Special to El Rrun-Rrun
Before March 3, election day, the Cameron County Sheriff's Department couldn't get enough publicity, it seemed.
![Image result for omar lucio]()
Suddenly, on-board computers on patrol cars seemed like a great idea. Body cams were coming, too, said octogenarian Sheriff Omar Lucio.
These pronouncements were made during hastily called press conferences even as they occurred. The media lapped it up.
And just as early voting started, the Rucker-Carrizales jail came into compliance with the standards imposed by the state after years of being in violation.
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And then came the wayward deputy tampering with a DWI report to lower the violation to a less serious charge who was paraded before the media. Or the one caught cheating a prostitute of her money and getting a freebie in a parking lot in Hidalgo County. Please. Pay the lady!
Cleaning up corruption, you understand. Transparency, accountability, you know the drill.
But the future cheats you from afar.
Because during the early voting period before the March 3, sheriff investigators had caught on to a wayward jail guard - one Ivan Montoya - who had been pushing pot inside the old jail on Harrison St. In fact, he had been doing it for a few weeks before the smell alerted the other guards to report it to their superior. Maybe a contact high?
The bust finally came down March 3, the same day as the election .
What did the sheriff and his administration do? Did they stop campaigning at Burns Elementary to inform the public of the miscreant? Did they call the newspapers and television stations to let the public know that even though all the prisoners were telling Montoya that everybody knew he was pushing pot under the non-discerning noses of the other guards, he continued to sell joints?
Not, well it wouldn't have been convenient to let the voting public that there was a virtual cannabis shop over at the old jail, would it? In fact, when the investigation started, guards found almost two ounces of pot inside the cell.
The bust went down on Tuesday, but it would be three days later before the media broke the story and the department had to acknowledge that the bust had even occurred. Where was the transparency, accountability, and all the other buzz words of the sheriff's campaign and mailouts?
Why wait three days after the election that resulted in a runoff between him and former Cameron County District Clerk Eric Garza to acknowledge the embarassing truth? Was the claim to transparency just a pipe dream that the Lucio administration paraded out to the public to garner their vote?
Will the public relations effort end up being the opiate of the voters? The runoff election is May 23. How many other gimmicks and sleight-of-hand will the incumbent administration pull off? Or will reality sink into the voters before it's all over and done?
Before March 3, election day, the Cameron County Sheriff's Department couldn't get enough publicity, it seemed.
Suddenly, on-board computers on patrol cars seemed like a great idea. Body cams were coming, too, said octogenarian Sheriff Omar Lucio.These pronouncements were made during hastily called press conferences even as they occurred. The media lapped it up.
And just as early voting started, the Rucker-Carrizales jail came into compliance with the standards imposed by the state after years of being in violation.
And then came the wayward deputy tampering with a DWI report to lower the violation to a less serious charge who was paraded before the media. Or the one caught cheating a prostitute of her money and getting a freebie in a parking lot in Hidalgo County. Please. Pay the lady!Cleaning up corruption, you understand. Transparency, accountability, you know the drill.
But the future cheats you from afar.
Because during the early voting period before the March 3, sheriff investigators had caught on to a wayward jail guard - one Ivan Montoya - who had been pushing pot inside the old jail on Harrison St. In fact, he had been doing it for a few weeks before the smell alerted the other guards to report it to their superior. Maybe a contact high?
The bust finally came down March 3, the same day as the election .
What did the sheriff and his administration do? Did they stop campaigning at Burns Elementary to inform the public of the miscreant? Did they call the newspapers and television stations to let the public know that even though all the prisoners were telling Montoya that everybody knew he was pushing pot under the non-discerning noses of the other guards, he continued to sell joints?
Not, well it wouldn't have been convenient to let the voting public that there was a virtual cannabis shop over at the old jail, would it? In fact, when the investigation started, guards found almost two ounces of pot inside the cell.
The bust went down on Tuesday, but it would be three days later before the media broke the story and the department had to acknowledge that the bust had even occurred. Where was the transparency, accountability, and all the other buzz words of the sheriff's campaign and mailouts?
Why wait three days after the election that resulted in a runoff between him and former Cameron County District Clerk Eric Garza to acknowledge the embarassing truth? Was the claim to transparency just a pipe dream that the Lucio administration paraded out to the public to garner their vote?
Will the public relations effort end up being the opiate of the voters? The runoff election is May 23. How many other gimmicks and sleight-of-hand will the incumbent administration pull off? Or will reality sink into the voters before it's all over and done?