Managing shareholder Chad Baruch represented appellants Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins and County Commissioners Dr. Elba Garcia and Andy Sommerman and the Dallas County Commissioners Court before the Texas Court of Appeals for the Fifth District at Dallas in a dispute against the Dallas County Juvenile Board.
The case arose from the commissioners’ pursuit of treatment records for juvenile detainees in the wake of allegations that children were locked in cells for up to 23 hours a day. The Commissioners Court refused to approve the Juvenile Board’s budget and raises until records requested were provided prompting the board to file suit.
Mr. Baruch’s argument sought to remind the appeals court that the Commissioners Court acted within its statuary authority and that a lower court’s decision based on what it described as political motives was beyond the lower court’s purview.
Mr. Baruch’s presented his oral argument on Nov. 19. A decision will be made by the court sometime in 2025. The case is Dallas County Commissioners Court v. Dallas County Juvenile Board (No. 05-24-00151-CV).