Belew gets his day in appeals court on Jan. 18

Harley Belew will get his day in court on Jan. 18 in El Paso, but the Texas Eighth Court of Appeals makes one thing clear — make your arguments quickly. 

Belew’s effort to overturn his removal as Kerr County Precinct 1 Commissioner will be decided by three justices in El Paso after the state Supreme Court moved cases around to lessen the burden on the Fourth Court of Appeals, which had jurisdiction in the case. 

To overturn the case, Belew’s attorney, Patrick O’Fiel, must convince the court’s Chief Justice Jeff Alley, an appointee of Gov. Greg Abbott, and associate justices Gina Palafox and Lisa Soto, both Democrats, that trial court Judge Sid Harle erred in his interpretation of what a final conviction means and that Harle violated state law in making the decision. 

In instructions to O’Fiel and Gregory Sherwood, representing the state, is to keep your arguments to 20 minutes. O’Fiel would receive an additional 10 minutes for a rebuttal. The hearing is at 9 a.m. on Jan. 18. 

Belew’s defense is that his 1973 conviction for burglary was a case of “deferred adjudication,” even though it wasn’t a legally accepted option for young offenders until 1975. At the time of his arrest, Belew was 17, an adult in the Texas legal system. As part of a reform movement, Texas adopted the deferred adjudication option to lessen the harm of a lifelong felony on predominantly youthful offenders. However, no evidence suggests that Belew received that type of punishment. 

Belew argues that the judge in the 1973 case intended a deferred adjudication because there’s no judge’s signature on his conviction. Harle ruled that Belew’s guilty plea agreement, which the judge signed, proved that he had been “finally convicted” and was disqualified from serving as a county commissioner under a state law prohibiting felons from serving as elected officials. 

In turn, O’Fiel’s chief argument now questions Harle’s ability to serve as a visiting judge in the 198th District while serving as the presiding judge of the Fourth Administrative Judicial Region. The defense did not make the Harle qualification argument during the initial proceeding. 

What’s unclear is how long the court will take to decide the merits of Belew’s appeal. If Belew wins an appeal, there are plenty of considerations for Kerr County, including re-seating him and offering back pay. Belew would likely be eligible for state-funded retirement, which hinges on completing two terms in office. 

However, there are plenty of reasons to think this case will continue to go against Belew because of its assumptive defense. Without re-litigating the initial burglary charge, there could be other elements to consider: 

• Belew received a hefty fine for participating in the burglary ring, which included two other teenagers. There’s no evidence to suggest Belew paid the penalties, more than $12,000 in 1973. 
• There are no details on Belew’s plea agreement, and it’s unclear if his other defendants received similar sentences. Initially, Belew faced multiple felony charges but settled on pleading guilty on one. 
• And one point in Belew’s favor was that somehow, Belew’s arrest for disorderly conduct in 1976 went unnoticed by Tarrant County. Under terms of the plea agreement, Belew should have gone to prison for violating his probation.