Inexplicable goings-on down in the Valley:
“Donna school board President Alfredo Lugo hanged himself in his home on New Year’s Day, authorities confirmed Thursday.”
Donna ISD is located in the Rio Grande Valley between McAllen and Harlingen. Lugo’s reason?
“The motive for the suicide was not immediately clear, but it came shortly after federal authorities arrested three women accused of buying votes for school board candidates in the most recent Donna ISD election.”
A school board election? Really? It’s not exactly a small district, given it’s $150 million budget, but still. Why would you even rig a school board election?
Maybe for the graft? In 2011, six district officials were convicted “in a bribery scheme that that totaled more than $600,000” stretching back to at least 2002.
Also of note: former Donna schools Superintendent Andres Martinez was awarded $1.2 million in damages in 2009:
“Martinez, who served as the Donna school district’s chief administrator during part of 2001, sued the district and several of its then school board trustees, alleging they had conspired to illegally fire him because he refused to hire, promote or give raises to political operatives who supported the majority faction on the board.”
Donna also has a long-standing issue with the drug trade. Related? Maybe, maybe not.
Something stinks down in the Valley, and it’s not Mexican cheese. Attorney General Greg Abbott and/or the Texas State Board of Education (I’m unclear who would have the responsibility) might want to consider launching a full audit of the district to see just where the money has been going…
(Hat tip: Prairie Pundit.)
Tags: Alfredo Lugo, Crime, Democrats, Donna ISD, Texas
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Lawrence, in many small towns in Texas, and the rest of the country, the local school district is often the largest employer. In the Valley, where corruption runs rampant and ethical standards tend to be somewhat malleable, the patronage opportunities for a school board trustee are almost endless. In some town, certain families who control school boards flout nepotism rules with seeming impunity. This is very common in the Valley.
Frankly, this seems to be very common wherever large groups of Latinos gather. I have no idea why. Could be the Democratic thing, could be cultural, I don’t know.
The brother-in-law system of hiring is a Valley tradition. The Sheriff’s Dept., schools, grocery stores, etc. Donna Ass’t Superintendant Castillo’s wife is a principal. Each time he got promoted, she did, too. Imagine that! The sad part is the kids suffer. A high school diploma from Donna is equivalent to a 3rd grade education elsewhere.
[…] remember Donna ISD down in the Rio Grande Valley? You know, where the school board president committed suicide over a vote-buying scandal that followed hot on the heels of a bribery and graft […]
[…] Vote-Buying and Suicide Over a School Board Election? […]