Filemón Bartolomé Vela (May 1, 1935 – April 13, 2004) was a
United States district judge
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...
of the
.
Education and career
Born in
Harlingen,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, Vela was a private in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
from 1957 to 1959, and received a
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
from
St. Mary's University School of Law
St. Mary's University School of Law is one of the professional graduate schools of St. Mary's University, a private Catholic university located in San Antonio, Texas.
Academics
The School of Law has an enrollment of about 770 students, pursu ...
in 1962. He was in private practice in Harlingen from 1962 to 1963, and then in
Brownsville, Texas from 1963 to 1974. He was a city commissioner in Brownsville from 1971 to 1973. He was a judge of the 107th Judicial District in
Cameron and
Willacy Counties, Texas from 1975 to 1980.
Federal judicial service
On January 22, 1980, Vela was nominated by President
Jimmy Carter
James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
to a seat on the
vacated by Judge
Reynaldo Guerra Garza
Reynaldo Guerra Garza (July 7, 1915 – September 14, 2004) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He was the first Mexican-American appointed to a federal court when he was appointed as a U ...
. Vela was confirmed by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
on June 18, 1980, and received his commission the same day. He assumed
senior status
Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...
on May 1, 2000, serving in that capacity until his death on April 13, 2004, in Harlingen.
Vela presided over the capital murder trial of drug lord
Juan Raul Garza. Garza was executed by the federal government in 2001, eight days after
Timothy McVeigh
Timothy James McVeigh (April 23, 1968 – June 11, 2001) was an American domestic terrorist responsible for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people, 19 of whom were children, injured more than 680 others, and destroyed one-third o ...
.
Personal
Vela was married to
Blanca Vela
Blanca Sanchez Vela (May 27, 1936 – February 19, 2014) was an American politician and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in Brownsville, Texas. Vela, who served as the Mayor of Brownsville from 1999 until 2003, was the city's first ...
, who served as the first female
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
of Brownsville, Texas, from 1999 to 2003.
Their three children include
Filemon Vela Jr.
Filemón Bartolomé Vela Jr. ( ; born February 13, 1963) is an American lobbyist, lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2013 until his resignation in 2022. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Vela was also vic ...
, who was elected to the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
in 2012.
[Perez-Trevino, Emma (April 25, 2012; updated February 11, 2013).]
Candidates raise significant war chests
. ''The Brownsville Herald
''The Brownsville Herald'' is a newspaper based in Brownsville, Texas, circulating in the Cameron County area.
Jesse O. Wheeler, a newspaperman from Victoria, purchased Brownsville's ''Cosmopolitan'' newspaper in 1892 and renamed it the ''Browns ...
''.
See also
*
List of Hispanic/Latino American jurists
This is a list of Hispanic/Latino Americans who are or were judges, magistrate judges, court commissioners, or administrative law judges. If known, it will be listed if a judge has served on multiple courts.
Other topics of interest
* List ...
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vela, Filemon Bartolome
1935 births
2004 deaths
20th-century American judges
Hispanic and Latino American judges
Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas
People from Harlingen, Texas
United States Army soldiers
United States district court judges appointed by Jimmy Carter