Marcos Lizarraga Admonished

Marcos Lizarraga, judge of the 168th Judicial District Court in El Paso, Texas, was publicly admonished by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct for engaging in improper ex parte communications during the high-profile 2019 murder trial of Moises Galvan, who was charged with killing RJ Franco. The Commission found Lizarraga held at least four separate one-sided meetings in 2019 with defense attorneys and prosecutors regarding witness testimony — discussions held without the opposing side present, in violation of judicial ethics rules meant to ensure both sides are heard together. The Commission concluded that Lizarraga's repeated ex parte meetings compromised the appearance of fairness in the case and formally admonished him to hold himself to a higher standard in future proceedings.