DA Divisions

In order to insure that the cases that are presented to the District Attorney's Office are handled in the most effective and professional manner, the 79th Judicial District Attorney's Office has broken down the many areas of cases into several divisions. Some divisions have staff members assigned to the specific divisions while other divisions are general subject matter assignments. Below, you will find a list of the current divisions along with a summery of each division. Please note that some divisions will have their own pages.

Administrative Division

The Administrative Division is made up of the District Attorney and his three supervisors. The three supervisors are the First Assistant District Attorney, the Chief Investigator, and the Office Manager. Together, the administrative division manages the day to day operations of the District Attorney's Office, including: administering the assignments for each employee, managing the budget, and implementing & enforcing county and office policy.

Asset Forfeiture Division

Under Texas Law, property can be seized by law enforcement agencies when connected to certain criminal offenses and, if legally shown in Court that the property is contraband under Chapter 59 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, the property is forfeited to the State for use by Law Enforcement and the District Attorney's Office. The District Attorney is the agent for the State of Texas on all Asset Forfeiture cases and is responsible for the prosecution of each forfeiture action from the initial intake of a case through the administration of any funds that may eventually be awarded to the State.

Civil Division

The District Attorney's Office is responsible for the following civil matters: bond forfeitures, open records requests, and asset forfeiture cases. In addition to the civil matters connected to the criminal prosecutions, the District Attorney's Office also has concurrent duties in areas such as health commitments, protective orders, and CPS cases.

Community Service Division

The District Attorney's Office is committed to providing service to our community through educational programs offered to the area law enforcement officers, our local schools, and our citizens. In addition to the educational programs available through our office, the District Attorney's Office has put produced several educational brochures in an effort to bring public awareness to several areas of concern such as personal safety, fraud, and child abuse. In addition to the local efforts, our office is deeply involved with our area legislators in working on bringing positive changes.

Criminal Division

The Criminal Division of the District Attorney's Office is by far the largest division. The 79th Judicial District Attorney's Office handles all of the felony cases in Jim Wells and Brooks Counties and works with over 20 different law enforcement agencies. In addition to all of the felony cases, the DA's office is also charged with handling some specific misdemeanor cases involving public servants and official abuse. The Criminal Division includes several sub-divisions and specialized units, they are: Appeals & Post-Convictions; Gang & Violent Crimes Prosecution Unit; Border Prosecution Unit; Child Victims Unit; Fraud & Property Crimes Unit; and DWI/Controlled Substance Prosecution Unit.

Investigations Division

The District Attorney's office employs several peace officers as investigators, generally, the DA investigators do not conduct criminal investigation. The DA investigators' duties revolve around trial preparation such as serving subpoenas, tracking down witnesses, and Juvenile Justice Division. The District Attorney's Office does not conduct criminal investigation; this is due to the conflicts that will arise due to the fact that the DA's office will be the prosecuting agency for the felony cases generated. If necessary, DA Investigators are assigned to area Law Enforcement Agencies to assist; however, during these assignments, the DA Investigator will follow the policy, direction, and chain-of-command of the agency.

Victim's Services Division

Our goal is to provide our victims service in a compassionate and respectful manner by making sure that their rights and needs are addressed in an efficient, effective, and fair manner. Our Crime Victim's Coordinator along with the entire DA staff are committed to working with National, State, and area crime victim's organizations in order to bring resources to our area. Some of the services provided include: assistance with the Attorney General's Crimes Victim's Compensation Program, providing educational programs related to crime prevention & victim's rights, and providing victim trial support. 

Hot Check Division

Every year, millions of dollars are stolen in Texas from businesses and individuals by thieves using checks to commit their crimes. The 79th Judicial District Attorney's Office is committed to catching these thieves. In an effort to recover the losses suffered by the victims of these crimes, the District Attorney's Office has developed a Hot Check Recovery program. Many people think that every worthless check is automatically a criminal offense. This is not true- there are many instances where the issuance of a bad check is not a crime. Please go to the Hot Check page on this site to learn more.