Craig Watkins

Dallas DA's New Digital Forensics Lab Could Cause Conflicts of Interest, Critic Says

Ahead of his election day disaster, District Attorney Craig Watkins announced the creation of a new division in his office. He's done this before, most recently with the Civil Rights Division, a team that will investigate, right alongside Internal Affairs, when a police officers shoots someone. The ... More >>

We Knew Craig Watkins Was In Trouble, but Last Night Was Ugly

As in any good tragedy, Craig Watkins' tumble from his perch as Dallas County district attorney was preceded by hubris and stupidity. After badly underperforming compared with the rest of his party in his 2010 re-election win against Republican Danny Clancy, Watkins did everything possible to ensure ... More >>

Democratic PAC Says DA Candidate Susan Hawk Let a Killer Roam Free. Um, Not Exactly.

For three years, a confessed attempted murderer roamed the streets of Dallas, going on a crime spree that ended when he killed a man in July 2007. Michael Wyatt had pleaded guilty to the attempted murder in 2004, but the Dallas District Attorney's Office wanted him to testify against his co-defendan ... More >>

Craig Watkins' Second Town Meeting on Police Violence Calmer, But Long Road Still Ahead

District Attorney Craig Watkins' second town hall meeting on police violence following the killing of an unarmed black teenager in Missouri was much more subdued than the first, though the message was much the same: I'm one of you, and I understand where you're coming from, but things have changed. ... More >>

Susan Hawk Demands to Know Why Craig Watkins Dropped 30 Felony Charges In Trinity Pig Blood Case

Earlier this week, the Dallas County District Attorney's office mysteriously dropped all felony charges against Columbia Packing Co. and its vice president, Joseph Carl Ondrusek Jr., for dumping pig blood into a tributary of the Trinity River in January 2012. Counting last month's dismissal of the c ... More >>

Dallas Attorney Lisa Blue Appears to Be Bankrolling Attacks on Democratic Judge Lena Levario

Amongst the stack of campaign literature that showed up in my mailbox on Saturday, two fliers caught my eye. One featured photograph of a smiling, competent-looking Tammy Kemp, a top administrator in District Attorney Craig Watkins' office currently running for judge in the 204th Criminal District C ... More >>

Watkins and Price: Democrats or Blackocrats?

Not that the office of district attorney isn't political anyway. In the old days when the Republican old guard dangled the local district attorney on puppet strings, the office functioned as a kind of collection agency for the well connected. Walk away from a deal with one of those guys, and the dis ... More >>

The Craig Watkins Machine is Slicker and More Slippery Than a Whole Foods Banana Peel

I am a little ill at ease for the moment. I am looking ahead to my manslaughter charges and trying to plan, not that I intend to manslaughter anybody. In the extremely unlikely event I should be charged with causing someone else to slip on a banana peel at the Lakewood Whole Foods at some point in t ... More >>

Craig Watkins, Master of Literary Technique, Is Misquoting Twain and Comparing Local Courts to North Korea's

District Attorney Craig Watkins has escaped from the contempt-of-court allegations that have dogged him for six months like Charlie Brown's personal rain cloud. A specially appointed judge -- a Republican from Wichita Falls who is far removed from Dallas County political intrigue -- ruled that the h ... More >>

District Attorney Craig Watkins' Epic Quest to Use a Former Drug Dealer's Porsche Boxter

District Attorney Craig Watkins' office wants a Porsche. They just won't say why. "I can't ... give you a comment for the article," Watkins' spokesperson Debbie Denmon said when asked about item No. 15 on tomorrow's Dallas County Commissioners Court agenda: Authorizing the acceptance of a 2001 Por ... More >>

Craig Watkins' Reputation Tattered by Judge's Damning Ruling in Hill Case

Most people have no idea what getting convicted of a crime really would do to them. Really. Not like on TV. As a reporter you catch glimpses. The real damage does not have to do with cops or courthouses. It's not even prison. It's the kid in the window. A man I know told me once about a moment of e ... More >>

Craig Watkins Says He's the Victim of a "Political Lynching" in Noose-Inspired Fundraising Pitch

District Attorney Craig Watkins' reelection campaign has been considerably more difficult than expected, owing to the accusations that he prosecuted Hunt family scion Al Hill III for mortgage fraud at the behest of a wealthy political benefactor. The embarrassing parade of hearings and contempt char ... More >>

Craig Watkins' Attorneys Are Outraged that Special Prosecutor Said the Word "Noose"

We've given up on following the ins-and-outs of Craig Watkins' contempt case. It has long since passed the popcorn stage and descended into the incomprehensible legal muck. The back-and-forth between Watkins and his enemies has strayed so far that the actual matter at hand -- whether the DA brought ... More >>

Craig Watkins' Contempt Battle a Silly Distraction in Scary Times

I'm scared. One, I'm scared because of what's going on in Kaufman County. Two, I'm even more scared because of what's going on here, which seems to be one big stupid-fest. You will remember, perhaps, that Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins brought criminal charges last year against Al H ... More >>

By Holding Craig Watkins in Contempt, Judge Lena Levario Shows She's a Good Democrat. Some Dallas Democrats May Disagree.

So who is this Democrat judge, Lena Levario, who not only stands up to Democratic Party golden boy Craig Watkins, our embattled district attorney, but holds him in contempt of court? Does she not understand the most basic tenet of Dallas County Democratic Party philosophy -- that Dr. King died so th ... More >>

Judge Dismisses Charges against Al Hill III after Craig Watkins Refuses to Answer Questions

Update, 3:52 p.m.: The Dallas Morning News' Jennifer Emily tweets that the case against Hill has been dismissed. Judge Levario cited Watkins' refusal to testify as part of her basis for dismissal. Original post: Craig Watkins wasn't sick today, and contrary to the inexplicably wrong tweets from o ... More >>

Dallas Police Announce Arrest of Craig Watkins' Nephew, Then Realize it Wasn't Watkins' Nephew

We were going to take a pass on this one. We were going to ignore the press release Dallas police sent at 12:39 p.m. informing every media outlet in town that Thomas Lee Watkins III, the 20-year-old nephew of Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins, had been arrested for allegedly shoplifting ... More >>

Federal Judge Finds No Proof of Misconduct by Craig Watkins, but that Won't Help Him in State Court

The District Attorney's office very excitedly announced today that a federal judge found no merit in Al Hill III's allegations of misconduct against Dallas District Attorney Craig Watkins. The allegations stem from a dispute Hill had concerning legal fees he owed his former attorney Lisa Blue, a pr ... More >>

Craig Watkins Thumbs Nose at a Court Order, Unveils New Theory of White People Law

Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins started out with one question to answer. Now that he has defied a subpoena, he's got at least a couple more. Last week Watkins was ordered to appear in the court of state District Judge Lena Levario to answer an accusation that he brought criminal charg ... More >>

Citibank Drops Suit Against DA Craig Watkins, Who Will Agree Not to Sue Them Either

Last week was a bit embarrassing for Craig Watkins as his personal debt to Citibank became a public matter when The Dallas Morning News reported that he owed more than $15,000 in credit card bills, the latest in a history of financial whoopsies. The district attorney explained to Unfair Park that he ... More >>

Craig Watkins Explains How He Got So Broke

​On Christmas, The Dallas Morning News gifted Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins with a big fat lump of coal in article form, detailing a lawsuit filed against him by Citibank that alleges he owes more than $15,000 on his credit card plus interest. The article, supplemented this mo ... More >>

In Dallas and Across Texas, More and More It's Life Over the Death Penalty

Via....not seeing a whole lot of action.​In the death penalty debate, Texas has a long-standing reputation for abiding by one guiding principal: an eye for an eye. But the state has increasingly chosen to holster its lethal-injection needles in recent years, with death-penalty sentences decrea ... More >>

Open Records Now Less Open at Elections Department Thanks to District Attorney's Office

Photo by Sam MertenIf you want copies of Craig Watkins's campaign finance reports, make sure you ask him first.​When we stopped by the Elections Department Friday afternoon to speak with newly appointed Elections Administrator Toni Pippens-Poole, something odd happened. As we've done numerous ... More >>

Generalissimo Craig Watkins: Thin-Skinned, Perfect and Nuts

​On January 13, I wrote a column for the paper about Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins and how thin-skinned and paranoid he seems to be getting. Two days after my column came out Watkins issued a new policy directive to his entire staff telling them they are no longer allowed to t ... More >>

Despite District Attorney Craig Watkins getting re-elected in 2010, he had a really bad year.

To Unclog the Backlog, Craig Watkins Joins In Fight Against Rape Kit Insanity With SANE

From Human Rights Watch, when it called upon Congress to Eliminate the Rape Kit Backlog of more than 400,000 untested kits in forensic storage​Craig Watkins and Co. would like to remind you, as polls open in the thus-far highly contentious Dallas County District Attorney race, that Craig Watkins ... More >>

Craig Watkins's Campaign Says Danny Clancy's TV Ads Are Misleading Voters By Claiming Watkins Hasn't Prosecuted a Case as DA

If you've seen Republican Danny Clancy's latest political ad above or his first one, you know what he views as District Attorney Craig Watkins's biggest wart: never prosecuting a felony case. But that's not true, according to Kurt Watkins, Craig's cousin and campaign manager. In fact, Craig exami ... More >>

While We're on the Subject of Dallas County District Attorney's Race, Let's Look at Watkins', Clancy's Campaign Finance Reports

Sam MertenCraig Watkins​Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins outraised Republican challenger Danny Clancy by more than $50,000 during the latest three-month fund-raising period, while Clancy outspent his Democratic counterpart by more than $20,000, according to campaign finance report ... More >>

In Heated DA's Debate, Craig Watkins Accuses Danny Clancy of Lacking Brain and Backbone

Photos by Sam MertenCraig Watkins​Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins and Republican challenger Danny Clancy stared each other down and traded barbs this afternoon at the Belo Mansion during their first debate, and tensions peaked when Watkins was asked what three issues the two cand ... More >>

Spokesman Takes Blame For Claiming DA Craig Watkins "Helped Free 20 Wrongly Convicted Prisoners" in Campaign E-Mail

Sam MertenDoes it matter how many folks Watkins exonerated? When it's the cornerstone of a campaign, you betcha.​While it's well-known that Dallas County leads the country with a whopping 22 exonerations since 2001 -- 20 of which resulted from the preservation of DNA evidence -- there's been s ... More >>

AG's Office Says DA Watkins Must Hand Over Appointment Schedule to GOP Chair Neerman

Sam MertenCraig Watkins​Two months ago to the day, we told you about Dallas County Republican Party chair Jonathan Neerman's public information request for the calendar of Democratic Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins dating back to his first day in office -- January 1, 2007. Seeme ... More >>

Craig Watkins Just Can't Seem to Please Anybody.

Craig Watkins Doesn't Want Anyone to Know Where He's Been, And He's Asking the Attorney General to Make Sure He Doesn't Have to Tell

Sam MertenCraig Watkins​In an attempt to keep Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins's schedule private, his office has asked for an opinion from the Texas attorney general regarding a public records request for Watkins's calendar dating to his first day in office. In a May 6 letter to Atto ... More >>

AG Investigating Communication Between Watkins, Constables and Tow Company

OAGTexas Attorney General Greg Abbott​While District Attorney Craig Watkins has rejected two offers by the Office of the Attorney General to assist in a criminal investigation of the constables, the OAG is conducting an ongoing civil investigation of Dowdy Ferry Auto Services, according to an ... More >>

Craig Watkins Won't Always Talk to the Media. But He'll Talk About the Media.

Craig Watkins speaking at SMU on Wednesday​Speaking of Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins ...This week, SMU hosted a Media and Human Rights Symposium that featured among its guests Watkins, a few profs and even a noted Oscar-winning filmmaker. Watkins delivered his presentation on Wedne ... More >>

Belo Attempts to Break News One Week Late; Lawyer Cites "Cloud of Suspicion" Surrounding West-Watkins Relationship

If the story about DA Craig Watkins refusing a second attempt by the OAG to help investigate the constables was news, that's news to us.​For those who didn't read our cover story last week, the Office of the Attorney General made a second attempt on February 23 to lend a helping hand to Distri ... More >>

GOP Chair Jonathan Neerman Suggests Judicial Candidates May Be Hiding Use of Tanya Watkins as Consultant

David Kelton​While combing through the recent campaign finance reports filings due Friday, we took notice of the one turned in by former Republican Judge David Kelton, who lost his robe in 2006 to Carlos Cortez, switched parties and is now battling Dale Tillery and Baltasar Cruz in the Democra ... More >>

Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins Thinks He Did a Pretty Good Job in 2009

Brian HarkinDallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins​It's always a good idea 'round this time of the year to make a list of accomplishments, if only to figure out what you need to get done in the coming year. So happens, of course, that Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins needs to g ... More >>

GOP Chair Jonathan Neerman Says DA Craig Watkins is Trying to "Start a War" By Sending E-Mail Claiming He Attacked His Family

​Nearly three months after he told us that Tanya Watkins -- the wife of District Attorney Craig Watkins -- working as a campaign consultant for judicial candidates posed an "ethical dilemma" for the couple and presented "the potential appearance of impropriety," Dallas County Republican Party ... More >>

No Love Lost Letters: An Inside Peek at the Battle Over the District Attorney's Budget

Brandon ThibodeauxDallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price​At 7 tonight, Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins will speak to an audience at Irving City Hall about the county's budget cuts -- specifically, those cuts affecting his office. He has invited Dallas County Commissioner Kenneth ... More >>

Craig Watkins on Death Penalty: No, But With a Yessy Aftertaste

Craig Watkins is for the death penalty. Also, against it. Newsweek wonders in the new issue whether Texans have lost their taste for the death penalty. Yes, the state "still accounts for more than half of all executions in the United States," report Evan Thomas and Martha Brant, but "Texas prosecuto ... More >>

Think, Goddamnit!

Screw This

Politics are boring, let's talk about sex

That's So Craig Watkins!

Craig Watkins, you are one powerful man. Seriously, that's what Ebony says in its May issue (the "Ebony Power 150" issue, to be exact), and who are we to argue with the fact that the Dallas County District Attorney has "The New Power"? The magazine's list of "the next generation of African-American ... More >>

Is Craig Watkins from Kazakhstan?

A Friend of Unfair Park read our earlier item about Craig Watkins' Web site comments and sent a missive directing us to his comments in the League of Women Voters' campaign insert that appeared, among other places, in the paper version of Unfair Park. Whyohwhy don't we actually pay attention to thos ... More >>

Watkins: "I Enjoy Manipulating the Government." Oh, Really?

Mark Graham A month before the election, Craig Watkins took off his law firm's Web site a page proclaiming his desire to defend his clients "by any means necessary." Man, I really wish I hadn't thrown away all that campaign junk mail that filled my mailbox in the past few weeks. Apparently, buri ... More >>

Watkins: Not Entirely Shook Up?

Toby Shook isn't gonna be Dallas County District Attorney, but that doesn't mean Craig Watkins is ready to get rid of his former opponent. Dallas County District Attorney-elect Craig Watkins didn't exactly ease concerns that he wasn't quite up for the job during the Dallas County Democratic Party v ... More >>

Night of the Living Dead

Mark Graham Craig Watkins is the new Dallas County District Attorney. You think you're shocked, imagine how Toby Shook feels. People are walking around like zombies at Dallas County courthouses today as incumbent judges who looked invincible last week began contemplating the prospect of looking ... More >>

Matt Pulle's Crystal Ball

Although the November 7th election is more than a week away, the prescient minds at Unfair Park are able to divine some of the day-after press coverage. Excerpts after the jump.

Craig's List

Debtors like Craig Watkins used to end up in jail. Now they run for district attorney.