El Paso’s new District Attorney James Montoya is working to quickly fill a staffing shortage to tackle a backlog of court cases as hope rises for a return of stability to the highest law enforcement seat in far West Texas.
Montoya, 34, was sworn in as the new district attorney for the Texas’ 34th Judicial District during a ceremony Monday, Jan. 6, at the Enrique Moreno County Courthouse’s Ceremonial Courtroom in Downtown El Paso. The 34th Judicial District covers El Paso, Hudspeth and Culberson counties.
“I’m very grateful for the trust that the community has given to me,” Montoya said. “This is a responsibility that I take very, very seriously to be their representative in the criminal justice system. We’re going to do everything that we can to keep this community safe. We’re going to prioritize the crimes that affect this community — crimes of violence, murders, assaults, intoxication cases. We’re going to prioritize the repeat DWIs.”
“Everybody here, left, right, center, old, young. We want to live in a safe community. We want to have a safe home. That is my priority. We’re going to make sure that we’re working with our law enforcement agencies to do that, and that we’re prioritizing the right crimes,” he said.