Austin lawyer files petition to release all Waco bikers

Statesman ^ | June 4, 2015

[don-o]

An Austin attorney on Thursday filed a petition asking the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals to intervene in the release of more than 100 bikers that have remained incarcerated since the deadly May 17 shooting in Waco that killed nine.

Austin attorney Keith S. Hampton is asking the court to order the district judge who presides over the Waco region to start arrangingbond hearings for the bikers still in McLennan County Jail on $1 million bails.

To help with the large amount of suspects, the bond hearings would be conducted by judges outside McLennan County.

“If the county gets deluged with arrests it has a duty to assign judges to handle the backlog and is supposed to do it without delay,” Hampton said.

If the petition is granted, retired Williamson County District Judge Billy Ray Stubblefield would be the one to oversee and appoint judges from the 26-county region that includes Travis and McLennan counties to conduct bail hearings. Hampton’s petition asks the appeals court to order Stubblefield to begin making appointments, court documents said.

The release of bikers has been moving slowly, but has sped up in the past week as motions and lawsuits against McLennan County have rolled in from lawyers across the state seeking the quick release of their clients.

After the shooting that started at the parking lot of a Twin Peaks restaurant, Waco police filed blanket charges of engaging in organized crime — a first-degree felony — against more than 170 bikers. The $1 million bails have prevented most of them from being released. In total, 47 bikers have been released, according to the Waco Tribune.

Hampton has not been hired by any of the bikers. He said after seeing reports of the slow-moving process, he decided to file as a petitioner to jump-start bond hearings.

On Thursday, a visiting judge also denied a request from Austin attorneys George Lobb and Adam Reposa to recuse McLennan County district judges from all cases related to the May 17 shootout at the Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco, which authorities believe was a result of a biker gang turf war.

[winodog]

I thought the State defenders were trying to lump all bikers into the one percent.

[Travis McGee]

Yeah, if you don’t support police SWAT massacres, you’re John Kerry. Right.

[Travis McGee]

You obviously missed the earlier threads where the jackboot lickers were saying exactly that, all bikers = scum.

[TexasGator]

“I thought the State defenders were trying to lump all bikers into the one percent.”

No.

[TexasGator]

“You obviously missed the earlier threads where the jackboot lickers were saying exactly that, all bikers = scum.”

I didn’t miss the earlier threads. No one said all bikers were scum but there were a lot that said gangs like the Bandidos were just your average good citizen with wife and family and job.

[Finny]

But its damn sure a fact that those involved in the Waco shootout were biker gangs = scum.

Really? And the fact that the vast majority don't have criminal records in Texas ... ?? Most of them came from out of state, then? Or maybe, the vast majority of biker gang scum don't have an arrest .. or two ... or 20 ... on their records?

If you believe that most biker scum don't have criminal records, then you must also believe in the tooth fairy.

[wastoute]

As I understood it you were trying to defend the myth of the “tumbling .223”

[wastoute]

Woah! I never claimed Bandidos were anything other than what I know them to be and have posted repeatedly that I personally would go out of my way to avoid them.

[X-spurt]

The ploy won’t work either way.

[X-spurt]

This is your fairy tale, big boy. I’m just trying to inject some reality to help you all from looking like complete fools.

[Travis McGee]

Obviously, they were all biker trash, and it's a good thing they were all shot or arrested, just like the jackboot lickers say.

I mean, thank goodness that the Waco SWAT and ATF special response team just happened to be there, to put an end to the outrageous biker violence!

(Just like how lucky it was that Lt. Calley and his soldiers just happened to be passing by My Lai, so they could put an end to that vicious Vietnamese family feud!)

Waco shooting: Purple Heart recipient among nine bikers killed

Jesus Delgado Rodriguez, 65, was Vietnam war veteran

Family: ‘If he thought there was going to be violence he wouldn’t have gone’

One of nine bikers killed at a shootout outside a Texas restaurant was a Vietnam veteran and Purple Heart recipient whose family members dispute police claims he was in a criminal group.

An Associated Press review of Texas court records and a database maintained by the state department of public safety turned up no criminal history in Texas for Jesus Delgado Rodriguez, 65, of New Braunfels. And his son Vincent Ramirez told the San Antonio Express-News that he was not violent.

Rodriguez was one of nine bikers killed on Sunday when gunfire erupted at Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco, where motorcyclists had gathered for a meeting. Authorities have said the shooting began during an apparent confrontation between two rival motorcycle gangs – the Bandidos and the Cossacks.

The Waco police spokesman, Sergeant W Patrick Swanton, told the AP on Wednesday that all those killed were part of those two gangs. He did not return phone messages on Thursday seeking comment about Rodriguez.

Military records show Rodriguez was a marine on active duty from 1969 and 1973, and received the Purple Heart, given to those wounded or killed in action. He also received a navy commendation medal and other awards.

Family members said Rodriguez was a biker and had belonged to two now-defunct motorcycle clubs, one of which allowed couples. But he was not part of any club when he was killed at Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco, they said, though he had friends who were Bandidos.

“If he thought there was going to be violence he wouldn’t have gone.” Rodriguez’s son-in-law Amado Garces told the Express-News.

When gunfire erupted in the parking lot of the restaurant, most of the leather-clad motorcycle riders watching the confrontation from the patio or inside immediately ran away from the shooting. A few tried to direct people to safety, crawling on all fours to seek cover.

One biker ran away with blood on his face, hands and torso. A woman could be heard screaming, “Oh my God!” Others yelled, “Get down!”

Restaurant security video reviewed exclusively by the AP on Wednesday showed only one of the dozens of bikers recorded firing a gun from the patio of the restaurant. None of the nine video angles shows the parking lot.

Many of the bikers on tape are likely to have been arrested by Waco police, who rounded up about 170 people, charged them with felony engaging in organised criminal activity and set their bonds at $1m.

Some bikers have complained that police acted too hastily in making arrests and scooped up riders who had nothing to do with the violence.

Swanton declined to comment about the video on Wednesday. Swanton has said the people arrested were members of biker gangs with criminal elements that have been monitored by local authorities for months.

“They were not here to drink and eat barbecue,” Swanton said earlier this week. “They came here with violence in mind.”

The AP was shown the video by representatives of the Twin Peaks franchise, who have said the fighting began outside the restaurant, not inside as police have said. The franchise has not released the video publicly, citing the ongoing investigation.

Video footage shows police with assault rifles entering the door about two minutes after the shooting begins. As two officers enter, bikers can be seen lying on the floor with their hands spread.

[Travis McGee]

You don’t need your help, LT. Calley. We know your kind.

[Travis McGee]

Here is a video showing your heroes in action. Of course, it's just a training film. Not like the films from Twin Peaks, which are not being released. They will make an even better film someday.

[Finny]

Well, what you're accomplishing is revealing yourself as an enemy of freedom, the Constitution, and honor.

Head's up, all.

[TexasGator]

“As I understood it you were trying to defend the myth of the “tumbling .223””

I never mentioned ‘tumbling’ although if you have a slow twist it will tumble.

[TexasGator]

“Woah! I never claimed ...”

I never claimed you claimed anything. I was just making MY position 100% clear.

[Finny]

ATTENTION -- this guy, X-purt, apparently thinks that "biker gangs = scum" are so clever and accomplished, and police so inept, that TWO THIRDS of criminal bikers don't even have arrest records.

That is X-spurt's take on the comparative skills of police and bikers, so you might consider it as you weigh the value of his comments here on this issue.

Just FYI. :^)

[mac_truck]

Yeah, if you don’t support police SWAT massacres, you’re John Kerry. Right.

But if you don't believe the Waco shootout was a police SWAT massacre, you're Lt. Calley. Got it.

Hey...is that you OWSer?

[TexasGator]

“Some bikers have complained that police acted too hastily in making arrests and scooped up riders who had nothing to do with the violence. “

This rider said otherwise ....

---

Snyder had no criticism of how police responded or their decision to open fire.

“The police were professional, considering the situation they were in. They were professional and doing their job,” he said.”

http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-waco-biker-20150519-story.html

[TexasGator]

” But he was not part of any club when he was killed at Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco, they said, though he had friends who were Bandidos.”

““He hung out with Bandidos ...”

Enough said.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/New-Braunfels-man-killed-in-Waco-shooting-enjoyed-6277290.php