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Bill D. Hicks: “The DA's office has the ultimate discretion on what does and…”

Featuring: Bill D. Hicks, Republican | El Paso County District Attorney | Texas

EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24

Published March 6, 2024 | Video Starts at 21:35

It doesn't meet the elements. You know, the police think it does, we don't think it does. So ultimately, The DA's office has the ultimate discretion on what does and does not get filed and what kind of crime it gets filed. As the police may present a case for burglary of habitation, and we think, no, it's not really burglary of habitation, it's only a criminal trespass of habitation, or they may present criminal trespass of habitation. (21:35–21:43)

CLAIM

Asserts that the DA's office has ultimate discretion over case filings and charges.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

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Bill D. Hicks

“There was a backlog of cases in the intake section. So it's about 14,000 cases that had not yet been accepted and put into the courts.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 20:19-20:30
“We eliminated the 14,000 [cases in the backlog].”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 35:48-35:52
“I joined the District Attorney's office from February of 98 all the way through October of 2010.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 04:35-04:42
“I was actually the first senior prosecutor on the special crimes unit, which is the [homicide unit].”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 05:42-05:49
“I was a special assistant United States Attorney, so I was a federal prosecutor at the same time as a state prosecutor.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 07:36-07:43
“The whole goal of that grant was to get to target anyone who was using a firearm in the course of doing something bad and making sure that…”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 07:52-08:11
“12 years total in the DA's office.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 08:50-08:53
“The first death penalty case that I had was a white supremacist. We prosecuted and got the death penalty on him. He has since been executed.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 09:06-09:16
“Thousands of cases being dismissed, potentially really bad things happening in what was the most important case, the Walmart case.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 13:12-13:22
“She initially terminated about 40 people, 40 attorneys out of the office.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 14:09-14:13
“She terminated anyone who had supported her opponent.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 14:18-14:22
“She forced everyone to reapply, but she only hired back in those people who either were neutral or had supported her.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 14:52-15:02
“Without exception, yeah.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 15:03-15:05
“Down the road, she ended up hiring back some people who had supported James.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 15:06-15:12
“Ms. Rosales's resignation was effective at 5:00pm on December 14th. My appointment was effective at 5:00 p dot on December 14th.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 15:38-15:48
“We have places for about 92, 93 attorneys openings. And there were only about 63 attorneys when I started.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 18:40-18:52
“There were about 63, 64 attorneys when I started, which is below the threshold that we need.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 18:47-18:52
“On any average year, the DA's office screens about 30,000 cases.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 20:30-20:36
“Of those 30,000, we take anywhere from 19 to 21,000, somewhere in that range and put them in the court system.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 20:40-20:49
“We decline about 1/3 of the cases that come in that are presented to us for insufficient evidence, technicalities, prosecutor discretion.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 21:18-21:31
“$31 million. Including the grants?”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 22:37-22:41
“About 23 million. 22 million.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 22:43-22:47
“Goal number two was to address the backlog.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 23:48-23:52
“Addressing that 14,000 case backlog was very high on my priority list.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 25:20-25:26
“We're traveling around the state now recruiting for entry level attorneys.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 26:16-26:21
“DA's offices routinely go to the law schools that are closest to them.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 28:03-28:08
“Lubbock is the closest. Texas Tech is the closest.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 28:11-28:14
“We don't get a lot of New Mexico law school graduates in El Paso.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 28:19-28:24
“The Walmart case is ready for trial.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 28:55-28:58
“We announced ready in December.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 28:58-29:01
“We released some more evidence to the defense in January.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 29:04-29:09
“I make all final calls on strategy [for the Walmart case].”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 32:04-32:12
“When it goes to trial, I'll be sitting in that first chair position on Walmart.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 32:20-32:26
“We have some people in that room that have phenomenal death penalty experience.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 34:43-34:48
“There's about a thousand cases left in the backlog.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 35:48-35:52
“We probably declined closer to 40% of the backlog.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 35:58-36:03
“Our jail population is higher than normal right now.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 36:33-36:38
“Our crime rate is a little higher right now. It's gone up over 2023.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 36:41-36:46
“There's a backlog in the court system.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 36:51-36:54
“The criminal justice system is not our mental health system.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 41:08-41:12
“The prior administration was political in the position and took it in political ways.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 43:47-43:54
“The Border Prosecution Unit...was built by Jaime [Esparza]...one of the initial prosecutors building the BPU.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 47:25-47:58
“The BPU deals with funding for and training for prosecutors and law enforcement agencies that deal with transnational criminal problems.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 47:59-48:12
“The BPU is made up of Republicans and Democratic elected district attorneys up and down the border.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 48:43-48:51
“The aspect that we prosecute under is the portion that requires you to know or have reason to know that the person is in the country…”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 49:56-50:09
“The Uber driver, for example, is not going to get prosecuted for picking someone up at point A and taking them to point B.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 50:22-50:29
“No office is ever fully staffed because you have attrition.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 51:01-51:05
“Everyone in the county is looking for 2 to 3% reduction in our budgets.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 52:01-52:06
“We still would like to have a dedicated family violence unit, dedicated DWI unit.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 52:13-52:20
“We had a quarterly department head meeting this morning and they told us the budget and finance department was looking for, as we start…”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 53:05-53:25
“I have been endorsed by the El Paso Police Officers association and the El Paso Sheriff's Officers Association.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 54:34-54:40
“We have renewed ties with all of our law enforcement agencies that had been lapsed for two years under the previous administration.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 54:58-55:08
“We're getting more agencies interested in DIMS, which is the program for 24 hour presentation of cases to the DA's office.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 56:20-56:30
“The DA's office had never called these kind of meetings with law enforcement.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 57:58-58:03
“The crime rate is going up in the thefts and the auto theft and burglary areas, not so much in the serious crimes, murders and sexual…”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 58:41-58:54
“The motor vehicle theft division has recently busted a theft ring, an auto theft ring.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 59:45-59:53
“We've seen an increase in DWIs and intoxicated cases.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 1:00:25-1:00:30
“Our office is now promoting a free ride program through a grant that we got with the TxDOT.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 1:00:47-1:00:54
“We have over 2000 cases now that people that have used those vouchers.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 1:01:11-1:01:18
“We've seen the increase in the violent crime task force that the police put together, Chief Pacias put together, involving the military…”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 1:01:50-1:02:04
“Military police cannot intervene into civilians.”
EL PASO TAXPAYER REVOLT INTERVIEWS EL PASO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BILL HICKS, 3/6/24 | Uploaded March 6, 2024 | 1:02:34-1:02:38