Pictured are (from left): Roscoe McSwain, Jimmy Lout, Allison Harbison, Lizzet Mendoza, Emma Skinner, Stevie Smith, and Tom Bellmyer.
April 10, 2024 - The Shelby County Commissioners’ Court issued a proclamation declaring April as Sexual Assault Awareness month during their meeting held April 3, 2024,
Family Crisis Center of East Texas had two representatives present for the meeting and they were Lizzet Mendoza, legal advocate for Shelby County, and Emma Skinner, Sexual Assault Advocate for Angelina County. Mendoza shared the agency serves survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.
County Judge Allison Harbison read aloud the Sexual Assault Awareness month proclamation as follows:
“Whereas, Sexual Assault is a pervasive issue that affects individuals, families, and communities across our nation, and
“Whereas rape and sexual assault and sexual harassment harm our communities, and every one of us has a role in protecting the people we love the most.
“And whereas, every 68 seconds an American is sexually assaulted and on average only 33 out of 1,000 cases of sexual assault end up with a conviction
“And whereas young people experience disproportionately higher rates of sexual violence between the ages of 12 to 17 with college campus reports of one in five women and one in 16 men that are
sexually assaulted during their time in school
“And whereas we acknowledge the tireless work of advocates, allies, and community leaders who are committed to ending sexual violence and providing support to survivors
“And whereas the theme of the 2024 campaign is start by believing and calls on individuals to validate and honor the survivor's experience when it is shared and therefore it is proclaimed that the Shelby County Commissioner's Court joins the nation in recognizing April as sexual assault awareness month and commits to promoting awareness of sexual violence, supporting survivors and working towards the prevention of sexual assault in our community.”
Judge Harbison asked the representatives if they had any statistics to reflect the status of cases in Shelby County.
“Here in the last two months the number of clients from Shelby County who have been coming in for services have increased, and you know that just means of course domestic violence sexual assault continues to happen in the county,” said Mendoza. “We're just getting more clients and connecting them with resources to hopefully prevent it from happening in the future, and that's all thanks to all of you and law enforcement and our partnering agencies.”
Commissioner Roscoe McSwain moved to sign and declare the proclamation and his motion was seconded by Commissioner Jimmy Lout. The motion carried.
When the commissioners meeting were set to open sealed bids for Janitorial Services, Judge Harbison stated they have received no bids.
An individual who was providing janitorial service on a part-time basis until someone was hired has already quit before the position could be filled, and Judge Harbison explained departments would need to continue to pitch in and clean in their areas.
The discussion continued on what options might be available and that a lot of services clean at night, which would not be an option for the courthouse due to the sensitive nature of legal and financial documents stored there.
A motion carried to table the janitorial services issue until the next meeting.
The commissioners had on their agenda to possibly approve the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office to have its duct system assessed; however, it had already been performed before they had the opportunity to consider moving forward with the assessment.
“We got a really good report,” said Judge Harbison. “We just need to do some cleaning of the duct system and everything.”
Judge Harbison read a synopsis of what was found of the system and nothing major was reported in the findings.
“We have mold growing in the duct system, not affecting the air quality. Nothing jumps out of being a problem other than visual mold,” said Harbison. “The AC contractor is to clean the air ducts and replace the ceiling tiles that were damaged by moisture.”
Judge Harbison said the consensus of opinion was that the moisture may have generated when the HVAC system was down during the winter, and as a result there was nothing major like mold spores to be concerned over. She said she spoke with the HVAC company that works on the jail systems and someone to clean the ducting was being located.
Not only was the assessment already completed, but a bill was already presented to the court.
Commissioner Tom Bellmyer confirmed the assessment was only for the office area, and Judge Harbison said she would insist that the entire system including office and jail be cleaned. Not just the office area.
With the work to be considered already having been done, the court deemed it a discussion item only.
Judge Harbison said she has spoken with Chief Ruth Gonzales about finding someone to clean the ducts and that she would make sure she is aware the cleaning will be for the entire ducting.
Paxton Water Supply Corporation requested Shelby County sponsor a 2025/2026 Community Block Development Grant (CDBG) application through the Texas Department of Agriculture.
“We did this with Precinct 4 as a county and City of Timpson on the Rose Hill Road,” said Judge Harbison.
Judge Harbison told the court an email recently was received informing that a project previously submitted by the county almost two years ago was being considered.
“No entity can apply for these grants without the approval from the entity they’re in, which Paxton would be in Shelby County,” said Judge Harbison. “If this water system was in the city it would have to go through the city council so they can't just go out and do it without us being partners with them.”
Clint Porterfield, County Auditor, questioned if these grants are fully funded up front, or if they are reimbursable grants, which would require the county to pay for a project and then be reimbursed at a later date.
Discussion continued further and it was decided to table the project for further clarification of several questions.
Commissioner Stevie Smith moved to table the item until the next meeting, and the motion was seconded by Commissioner Lout. The motion carried.
The commissioners were presented with a quote for repair of plumbing issues in the County Clerk’s office.
Commissioner McSwain moved to approve the quote of $1,853 for the repairs to be performed by McWilliams and Sons Inc, to be taken out of the Courthouse Repairs fund, and the motion was seconded by Commissioner Bellmyer. The motion carried.
The final agenda item for the meeting was to discuss radio communications. Instead, Judge Harbison suggested a workshop in the near future for the commissioners to help decide what course of action needs to be taken.
She suggested several entities who would be useful for the workshop.
Earlier in the meeting during public comment, Richard Lundie addressed the court regarding the county radio towers involving emergency personnel and he suggested they seek the Army Corps of Engineers to assess the area and help the county determine what radio equipment is needed to make the system work.
He asked if the county has reached out to them because they work with FEMA and Homeland Security and could help save some expense for the county.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:14am.
Agenda items approved during the meeting include: 1. Pay weekly expenses. 2. Proclamation declaring April as “Sexual Assault Awareness Month”. 3. Quote of $1,853.00 from McWilliams and Sons Inc. for repair of plumbing issues at the County Clerk’s office building and move forward with the project. To be paid for out of Courthouse Repairs fund. 4. Adjourn. Agenda items tabled during the meeting include: 1. Discussion and possible approval of the request from Paxton Water Supply Corporation for Shelby County to sponsor a 2025/2026 Community Block Development Grant (CDBG) application through the Texas Department of Agriculture.
