A longtime Odessa lawman is running for a full term as Precinct 1 Justice of the Peace after being named to the post in April of this year following longtime JP Terry Lange’s retirement.
Republican Carlos Chavez said he has enjoyed his time as a JP since the spring and wants the job for a full term. Terms are four years and this race will be decided in the March primary as there are no Democratic challengers.
Chavez, 59, served with the Odessa Police Department more than three decades and said his background in law enforcement and his ability to conduct business in Spanish are critical to residents in the vast and sprawling Precinct 1.
JP’s set bonds and he said a law enforcement background gives him the ability to understand the charges.
He said he already knew much of the legal side because of his background and he has concentrated on learning the civil side of issues, which can include credit or other financial disputes and landlord/tenant disputes.
“It’s interesting because you can have a lot of mad people sometimes.”
He said there are also happier times with lots of marriages, which justices of the peace often perform. “I couldn’t believe how many people get married at the courthouse,” he said adding that it is a pleasure to be a part of the big day for couples.
Chavez is married to Maria and has a daughter named Mia, 17. He said he is a longtime member of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton and is on the parish counsel.
He said he hit the ground running when he was named to the JP slot and went to commissioners to get the funding to send clerks in his office to clerk school. “They need this training and I fought for it.”
He said his law enforcement background will not mean that he always sides with the cops on items like tickets. “If someone needs to pay their fine they should … but if there is an issue with a ticket, like something is incorrect in the paperwork, it will be dismissed.”
Chavez was born and raised in Odessa and graduated from Odessa High School in 1982. His father had a background in farming, but ended up working at Jones Brothers after arriving in Odessa. He worked there for 25 years prior to retirement. Chavez said he was raised to be a hard worker and was one of seven children.
He attended Crockett Junior High and then OHS where he played football and loved it. He received an associate degree from Odessa College and then later attended the regional academy to become a police officer graduating in 1988.
He said his mother struggled with his desire to become a police officer. “She kept saying it is too dangerous … I kept telling her I wanted to do right and serve the public … that is what I always wanted.”
He spent his career for 35 years with OPD doing a number of different duties. He was a field training officer off and on (mostly on) for his time at OPD. “I was proactive and I like that,” he said.
He said, like most officers, he spent a time on patrol writing tickets and responding to calls for service. He also worked in traffic and then in burglary and assaults. He said being a Spanish speaker helped him better serve Odessans who needed a police officer who spoke their language.
He spent some time working in community relations and then as a detective where he ran an office storefront the OPD had in west Odessa to serve residents.
He said he enjoyed teaching some classes and went from that duty to running a shift as a sergeant and then worked with a K-9 unit.
He became the range master and enjoyed that duty until his retirement. He said officers over the years would often tell him how his training and suggestions helped them in their duties and many said his training saved their lives.
Prior to his retirement, he was named the International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructor of the Year for 2023. He is also a member of the Texas Justice of the Peace and Constable Association and the West Texas Justice of the Peace and Constable Association.
He was also a member of the SWAT team for a number of years.
He said he knew JP Lange was going to retire, but originally thought he would wait until the end of this term. Lange, like Chavez, spent almost three decades with OPD before being elected JP in 1998.
“He called me and said he wasn’t going to wait to retire,” Chavez said. He said Lange told him he was going to put his name out there to replace him for the remainder of the term. The commissioners court appoints for open county positions.
Chavez was one of three to apply for the position and said he was thrilled to be chosen for it and has enjoyed learning the ins and outs of the job. He said staff in the JP office have been helpful and are fantastic.
Chavez also addressed accusations of hazing an OPD police recruit prior to turning in his retirement papers. Chavez was removed from his position as a training sergeant on April 19. Chavez said the accusations were false and pointed out he was never disciplined following the accusations.
He said the recruit who complained wasn’t complaining about how he was treated, but about how someone else was treated. Chavez said he has made recruits run, but did not on the day of the complaint.
In the report, obtained by a Texas Public Information Act request, his supervisor wrote Chavez denied the allegations and claimed the second recruit was being dramatic and couldn’t have seen what was happening.
In response to a second TPIA request, the city’s HR department detailed “no disciplinary measures were taken before Sgt. Chavez’s retirement.”
He said training is tough and should be for recruits, but it is not abusive. “They have to be taught to defend themselves and have to learn how to do things … from changing a tire to how to load and care for a weapon … It is not always fun to be in training … but I did not do what I was accused of doing.”
Chavez will face at least one opponent in the March GOP primary. Jennifer Woodall has filed to run.
Chavez said he will run a positive campaign. “I want people to vote for who I am and what I’ve done in my community. I’ve helped people and I serve my community. That is what I do and, you know, I have loved it and I will represent everyone … I am a Republican, but I will represent and help everyone.”
