Ongoing Controversies

Judge Carlos Cortez loses battle to keep allegations of drugs and prostitutes private

State District Judge Carlos Cortez has lost a years-long battle to keep an ethics complaint against him from entering the public record. The Texas Court of Appeals ruled on April 16 that the documents should not be restricted.

The ruling stems from a 2010 defamation lawsuit that Cortez filed against his former attorney, Randy Johnston. In the process of defending himself against claims of defamation and libel, Johnston filed a number of records alleging proof of Cortez's criminal behavior.

Chief Justice C.J. Morriss calls the accusations against Cortez criminal as well as "embarrassing and offensive."

In the court's April 16 decision, chief justice C.J. Morriss summarizes the case's circular conundrum thusly:

"Cortez claimed to be defamed, filed suit, demanded proof, and then, when responsive evidence was filed, dismissed his suit and demanded that the evidence be sealed."

As of 3:30 pm on April 16, the documents in question had not yet appeared on the Dallas County courts website.

A representative from the 298th District Court, where the Cortez case was filed, said she was waiting on the mandamus from the court of appeals before releasing the documents, which were filed in 2011 but never saw the light of day due to Cortez's motions to seal them.

In an effort to gain copies of the documents, the Dallas Morning News, Texas Lawyer and judge Marty Lowy joined the suit. According to the DMN, the records include allegations that Cortez sexually assaulted a little girl.

Chief Justice Morriss writes that the accusations are criminal in nature as well as "embarrassing and offensive." In his original lawsuit, Cortez cited "unfounded and dishonest allegations" of "hiring prostitutes and using drugs."

Cortez, who lost a bid for reelection in March, was also involved in a separate, high-profile legal case. Cortez criticized the Dallas police for arresting him after a dispute with his girlfriend in December 2013. A grand jury declined to indict Cortez on a felony assault charge for family violence on February 20.

The very same day, Cortez appeared on Fox 4 news and shared for the first time a November 2013 cellphone video in which his girlfriend appears to throw herself from his moving car and then blame Cortez for the incident. Dallas police said they had never been informed of the cellphone video's existence until it was played on the news.

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power play

Dallas Stars skate from downtown toward Plano with new arena plans

Dallas Stars Facebook

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The Dallas Stars are planning to move north, out of downtown and to the suburb of Plano in five years after the lease is up at the NHL team's current home arena.

Stars officials announced Tuesday, June 2 the signing of a nonbinding letter of intent to build a new hockey-specific arena and entertainment district about 20 miles north of the downtown American Airlines Center, which they have shared with the Dallas Mavericks since it opened in 2001.

The leases at the AAC for both teams expire in 2031. The two franchises have been in a legal dispute about their partnership agreement and management of the building.

The Stars made their intentions known a day after the Mavericks said they have a preliminary agreement on a site for their own new arena about 10 miles north of downtown, but still within the Dallas city limits. The NBA's team deal is for 104 acres on the former site of Valley View Mall, which was demolished three years ago.

A new arena for the Stars is expected to be part of a large-scale redevelopment project at The Shops at Willow Bend, where the last enclosed mall built in Texas is set for demolition.

The Stars submitted their letter of intent to the city of Plano, which placed it on the City Council agenda for consideration at its next meeting Monday. The letter includes plans for the mixed-used project as well as design and construction of the arena.

“This project would present a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our franchise,” Stars owner Tom Gaglardi said in a statement. “We eagerly await the vote by the Plano City Council and look forward to continuing the conversation to be part of the redevelopment of The Shops at Willow Bend.”

That mall on about 90 acres opened in 2001, and there are open restaurants and parking garages in the area. The new arena would anchor the redevelopment that could include sports, entertainment, retail, dining and public gathering spaces.

The NHL franchise was known as the North Stars before moving south from Minnesota and beginning play in Dallas for the 1993-94 season. The Stars in 1999 became the first of hockey's Sun Belt teams to win a Stanley Cup title.

The Stars won that championship while still playing at Reunion Arena, a building they also shared with the Mavericks after first moving to Dallas. The site of that downtown arena, which was fully demolished in 2009, is about a mile from the AAC.

The NFL's Cowboys were in Dallas during the franchise's first 11 seasons at the city's Cotton Bowl (1960-70), but moved to Texas Stadium in Irving in 1971, the season of their first Super Bowl title. They have played since 2009 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

Arlington is also home to the Texas Rangers, the franchise that began as the Washington Senators in 1961. The Rangers are in their third stadium in Arlington since moving there in 1972. Globe Life Field, their retractable-roof stadium adjacent to AT&T Stadium, opened in 2020.