Judge Maria Jackson, Harris County’s longest-serving felony court judge, was well received at the HPOU October general membership meeting when she announced to the crowd that she will oppose Commissioner Rodney Ellis in the March Democratic primary.
The judge has long been a favorite of HPOU for her fairness to both sides in criminal cases before her and, especially, when the issue becomes setting bonds for defendants.
Ellis has sought to make bonding out easier for too many habitual criminals, a stance strongly opposed by the HPOU.
Jackson served 10 years on the felony bench before resigning Sept. 30 to set the stage for her challenge to Ellis. She served as judge in the 339th State District Court for 10 years. Prior to that service she was a Houston municipal court judge, where she got to know numerous HPD officers. She unsuccessfully ran for the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in 2018.
Jackson earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas and graduated from the Texas A&M School of Law.
She told the HPOU membership that she will face a well-financed incumbent but said she believes her judicial service will speak for itself and demonstrate that she can be an effective commission for Precinct 1 residents. The precinct has the county’s largest proportion of Democratic voters.