edward Shauberger)

A favorite TV show among some of the baby boomers was a show called “Mr. Ed”. I remember the popular show and the catchy words to its theme song just like it was yesterday:

“A horse is a horse of course, of course, unless of course, the horse, the horse is the famous Mr. Ed”.

The show was about a talking horse. And for the purpose of this article, it reminds me how valuable the gift of talking can be. How bumping your gums a certain way can make you stand out. And in Mr. Ed’s case, how much trouble it can get you in.

One unmistakable trait of a flim flammer is their gift of gab. A flim flammer is someone who deceives; tricks; swindles; cheats. A real good flim flammer can fool everyone around them, even themself sometimes. If you ever hear someone is a flim flammer, the first thing you can test to verify the label is whether or not they have the golden smooth tongue of a salesman. If they don’t, they are no flim flammer. And if they do, please realize these people may appear to make great dinner speakers or politicians, but there is ultimately nothing about them that most would consider “great”.

Tragically, the worst of worst flim flammers leaves a trail of destruction behind them, ruining other people’s finances and their reputations. They destroy lives. But sooner or later, if they live long enough, the flim flammer always ends up ruining their own life. When a community discovers who they are, when a wife and children are forced to deal with who they are, flim flammers are usually abandoned. All they are usually left with is another lie or another trick to try and convince someone, maybe anyone, that they are not what they really are. Then the lies and deception all start over again.

The IRS usually ends up after an extreme flim flammer. Hot check writing, repossessions, bankruptcies, separations or divorce, and even jail time or prison – all part of the past, present, or future of the flim flammer. He almost always moves from one set of friends to an entirely new set because it is impossible to keep up appearances at some point. If he is a salesman, he moves from one company to another. If he is a preacher, he moves from one unsuspecting flock to another taking advantage of people’s goodwill and protective nature towards men of the cloth.

But their world can be ever-narrowing if all of the people burned by them ever collude and hear the width and depth of lies that have been told.

Such is the life of Edward Ross Shauberger… aka Mr. Ed.

PATTERSON NEEDS TO GO TO WORK AND STOP ALL OF THE POLITICS

The Cleveland Advocate broke a story this Thursday that finally sheds some light on a drug case Sheriff Henry Patterson and his political team tried to hijack for the purpose of Patterson’s re-election bid. Within minutes of news that a civilian had led law enforcement to a large field of marijuana, Patterson’s people were bragging that this arrest would make Patterson a shoe in for re-election. Their effort to soak up all of the credit for this bust left their political geniuses scrambling when people started questioning whether the approach to the arrest was professional or if it was flawed because no arrests were made. Because of those questions, Patterson reacted to a local news reporter when asked about the whole thing by indicating he knew nothing about it. Since then Patterson’s spin machine has mostly promoted their defense of Patterson being involved in a big bust like this with no arrest by saying Patterson played a very small roll in this operation and he did not make operational decisions.

So now what..? After U.S. Attorney John M. Bales has announced that Roberto Bahena-Garcia was indicted on Jan. 25, 2012, and charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Well now Patterson’s people are back to trying to spin this whole thing. Now they have decided Liberty Dispatch has been lying and they seem to be working their way back up to taking credit for the arrests- amazing, with the DEA as the investigating agency according to documents that caused the federal indictments.

Liberty Dispatch never was really sure why our very controversial County Sheriff would think that he deserved re-election based on this case. According to information presented in court, on Oct. 16, 2011, law enforcement officers received a tip that led them to a large outdoor and nascent indoor marijuana-growing operation in the rural area of Hull, Texas. A visit to the property revealed more than 1,000 maturing marijuana plants on 225 acres on Private Road 2055, but if this is the best thing we can expect from our sheriff we are in trouble. What about this case makes Patterson think people will forget three years of, at best, a lackluster performance as sheriff and a public relations effort that made people cringe for the first two years.

If convicted, Bahena-Garcia faces up to Life in federal prison and forfeiture of the property and I guess we can be glad Patterson doesn’t appear to have screwed that up by being so political and trying to claim honors for what appears to be very little work.

If his political machine had not tried to make him a hero, then the tagline on the story would have eventually read, “This case is being investigated by DHS/HSI, Liberty County Sheriff's Office and Texas Department of Public Safety and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Craft.”

The Cleveland Advocate is very generous and takes law enforcement’s word when they share credit like this. Liberty Dispatch has never questioned this kind of division of credit up to now. But Patterson denied much of a role in this case when it looked like it was an arrest-free drug busts. We would suggest to our readers he should get the precise amount of credit he claimed at that time.

Stay tuned as Patterson’s political machine tries to twist and change minds as they are running a man that has decided he can pull in all kinds of outside help to try and make this community forget what we have seen from this sheriff for over three years. Instead of being consumed with the lives of other public figures like Joe Warren and a dozen or more other people his political team admits they have been “investigating”, Sheriff Patterson should be an early to work, late going home, visible, working lawman. If he wants to spin his political webs like we see coming out of Washington D.C., he needs to run for another office.

Liberty County has good hard working people “serving and protecting us”, but Henry Patterson and some of the reject captains he has hired are seldom counted in that group.