TOP Bails Out Dangerous Criminals with D.A.’s Help
Leftist Group TOP Bails Out Dangerous Criminals with D.A.’s Help
Bexar County and San Antonio residents should be outraged that a repeat offender was bailed out of jail by a state leftist group called the “Texas Organizing Project.”
As of January 4, 2023, TOP had bonded out 1,060 defendants from the Bexar County Jail. Court records show three of those 16 inmates released before Christmas were re-arrested by New Year’s Eve.
All 16 inmates had at least five prior arrests, including Patrick Foster, who has been imprisoned twice for aggravated robbery and burglary with intent to commit assault. Jerrell Wilkerson went to TDC 3 times for assault on a public servant and theft. Andrew Garza for felony possession of a firearm, Larry Reed, and Joey Clifford for criminal trespassing.
Another example is Paul Mena, who bonded out in April 2020 and was arrested on a drug charge. Court records showed that Mena also had an elder abuse charge against him at that time.
Mena had a case of “continuous sex abuse of a child” that had just been dismissed two months earlier. Still, a Bexar County magistrate judge lowered Mena’s bond from $2,500 to $500, and TOP bailed him out. After that, however, Mena failed to show up in court and became a fugitive.
However, TOP says they bonded out hundreds of inmates from the Bexar County jail, who are “low-level offenders who are poor and should not have to sit in jail awaiting trial because they pose no real threat.”
Bexar County Chief Public Defender Michael Young says Bexar County cooperates with TOP, providing lists of supposedly “low-risk inmates.” He says, “What TOP is doing in Bexar County is bringing equity and justice to our criminal justice system.”
TOP is a Marxist/racist state-wide organization that claims to advocate for “poor people of color.” However, low-income minority neighborhoods are the hardest hit by crime caused by repeat offenders that they bailed out.
Also, Rosa Castro, the mother of Congressman Joaquin Castro and former SA Mayor Julian Castro, serves on the state board of TOP. Rosa has a long history of being associated with leftist groups like La Raza Unida and supporting leftist issues like abolishing the police.
Furthermore, TOP helped the campaigns of both Democrat Sheriff Javier Salazar and District Attorney Joe Gonzales, who both supported the bail reform. In return, Salazar and Gonzales provide a weekly list to TOPS of inmates to bail out.
The public should also know where TOP gets the funds to bail out arrested people. Who funds this “bail reform” program?
When local liberal elected officials ask why San Antonio is experiencing a high crime and violence rate, they should look at the policies they support. While D.A. Gonzales is cooperating with TOP to bail out repeat offenders and dangerous criminals, Sheriff Salazar is releasing inmates because of COVID and overcrowding. These actions excuse crime rather than punish it.
Also, this is D.A. Gonzales’s version of “The War on Police.” He has a particular unit to investigate law enforcement officers. Gonzales and the liberal local news media have created an atmosphere where police are cautious, if not fearful, of doing their duty.
If citizens in San Antonio and Bexar County want to address the crime and violence, they need to remove the elected officials who are beholding to TOP and other liberal/leftist groups. We must stop hindering the police from doing their job and punish criminals regardless of their race and income.