County Tax Assessor/Collector workers say office gambling forced

By Lynn Brezosky - Express-News

Frequent football pots and “rifas (raffles) entre amigos” at the Webb County tax office were thinly veiled campaign fundraising tactics for the office’s longstanding boss, according to a federal lawsuit that alleges 10 employees lost their jobs there because of their reluctance to play along.

Six of the lawsuit’s plaintiffs were fired and two quit in the wake of a state investigation that led to illegal gambling charges against Tax Assessor/Collector Patricia Barrera, her deputy chief Mary Ethel Novoa and employees Dora Jimenez and Rosa Hernandez. Two more say they were fired for refusing to put Barrera bumper stickers on their cars.

The lawsuit says Barrera and the staffers forced employees to sell, or buy, raffle tickets for everything from nativity scenes to trips to Las Vegas. Title companies and used car dealerships that had steady business with the tax office were routinely tapped to purchase tickets or donate prizes. In exchange, they got red-carpet processing with perks like overlooked late fees.

Participation in the football pool — on display in the break room — was mandatory, the lawsuit alleges. Employees could buy one square or sell two, at $20 each. The proceeds funded office parties, and Barrera’s re-election campaigns, and those who demurred were told, “there’s the door,” according to the suit.

The criminal charges, filed in May, stem from an October 2007 office raid by the Texas attorney general’s office.

The civil lawsuit, naming Webb County as well as Barrera and the others individually, seeks reinstatement to former or equivalent posts and compensation for lost wages and benefits.

Defense attorney Kyle Watson called the lawsuit “politically motivated” and said it was an “unfortunate attack on the integrity of a hard-working public official.” He said he had not seen evidence to show raffle and pool proceeds had funded Barrera’s campaign. He said evidence would show all terminated employees lost their jobs for legitimate work-related realated sons.

“It is true that the department had harmless raffles for employee parties, Christmas parties and the like,” he said. “It is also true that the plaintiffs voluntarily participated in the raffles. It was something that the plaintiffs themselves enjoyed.”

“The extent of the alleged gambling was really just raffles and football pots, something that takes place in every business in every county in every city and every state,” he added.

Plaintiffs’ attorney Matthew Wymer said the complaint’s focus isn’t so much about the gambling as it is the apparent retaliation against employees willing to cooperate with investigators.

“Their spin on this is that the gambling is not that big of an issue,” Wymer said. “That has never been the issue. It has always been that people who worked with law enforcement on good faith, these people were ultimately retaliated against.”

The raid yielded raffle tickets, assorted cash and a bank bag containing $3,080.

Court documents say Jimenez hurriedly passed football pot documents and money to a woman who stashed it in her purse and left the building. “No sabes nada (You know nothing),” she told employees.

The next day, Barrera appeared with an attorney who worked for the county to tell employees they did have to talk to the attorney general’s office, according to court documents, which also stated that in a second meeting that day, she said she would find out who was against her.

Barrera has held her position continuously since first being elected in 1992. The gambling allegedly began in 1994 with a raffle for the Christmas party and was expanded to four yearly raffles, with drawings accompanied by Webb County law enforcement personnel, and three yearly football pots.

In addition to having to buy or sell tickets or squares, the lawsuit alleges employees were compelled to display signs and bumper stickers supporting Barrera.

“This is a case that is degrading to people in Webb County,” Wymer said. “I wouldn’t want to leave the impression that people in Webb County think it’s OK, that it’s not that big deal. I think they do. I think folks have dealt with the corruption so long it’s not shocking.”