Houston Chronicle by St. John Barned-Smith 11/30/2018
Courthouse officials were scrambling to find a judge Friday afternoon to hear a lawsuit by the Houston Police Officers Union against the city of Houston and the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association, that seeks an immediate halt to implementation of a voter-approved ballot initiative that would give Houston firefighters “pay parity†to police officers of similar status.
The lawsuit, filed midday Friday in the 234th state district civil court, seeks to block “Proposition B,†arguing it amounts to an unconstitutional amendment to Houston’s charter, and was void from the start. After hearing initial argument by the police union lawyer to put on the brakes, State District Judge Wesley Ward indicated to lawyers he planned to recuse himself and needed to find another judge in the building who could take over.
Ward, a Republican who was voted out last month on the same ballot with Proposition B, reportedly told attorneys in chambers he had a conflict of interest because he planned to join a law firm where one of the attorneys on the case works.
More:
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Houston-police-union-files-lawsuit-to-block-Prop-B-13434836.php