Tuesday, March 5, 2024, 7AM - 7PM is Election Day
Juan J. Aguirre for Judge Harris County Criminal Court at Law #16
- Well Qualified
- Experienced
- Knowledgeable
- Judicial Temperament
- 22 Years Criminal Law Experience
- Endorsements
About Me
My Background
I am the middle child, and only male, born to Jose and Maria Aguirre in Del Rio, Texas. My mother was a housewife who baby sat, ironed clothes, and took on other chores to help in the economics of the home. She was born in Mexico and came to the United States in 1963, when she married my father. My father dropped out of middle school to work and help his family. He was a janitor for the county courthouse in Val Verde County for over 30 years, until he retired. I remember many times during my youth going to help him clean the courthouse after getting out of school, as did my sisters.
This is where I first learned about the practice of law--and fell in love with it. I watched lawyers argue for their clients and the judges preside over the trials. Every other weekend, my Dad and I would go and mow the grass of the District Judge and County Court at Law Judge. We had a very humble, but very happy childhood, focused on family, faith, and education. I graduated from Del Rio High School in 1985; third in my class of 514 students.
I attended Texas A&M University on scholarship, graduating in May 1989 with a Bachelor of Environmental Design--Architecture. I began the Masters of Architecture program at A&M, but moved to the Masters of Urban Planning, graduating in December 1991. I moved back home to Del Rio and began working as City Planner for Del Rio in January 1992. I held that position until 1996, when I became Assistant City Manager, in charge of Public Works, Engineering, Police and Fire Departments. My sisters and I are first-generation born children of immigrants, first generation to graduate high school, to achieve a bachelors and masters degree; a huge accomplishment, coming from parents that had to drop out in middle school to help with family.
I left Del Rio in 1998 to study law at South Texas College of Law and have been in Houston ever since then. After law school, I started as an Assistant District Attorney in Harris County, rising through the misdemeanor, juvenile and felony ranks. I left in the District Attorney's Office in December 2005 and have been in private practice as a criminal defense attorney ever since.
I have been married to Ivonne Aguirre for almost 18 years. We have a 17 year old son, Juan Mateo Aguirre, who attends Heights High School, an HISD school, in the Heights Area. We attend St Joseph-St Stephen Catholic Parish in the 6th Ward, where I am a member of the Finance Council and a Eucharistic Minister in the Spanish and English masses. We volunteer with church fall festivals, fundraisers, feeding the homeless, with the Heights High School PTO and Baseball Booster Club.
Why I Am Qualified
I am running as a Democratic Candidate for Harris County Criminal Court at Law Judge. I have been a criminal defense attorney for the last 17 years and I also served as an Assistant District Attorney for almost 5 years. Everyday, I am at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center and have handled just about every type of case at the courthouse. I have practiced in all of the 16 misdemeanor and 26 felony courts. I am well qualified, experienced, knowledgeable of the law and procedure and have the calm judicial temperament to serve as Judge.
In my 17+ years as a Criminal Defense Attorney, I have represented well over 10,000 people. Each case is person and a human story, someone's son or daughter, father or mother, not just a case number. During my time as a lawyer, I have tried 103 cases to a Jury, most with favorable results.
Why I Am Running
Most of my practice is doing appointments in the misdemeanor and felony courts. In my 17+ years of being a defense attorney, I have handled over 10,000 cases. The defendants that I have been assigned are indigent and cannot afford to hire an attorney. I firmly believe that every defendant is entitled to qualified, experienced, and zealous advocate representing him. Everyday I see defendants in the holdover cell or in the courtroom lacking representation. They are entitled to quality representation and their day in court.
Additionally, I believe that there needs to be innovative solutions to sentencing to allow the accused to be able to keep a criminal conviction off their records and for society's interests in public safety to be served as well. The Scales of Justice are a fitting symbol of the balance of these two interests.