By Michael Robinson | Uvalde Hesperian

01-24-26

Texas District State Senator Roland Gutierrez and former 38th Judicial Assistant District Attorney/ Prosecutor Sara Ruth Spector both leveled criticism against 38th Judicial District Attorney Christina Mitchell after a Corpus Christi jury handed down a not-guilty verdict on Monday, January 21st against former Uvalde CISD officer Adrian Gonzales on charges of child endangerment.

  Thursday, January 24th, Gutierrez took to Facebook andz unleashed a profanity-laced rant. He said, “Who really failed was the District Attorney who should have indited the heads of the Department of Public Safety including Stephen Crawford their decision and lack of basic decisions here and who basically left those children to die; mistake after mistake.”

Likewise, Spector took to TikTok  on Thursday, January 22nd and said, “The judge recused herself. The county was moved to where the trial was. The trail was not in Uvalde. The D.A. should have recused herself.  She knew most of the police officers involved. She knew most of the sheriff’s officers involved. In fact, her husband, her ex-husband, was one of the heads of the Uvalde P.D. a decade ago. She had personal relationships with all these people. She should have recused herself completely and let a D.A. with no involvement with this case prior to make decisions, make charging decisions and try the case.”

December 21, 2025

By Michael Robinson | Uvalde Hesperian

December 21, 2025

The 38th Judicial District Attorney, Christina Mitchell, has failed to file an appeal within the 30-day period following the Texas Attorney General’s letter decision issued on October 22nd. According to legal counsel consulted by the Uvalde Hesperian, this missed deadline means the original Attorney General’s decision is now final and binding.

On August 22nd, the Uvalde Hesperian submitted a public records request to D.A. Christina Mitchell for the search warrant issued on or about May 24, 2022, for the residence of the Robb Elementary shooter’s grandmother, where the shooter had been living..

On December 3rd, the Hesperian followed up via email. D.A. Mitchell responded the same day, stating, “Additional information was submitted to the AG office.”

However, according to the attorney consulted by the Hesperian, any further communication with the Texas Attorney General does not extend or override the statutory appeal deadline.

The Uvalde Hesperian is now considering legal action, including filing a writ of mandamus in the 38th District Court against District Attorney Mitchell in her official capacity.

In the opinion of the Uvalde Hesperian, District Attorney Mitchell no longer has any legal basis to withhold the requested search warrant

11-11-25

By Michael Robinson| Uvalde Hesperian

Uvalde County Commissioners voted to approve the purchase of a 2026 Chevrolet Silverado for the 38th District Attorney’s office for $66,559.01 from Uvalde Chevrolet. According to Uvalde County Grant Writer Carl Esser stated that advertisements for bids for the vehicle were placed with a locally printed newspaper and on Uvalde County’s website. He said Uvalde Chevrolet submitted the only bid received by the County.

  Esser stated funds for the purchase of the vehicle will come from the Board of Prosecution Unit Grant at no cost for Uvalde County.

 According to State of Texas Governor Greg Abbott Campaign website article from 2018, the Border Prosecution Unit was established in 2009 by the 81st Legislature. The article also states $5.8 million in grant funding is for the Border Prosecution Unit (BPU) to help crack down on gangs and Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs) along the Texas border.

“The BPU is made up of 17 district and county attorney offices within the Texas border region that focus on investigating and prosecuting cases related to narcotics, weapons, human trafficking, organized crime, gangs, and other border-related offenses. Nineteen BPU awards were released to District and County Attorneys in border communities across Texas,” the article reads.

 Commissioners also approved accepting a bid for a Mass Notification System. Esser said the Mass Notification System bid was awarded to the Reed Group $9,994 for the first year, with a recurring cost of $7,195 per year for a guaranteed three-year contract. The purchase for the system will be paid for out of the Uvalde County Emergency Operations Center Operations budget.

Uvalde County also accepted a FY 2026 Border Protection Unit Grant.  This is a recurring grant of $2,339,000. It’s a two-year grant beginning on September 1st, 2025, to August 1st, 2027.

Esser said the grant provides for the salaries of prosecutors and investigators involved in border related investigations to continue border related investigations as well as maximize resources.

 Diana Olvedo-Karau spoke after the court approved the grants expressing her concerns for tax monies being spent by the County placing a burden of taxes regular people have to pay whether it be local, state or national.

Karau also expressed her concern that the state funding for border related grants may run out eventually as conditions on the border have diminished greatly.

by Michael Robinson | Uvalde Hesperian

05-14-25

The 38th District Attorney Christina Mitchell filed a lawsuit with the United States District Court of the Western District of Texas on May 9th, 2025 against the U.S Customs and Border Protection.

According to the lawsuit’s Core Issue statement it reads:

“At its core, the question before this Court is this: With agents of the United States
Border Patrol: (1) having come to Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 22,
2022, apparently at the request of the Uvalde Police Department and perhaps with jurisdiction
to enforce the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990;2 (2) having taken tactical control
of the officers amassed in the school’s hallway to formulate a plan to make entry into the suite
of classrooms where a gunman was holding children and teachers hostage;3 and (3) having
participated in that plan and eliminated the threat, how can the agents’ employing agency –
United States Customs and Border Protection – then interpret its own administrative
regulations to find: (a) these agents need not cooperate with a state law criminal
prosecution regarding the circumstances giving rise to the deaths of nineteen children
and two adults; and (b) these agents have no unique information to provide in the case?”

Under any reasonable interpretation of the CBP’s Touhy regulations, the only possible
conclusion is that the three border patrol agents whose cooperation is now being sought by
District Attorney Mitchell – two of whom participated in the actual killing of the gunman and
the third who was present in the hallway during most of the incident – are essential to the
pending Texas criminal prosecution.4″

 According to the lawsuit, it also states: On June 27, 2024, the Uvalde County grand jury returned indictments against Pedro
Arredondo and Adrian Gonzales for multiple counts of felony child endangerment based on their conduct, which can encompass both acts and omissions, as law enforcement officers responding to the Robb Elementary incident. The indictments against Arredondo and
Gonzales are currently pending in the 38th District Court of Uvalde County, Texas. After the indictments were presented, the prosecutors for the State of Texas again requested the testimony of three of the U.S. Border Patrol agents at the scene of the Robb
Elementary incident, this time contending that the first-hand testimony of the U.S. Border Patrol agents would be essential for both the prosecution and defense of Arrendondo.7 The CBP Chief Counsel has continued to decline authorization for the U.S. Border Patrol agents’
cooperation and testimony.”

12-10-24

By Michael Robinson: Uvalde Hesperian

At the November 18th Uvalde CISD school board meeting, Superintendent Ashley Chohlis announced that funds are available through a Crime Victims Compensation Program. She stated that the program is not new but announced that help would be available at several Uvalde CISD campuses.

Chohlis said, “It’s always been available, but it hasn’t been widely (publicized) ”

The Uvalde Hesperian reached out via email to 38th Judicial District Attorney Christina Mitchell asking about the program.

Mitchell responded and said, “My office has been and continues to work with Ms. Chohlis and the Uvalde CISD.  My office will be present at several campuses in the next couple of months to assist the UCISD with the Crime Victims Compensation Program applications.

  It is the Attorney General’s office that receives and processes the applications and then makes the determination if an applicant qualifies and if so, how much that applicant is to receive.  It is a reimbursement compensation program.  It is my understanding from the Attorney General’s office that, unfortunately, qualified applicants are only UCISD employees who were assigned to work at Robb Elementary and/or families whose children were enrolled and present at Robb Elementary on 5/24/22.

 I would strongly encourage everyone to visit the Uvalde Together Resiliency Center for assistance on services that may be needed or just to stop in and inquire as to services that are available. “

Related link:

Attorney General Paxton Calls Attention to Reimbursements Available Under the “Crime Victims’ Compensation Program” for Victims of Uvalde Tragedy | Office of the Attorney General

by Michael Robinson | Uvalde Hesperian

  Uvalde County Commissioners voted to approve requests made by Uvalde County Sheriff Ruben Nolasco, Uvalde County Attorney John Dodson and 38th Judicial District Attorney Christina Mitchell requested the Uvalde County Commissioners to vote to approve the allocation of grant fund from Texas Senate Bill 22 to be used for pay increases for Sheriff’s Department’s staff and for the hiring an assistant county attorney and assistant district attorney. The Commissioners Court made the decision at it’s first meeting of the new year on Monday Morning January 8th, 2024

 Commissioner Ronnie Garza asked Uvalde County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Brandon McCutchen, “These salaries are being increased as a result of the grant. What happens when the grant no longer fund it; the salaries stay in place right?”

“That would be up to the Commissioners and what they chose to adopt,” McCutchen said.

Uvalde County Auditor Alice Chapman stepped in and said,” This SB 22 allocation is only valid for this legislative session. The next legislative session, it may be passed and it may not be passed.” She went on to say that the grant is only effective for the next two years.“

  Texas Senate Bill 22 which was passed on June 7th, 2023 pertains to the establishment of grant programs to provide financial assistance to qualified sheriff’s offices, constable’s offices, and prosecutor’s offices in rural counties.

According to a report by the Texas State Comptroller’s Office it states the following:

  Senate Bill (SB) 22 establishes a grant program that will provide financial assistance to sheriff’s departments, constable’s offices and district and county attorney’s offices in eligible counties to ensure professional law enforcement and legal representation of the people’s interests throughout the state.

Uvalde County Attorney John Dodson makes a request for grant money to hire an assistant county attorney

  The new law provides supplemental salaries for different positions in rural areas. Eligible counties can apply for grant funds beginning Jan. 1, 2024, regardless of a particular county’s fiscal start-date. Eligible counties may apply electronically beginning Jan. 1, 2024. In future years, counties and prosecutor’s offices will apply according to the start of their fiscal year.

Eligibility

The Comptroller’s office will use the federal decennial census as the source for the population counts (2020 census data).

A qualified county or prosecutor’s office means the office meets the standards provided by the law.

• Offices must serve counties with overall populations of 300,000 or less.
• If a constable is already making above the minimum annual salary, the county is not eligible for grant funding to increase the salary.
• If a county already pays the minimum salary levels for the sheriff, deputies and jailers, the county may still apply for funds for additional personnel or equipment.

 Michael Robinson | Uvalde Hesperian 

Top picture credit: City of Uvalde

  City of Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin released a statement earlier today accusing the 38th District Attorney  Christina Mitchell of being involved in a cover-up regarding the City’s investigation into the Robb School tragedy.

 Upon the release of the statement which appeared on Twitter and Facebook social media platforms about 12 Noon on Wednesday, August 30th, the Uvalde Hesperian reached out to McLaughlin to verify the statement was issued by him. 

 According to the statement issued by McLaughlin, it reads:  “The City hired Mr. Jesse Prado of JPPI on July 30th, 2022, approximately two months after the shooting with regard to the actions of Uvalde Police Department personnel. Since then, D.A. Christina Mitchell has refused to cooperate with Mr. Prado and the City resulting in the City filing a lawsuit against her in her official capacity in order to obtain the necessary information for Mr. Prado to complete the City’s administrative investigation.” 

“The City had to file suit a second time, because D.A Christina Mitchell continues to block the City’s investigation. We believe she is doing so, because her Chief Investigator Shayne Gilliland was onsite on May 24th at Robb School and this taints her entire inquiry into any possible criminal conduct by law enforcement,” McLaughlin’s statement read.

“Christina Mitchell should resign immediately,” McLaughlin said in the statement.

The Uvalde Hesperian reached out to 38th D.A. Christina Mitchell asking if she would like to respond to Mayor Don McLaughlin’s statement. She provided the following statement:

“If you read the lawsuit, it is clear that I have provided a great deal information to the city to conduct their internal investigation.  All the other law enforcement agencies have conducted their internal investigations without one piece of information from my office.  It is unfortunate that the city has not utilized the information I have provided to them to conduct their internal investigation. 

Disparaging elected leaders in our community serves no legitimate purpose.”- 38th D.A. Christina Mitchell

JPPI Investigations: Jesse Prado

“Jesse Prado is the Owner/Investigator of JPPI Investigations. He is a decorated, honorably retired, Austin Police Detective with over 25 years of dedicated service to the Austin Metro Area. Detective Prado spent his first 3 years on patrol in East Austin and was then transferred to the prestigious Organized Crime Division where he served over 21 years in a covert/undercover unit. Due to the magnitude of his investigations most of his cases were prosecuted in Federal Court,” – From the JPPI Investigations website.