""Messy," in the wild drama sense, is not a typical adjective when describing a judicial election but that's the exact right word for what's been going down in the Democratic primary for Houston's 234th Civil District Court judgeship. The race featured dueling injunction requests and a late-night hearing which ultimately culminated in a would-be challenger getting booted from the ballot."
"According to Reeder's court filings, McTorry allegedly tried to strong-arm her into dropping out of the race by threatening to expose personal information that would "get back to [your] husband, children and other family members." That information? A two-month consensual affair in 2013 between Reeder and AZA Law partner Todd Mensing. Now, the relationship ended more than a decade ago, but that didn't allegedly stop McTorry from trying to use it against Reeder."
"Reeder alleged that McTorry's demand she drop out of the race was paired with the use of a co-conspirator to publish what Reeder described as "vile, offensive" social media posts designed to amp up the pressure. McTorry denied the allegations, but Kennedy found her testimony "not credible," particularly given the timing of the posts, which the court said was "unlikely to be a coincidence.""
A contentious Democratic primary for Houston's 234th Civil District Court saw dueling injunctions and late hearings that ended with Kimberly McTorry removed from the ballot. Incumbent Judge Lauren Reeder alleged McTorry attempted to coerce her into withdrawing by threatening to reveal a 2013 consensual affair with AZA Law partner Todd Mensing. Reeder accused McTorry of enlisting a co-conspirator to post "vile, offensive" social media content to increase pressure. Judge Christi Kennedy found McTorry's testimony not credible, noted suspicious post timing, and determined some qualifying signatures were forged or came from suspended voters.
Read at Above the Law
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