Prosecutor fired after ‘illegal’ backlash
DA dismisses top official who allegedly declined charge based on migrant status
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg on Friday announced her decision to fire a prosecutor who allegedly refused to file charges in a case after questioning whether the Mexican victim was “illegal.”
The move comes after days of public criticism from politicians, law enforcement unions and the League of United Latin American Citizens, who all called for the termination or resignation of now-former assistant district attorney John Denholm.
“It is wrong to ask about a victim’s immigration status. It is against our policy, and it won’t be tolerated,” Ogg said, announcing her decision. “We treat everyone equally under the law, no matter how they came to be here.”
Denholm, who had previously been reassigned pending an investigation, did not respond to the Houston Chronicle’s request for comment but later told the Washington Post he was “aware of who made the inflammatory allegations.”
A former homicide lieutenant, Denholm became an attorney in 2008 while still working at the Harris County Sheriff’s Office. After more than two decades with county law enforcement, he left to practice family law. When Ogg took office in 2017, she hired Denholm to oversee intake, the division responsible for deciding whether to pursue charges after police make an arrest.
Since then, he’s often butted heads with police and sheriff’s deputies who say he’s too reluctant to file charges.
“He historically has been challenging to law enforcement and refuses to accept solid charges,” Harris County Deputies Organization president David Cuevas said earlier this week when calling for Denholm’s termination.
When that termination came on Friday, Houston Police Officers’ Union president Joe Gamaldi lauded the decision.
“We are glad that finally the district attorney’s office decided to take action on this reprehensible act by one of their top officials,” he said. “Now the work starts of rebuilding the trust be