Judge Vanessa Velasquez
183rd Criminal District Court

Judge Vanessa Velasquez was appointed to preside in the 183rd Criminal District Court in 2005 by Texas Gov. Rick Perry. She won her first four-year term in 2006 and is seeking her second full term in 2010. Judge Velasquez, consistently one of the highest-rated criminal judges in local bar polls, worked both as a defense attorney and a prosecutor before taking the bench. She joined the Harris County District Attorney’s Office in 1990, served as a chief felony prosecutor and worked there until her judicial appointment. She is a graduate of the University of Houston and the South Texas College of Law. She is a member of the Houston Bar Association, the State Bar of Texas and St. Michael’s Catholic Church. She is also a former mentor at Jeff Davis High School. She also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law Center, where she has taught trial advocacy since 2008, and is one of four criminal district judges presiding over the successful STAR (Success Through Addiction Recovery) Drug Court.

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Harris County Republican Party
3311 Richmond Ave., Suite 218
Houston, Texas 77098