District Attorney Will Not Prosecute Council Member Jolanda Jones

STATEMENT FROM HOUSTON
CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JOLANDA JONES

From the start, I have maintained that when the facts came to light, I would have acted within the acceptable standards of conduct and was always confident that the District Attorney would come to the same conclusion. In the face of baseless accusations, I cooperated, was truthful, respectfully observed the city’s questionable process and consistently maintained the confidentiality that was required by the Mayor.

I have never used my role as a council member to benefit anything or anyone other than the people I was elected to serve.

It is time for all of us to put this distraction aside and focus on the significant challenges this city faces. I am again asking that the Review Panel bring this matter to a close.

As a council member, I have worked to expand economic opportunities and equality for all Houstonians. I negotiated a water rate and drainage fee that provided for increased fairness to the poor, seniors and the disabled and advocated for property rights and flooding mitigation across the city. I pushed for city leaders to recognize the will of the voters and turn off red-light cameras and I supported aggressive change for BARC and spoke up against police brutality. I have never backed down from a fight for what I believe is in the best interest of Houston and I will continue to work hard for positive change.

I want to take this opportunity to thank my family, my friends and the many Houstonians that have stood by me and never waivered in their support. I want to thank Lori Hood and Vivian King for their exceptional legal counsel throughout this process. I want to especially thank Council Member Bradford for his dedication to conducting the Review Panel fairly and ethically.

I have never lost sight of the needs of our citizens and I take very seriously my role as an advocate for the people of Houston. I will always take a stand on important issues and I will never stop speaking up for citizens that have no voice at city hall. I look forward to continuing to work with the Mayor and my fellow council members to address the issues we were elected to resolve