HOUSTON – The investigation into the Houston Independent School District by the Harris County district attorney’s office is ongoing, according to an email sent last Thursday by Sean Kozar-King, an assistant district attorney in the public integrity division, to parents who filed criminal complaints last winter and spring.
Kozar-King said he could not “share many details” because of the confidentiality of the grand jury process, but he wrote that his office had received “additional information.”
The email surprised parents, both for its timing and its content. “I really do feel like they are investigating this,” said Laura Hanet.
After months of little communication from the office, parent Heather Golden said she felt prosecutors were beginning to realize the detailed complaints filed by parents were legitimate. “Yes, no kidding — there is a problem in HISD,” Golden said.
The issue 2 Investigates exposed beginning last February centers on more than $1.5 million in taxpayer money used in support of last year’s $4.4 billion bond campaign. Texas law prohibits using public funds to advocate for or against a political measure, several legal experts told 2 Investigates, and the reporting shows HISD allocated $2 million to hire a consulting group to provide “support” in a budget action tied to the bond.
For Golden, filing a criminal complaint with the DA’s office was about getting to the bottom of what was happening inside HISD. “It’s frustrating when all we are trying to do is have accountability for our tax dollars,” she said.
Since the parents filed their complaints, 2 Investigates reported that the district used focus groups that required non-disclosure agreements, or NDAs, to gather feedback on the bond campaign. A whistleblower interviewed in May called the sessions a violation. “I feel what happened in the group was a violation,” the parent said.
In August, 2 Investigates reported that although Brent Chapell, head of the DA’s public integrity division, said the Texas Rangers were leading the investigation, the Rangers were not the lead agency. A Texas Rangers spokesperson said at the time that “no investigation has been launched at this time.”
After that reporting, the DA’s office contacted parents who filed complaints and scheduled meetings with them after months of no action. Parents said a Texas Ranger attended those meetings and listened.
Last week’s email indicates the DA’s office investigation continues after receiving additional information from HISD and Outreach Strategists, “but [the office] is in the process of reviewing that information to determine whether any of it is actionable,” the message said.
Golden said she is cautiously hopeful the DA’s office will hold HISD leaders accountable. “It is all out there for the public to see. This was not done in secret,” she said.
Nearly nine months after filing her criminal complaint and after receiving the email, Hanet said: “I just really want them to investigate as hard as they can, go in as deep as they can.”