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Lawsuit to remove Travis County DA José Garza not expected to move forward

A specially appointed prosecutor has moved forward with a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

AUSTIN, Texas — A lawsuit to remove Travis County District Attorney José Garza from office likely will not go forward after a special appointed prosecutor in the case filed a 3-page motion to dismiss the matter.

The motion, filed late Friday by prosecutor Jim Nichols, said that he investigated claims in the suit and determined that none were grounds for removal.

Those allegations included that Garza’s office did not prosecute certain classes of crime, including drug cases, and improperly handled cases against police officers involved in use-of-force investigations.

RELATED: Travis County DA José Garza facing petition for removal from office

Nichols – a Republican county attorney from Bell County appointed by a Republican judge to handle the matter – said he investigated the assertion that Garza’s office did not prosecute drug cases and determined that office directives about such cases were rescinded and replaced with new directives before the new “rogue prosecutor” law was put in place in September 2023.

“The prosecuting attorney has verified prosecution of drug cases through Office of Court Administration records,” Nichols wrote.

Travis County resident Mary Dupuis filed the lawsuit in April under Texas House Bill 17, which seeks to remove prosecutors if they have policies of not prosecuting certain crimes.

The case was the first in Texas under the law in which a judge appointed a prosecutor to consider the allegations.

Garza’s office could not immediately be reached Monday.

A hearing in the case is set for this week.

RELATED: 'Exceeded his authority' | Travis County DA petitions for pardon of man convicted of murder to be reversed

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