Orlando Jimenez Reprimanded

Orlando Jimenez, the municipal judge for Progreso, Texas, was publicly reprimanded by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct after failing to respond to its investigation into a complaint over a driver's license hold tied to a 2009 traffic citation. The Commission mailed Jimenez a letter of inquiry on June 27, 2023, giving him until July 12 to respond, but he never did. The city clerk told the Commission he had personally given the letter to Jimenez, who instructed him to forward it to the city attorney instead. Jimenez later had the clerk email the Commission requesting an extension due to a death in the family, which was granted — but no response followed. Only after an October 31, 2023 phone call from the Commission did Jimenez agree to an informal appearance in December 2023, at which he testified he had been unaware of the original letter until that phone call. The Commission found Jimenez's failure to cooperate with its investigation violated judicial conduct standards and warranted the public reprimand.