Bastrop, Tx–Former 423rd District Court Judge Charlotte Hinds of Bastrop will be sworn in Jan. 27 as municipal court judge for the City of Bastrop, only the second lawyer to hold the post.
Altogether, it has been an odd journey both for Hinds and for the city.
After a short closed-door session Jan. 20, the Bastrop City Council voted to name Hinds to the city post which has been held on an interim basis for about six months by a former city judge, Don Calvert. Before that the city judge slot had been held provisionally by Phyllis Mathison, the long-time clerk of the municipal court.
The latest changes in the city’s court system began in May 2008 when Terry Orr was elected mayor to succeed Tom Scott who was barred from seeking re-election by a provision of the city’s home rule charter. Soon after taking office, Orr decided that Mathison could not continue to act both as court clerk and judge. Given the choice, Mathison decided to keep her full-time city job as court clerk. The judge’s post is part-time or a contract professional service job.
At Orr’s urging, Calvert agreed to resume his former duties as judge until a permanent replacement could be selected.
Hinds has been a Bastrop lawyer for many years now, one with a hankering for the robes of a judge. A decade ago she ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the County Court at Law bench held, then as now, by Judge Benton Eskew. After the 2007 Texas Legislature created a new state district court for Bastrop County, Hinds sought and won the initial appointment from Texas Governor Rick Perry, pending the 2008 general election. Last year she sought the GOP nomination for the new 423rd District Court bench but lost to another Bastrop lawyer, Derick VanGilder, who in turn was defeated in November by the Democratic nominee, Chris Duggan. Duggan was sworn into office on Jan. 2.
The municipal court is chiefly responsible for Class C misdemeanor offenses, including traffic cases and some juvenile matters, including school truancy and juvenile curfew violations arising in the city.