HOUSTON—A Harris County judge who propositioned a DWI defendant hours after she appeared in his courtroom was sentenced to 30 days in jail Monday.
Judge Donald Wayne Jackson was found guilty Friday of official oppression. He was taken into custody from the courtroom following Monday’s sentencing.
Jackson was also sentenced to two years probation, a $4,000 fine and community service.
"I hope the message is we expect our elected officials and our public officials to follow the law and to act appropriately and not take advantage of people who otherwise are easy prey," prosecutor Lance Long said after the verdict was read Friday.
Jackson’s attorney expressed disappointment with the verdict.
"I disagree with it. We’ll ask for probation," said Dan Cogdell.
The charges were bought after Ariana Venegas accused Jackson of offering legal help in exchange for a relationship.
Venegas was a DWI defendant in Jackson’s court before he asked her out to dinner.
"If I didn’t become interested in him, then he would convict me because he is the judge," Venegas testified.
Jurors also heard an audiotape of Jackson responding to the allegations when confronted by an investigator with the district attorney’s office. The conversation was secretly recorded.
At first, Jackson denied that he took Venegas to dinner, but later changed his story.
"I don’t know what I’ve been accused of. I had dinner with a defendant who has a case pending in my court," Jackson said on the tape. "Her allegation is I had dinner with her and then I offered to get her a better lawyer if she didn’t like the lawyer that I had given her, and that I wanted to have a relationship with her."
Defense attorneys tried to paint Venegas as a woman who played upon her looks to try to get special treatment.
