Jim Wells County Juvenile Board to discuss fees, drug court, transportation issues

A higher price tag for appointed juvenile lawyers was the clearest budget issue before the Jim Wells County Juvenile Board, which was scheduled to meet at 2 p.m. Monday, May 4, in the County Courtroom at 200 N. Almond Street in Alice. The board, chaired by Judge Rumaldo Solis Jr. and also listing Judge Michael V. Garcia and Judge Pedro Trevino Jr., was set to consider raising attorney appointment fees for juvenile court hearings from $300 to $400 per case, a change that could affect county spending and the way families move through the juvenile system.

The agenda also pointed toward a Juvenile Drug Court by June 2026, a sign that Jim Wells County is weighing a more treatment-focused response for some youth cases involving substance use. Belinda M. Garcia is listed in the county juvenile probation directory as Juvenile Probation Officer and Drug Court Coordinator, and the directory shows prevention and intervention officers assigned across Ben Bolt, Orange Grove and Premont. That spread reflects the county’s geography, where juvenile supervision is not centered in one town but stretched across multiple communities.

Transportation was another practical problem on the board’s list. The agenda said juveniles have had trouble getting to hearings, a barrier that can slow cases, complicate court compliance and add pressure on parents or guardians trying to make sure young people appear in Alice on time. The county’s juvenile board page also says the office handles inter-county transfer work, reinforcing that some youth cases already move across jurisdictional lines before they ever reach a hearing.

The meeting notice said the board was operating under Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code and in accordance with Texas juvenile probation standards. It also noted that the courtroom was wheelchair accessible and that requests for accommodations or interpreters had to be made at least 72 hours in advance. The agenda included routine approval of minutes, 2026 department updates and the possibility of an executive session for topics allowed by law, including personnel, property or security matters.

Those details point to more than a routine meeting in Alice. Jim Wells County’s county judge presides over the five-member Commissioners Court with budgetary and administrative authority over county operations, while the County Court at Law has concurrent jurisdiction with district and county courts and the County Attorney handles misdemeanor, truancy and parent-contributing-to-nonattendance cases. Together, those offices shape how the county pays for youth cases, gets children to court and decides whether a problem is handled as punishment, treatment or both.