Protestors gather outside Fort Bend County Judge KP George's office to call for his resignation

Nick Natario Image
Wednesday, October 9, 2024
Protestors gather outside Fort Bend County Judge KP George's office to call for his resignation
Protestors gather outside Fort Bend County Judge KP George's office to call for his resignationDespite resignation shouts feet from his office, Fort Bend County Judge KP George said he's not going anywhere. On Tuesday, protestors gathered outside the courthouse ahead of the commissioners' court meeting.

RICHMOND, Texas (KTRK) -- Despite resignation shouts feet from his office, Fort Bend County Judge KP George said he's not going anywhere.

On Tuesday, protestors gathered outside of the historic Fort Bend County courthouse ahead of the commissioners' court meeting. Many filed into the meeting afterward, but despite a packed room, no one was allowed to address the judge because there wasn't an item about it on the agenda.

Nearly two weeks ago, George was charged with impersonation tied to a fake racism case involving social media posts. Documents accuse George of working with his then-chief of staff to create hateful messages against himself a couple of months before his re-election.

His former staffer, Taral Patel, is also charged. Prosecutors say a year after George's social media posts, Patel created messages targeting himself while he was running for county commissioner.

ABC13 tried to ask George questions on Tuesday, but he declined to comment.

His staff invited ABC13 to meet individually with the judge. ABC13 was told he would read a statement, and not answer questions.

Questions surrounding the case aren't just coming from ABC13. On Tuesday, a group of protestors gathered outside of the courthouse.

"You typically don't get indicted, especially a county judge, in the county that you're in, for something that you don't do," protestor Chris Gawlik said. "Then, when you're getting indicted, you don't try to do a delete on your phone."

"We need some honest, good persons running our county," protestor Bach William said.

The protest comes after some county leaders called for George to step down. He's not only fighting to stay in office, but his attorney is working to throw out the case.

Days ago, a motion was filed to get rid of the charge against George. Prosecutors told ABC13 they expected it and have no plans to stop the investigation.

While George surrendered to the sheriff's office after he was indicted, there are three months before his first court appearance.

That's too long for some who stood outside a different courthouse (Tuesday) to let George know how they felt.

"If he didn't get the message, people who support him hopefully did," Gawlik explained. "People within his office hopefully did. Hopefully, people in his office resign saying, 'I don't want to work for somebody like this. This is not what I'm trying to represent.'"

George's office sent a statement to ABC13:

"Everyone has the right to assemble (gather) peacefully and make their voices heard, just as I have the right to a due process under the legal system, which I am fully pursuing. My attorney has filed a Writ to dismiss the charges. In the meantime, I will continue to serve the people of Fort Bend County."

Patel's opponent, Commissioner Andy Meyers sent ABC13 a statement about the protest:

"Today, dozens of protesters gathered peacefully to demand KP George's resignation, echoing what I called for three weeks ago. Judge George knows if he is guilty or not. If he knows he is, he should apologize and resign. But instead of addressing our community's concerns, Judge George chose to file a legal motion seeking to have his criminal charges dismissed so that he never has to explain himself to a jury or our community. It is time for the judge and my opponent, Taral Patel, to stop dodging accountability and explain what truly happened."

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