As noted in this earlier post on the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, today is Go Texan Day in Houston in which many Houstonians don their best Western wear clothing for the day. As the trailriders descend upon Memorial Park later today, the Chronicle reports that one of the trailrider groups will be led by the first woman trailride boss in history. The Rodeo kicks off tomorrow with the annual Rodeo Parade in downtown Houston beginning at 10 a.m.
As noted earlier in this post, the street rebuilding project that has been going on in downtown Houston during almost the entire administration of former Mayor Lee Brown has been one of the mostly poorly managed public works projects in recent Houston history. This Chronicle article gives a good example of the legacy of this mess that new Mayor Bill White has inherited.
Brian Coyne, 58, a Houston defense lawyer who caused a downtown car wreck in January, 2003 that killed Michael Bruns, a Chase Bank officer from The Woodlands, was sentenced Monday to five days in jail, eight years’ probation, fined $10,000, and ordered to perform 350 hours of community service after pleading guilty to criminally negligent homicide in December. Mr. Coyne could have faced up to 10 years in prison.
This marks the end of legal proceedings over this incident, which is one of those unspeakable trajedies that reminds us of the shortness of life and the unforseen irreversible consequences that sometimes result from serious errors in judgment. Mr. Bruns was a pillar in The Woodlands community, and his death left a loving wife without a husband and three young children without a father. I do not know Mr. Coyne, but it my understanding from those who do is that he is a caring man and good attorney, and his statement to the court during his sentencing reflects the pain that he will experience for the rest of his life. May the Lord be with the Bruns Family and Mr. Coyne as they piece their lives back together after his tragic incident.
Houston has grown into a remarkably diverse city, but its heritage as a quintessential Texas city is reflected best by the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Unless you are a Houstonian, it’s a bit difficult to explain “the Rodeo,” as Houstonians call it. But it’s an event that lasts almost three weeks each March, involves volunteer efforts of thousands of Houstonians, brings hundreds of thousands of people into Houston, raises millions of dollars for academic scholarships, and provides some of the most interesting and unique entertainment that one could ever imagine.
Started in the early 1930’s in downtown Houston, the Rodeo has grown into a huge event that literally envelopes the entire Reliant Park complex, including Reliant Stadium and the adjacent convention facility. The Rodeo kicks off with 5,000 trailriders descending on Houston’s Memorial Park this Friday, which is “Go Texan Day” in Houston in which most folks go to work in some type of cowboy attire. After a wild night of campfire parties at Memorial Park, the Trailriders ride the five miles down Memorial Drive to downtown Houston early Saturday morning for the annual Rodeo Parade, which is great fun. Then, it’s off to the Rodeo at Reliant Park.
The Rodeo always has a first rate lineup of entertainers who perform after each night of the rodeo event, and this year is no exception. However, this year is particularly special for me in that rising country music star Dierks Bentley is one of the headline performers. Dierks is the younger brother of an old friend of mine, Houston real estate attorney Bart Bentley, who happens to be a pretty fair guitarist himself in the popular Houston rock band, Mid-Life Crisis and the Hot Flashes.
Although my teenage daughters undoubtedly will want to see Dierks’ show at the Rodeo, I most enjoy the Livestock Show in the Reliant Convention facility while visiting the Rodeo. Over the years, I have seen more incredible animals in the Livestock Show than in any zoo that I have ever visited.
Accordingly, if you are visiting Houston during March, do not miss the opportunity to visit the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Not only will you be highly entertained, but you will learn more about Texas in general and Houston in particular than you could anywhere else.
The Chronicle reports that Houston-based Plains Resources executives are joining Seattle billionaire and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen to buy out and take private the midstream energy company for about $395 million in cash and the assumption of $50 million in debt. Plains’ board voted in favor of the sweetened $16.75-per-share price, unlike last month when it turned down an earlier offer of $14.25 per share. Plains Resources is Mr. Allen’s first sizable investment in the energy business in general and in pipelines specifically.
The Chronicle reports that the FBI has investigated The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and found no evidence that employees regularly accessed child pornography websites. The investigation was commenced after a UT-Houston auditor expressed concern last fall that a number of employees, including physicians, might have violated child predator laws when they visited porn sites on UT Houston computers. An earlier post about this matter is here.
A serial Ponzi scheme promoter, Lanny Lown, 40 — who posed as an international businessman operating under the name of One West Financial from 2001-03 and scammed nearly $15 million from hundreds of Houston Ship Channel-area retirees — has been sentenced to life in prison, the Houston Chronicle reports here.
State District Judge Michael Wilkinson on Monday also fined Lown $10,000 and ordered him to repay $14.9 million as a condition of any parole after serving at least 15 years. Grizzled courhouse veterans speculated that Lown would have a hard time raising that kind of money while serving his sentence.
In the understatement of the year to date, Lown’s defense attorney told the Chronicle that “he regretted allowing the judge, rather than the jury, decide the sentence.”
Houston Mayor Bill White announced Arturo Michel, a partner at Bracewell & Patterson, as the new city attorney Tuesday. As City Attorney, Mr. Michel will oversee an attorney staff of approximately 100, which primarily handles contract matters for the city, prosecutes municipal offenses, and defends the city in civil litigation.
The Houston Bar Association Bankruptcy Section‘s monthly lunch meeting is tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. in the Houston Club in downtown Houston at 811 Rusk Ave (map here, but takes a while to load). Houston bankruptcy attorneys Preston Towber and Joe Epstein will be giving a talk on practice and procedure relating to involuntary bankruptcy cases.
Also, new Bankruptcy Judge Marvin Isgur (a prior post detailing Judge Isgur’s background is here) will use this luncheon to introduce his new staff to the local attorneys in attendance. Admission cost for the seminar and lunch is $30, payable at the door. If you plan to attend, please call Michelle Pittman at 713.216.4075 to reserve a seat.
Finally, next Tuesday, February 24, the HBA Bankruptcy Section will host a reception for Judge Isgur at 5:30 p.m. in the foyer of The Hobby Center in downtown Houston after Judge Isgur’s formal Investiture ceremony earlier that afternoon. If you plan to attend the reception, please call Ms. Pittman at 713.216.4075 to let her know so that a reasonably accurate head court can be estimated prior to the reception.
Elaine McAnelly is the Chair of the HBA Bankruptcy Section, and Elaine and her staff have been doing a great job coordinating recent events honoring incoming Judge Isgur and retiring Judge Leal. Good work, Elaine!
Houston-based Garden Ridge has filed its initial operating report in its pending chapter 11 case. Also, the U.S. Trustee has filed its notice of appointment of the Creditors’ Committee in the case. Prior posts regarding the Garden Ridge case may be reviewed here, here and here.