Vela, Filemon B. (Filemon Bartolome), 1935-2004

Long time jurist, civic leader, and education advocate dedicated to serving the people of South Texas, Filemon Bartolome Vela was born in Harlingen, Texas on May 1, 1935. He was the eighth of nine children born to Roberto and Maria Luisa Vela. At the age of eleven his mother passed away. His father supported the family by running a small grocery store and as a notary public. In his youth Filemon attended both Catholic and public schools, and graduated from Harlingen High School in 1954.

In preparation for entering law school Vela attended Texas Southmost College in Brownsville, Texas from 1954 to 1956, and The University of Texas from 1956 to 1957. He then postponed his studies to join the army. He served on active duty from 1957 to 1959. Upon leaving active duty in 1959, Vela entered St. Mary?s University School of Law in San Antonio. He attended from 1959 to 1962 and received his Bachelor of Laws degree, subsequently converted to a Doctor of Jurisprudence.

On January 26, 1962, shortly after receiving his degree, he married San Benito teacher Blanca Sanchez. Despite knowing each other since they were youngsters, they did not start dating until Filemon was in law school. They would have three children: Filemon Bartolome, Jr., Rafael Eduardo, and Sylvia Adriana.

Vela's initial entry into the legal profession was to work with his brother Moises Vicente Vela in Harlingen in the firm known as Vela and Vela. He worked with his brother from February 1962 to November 1963. He received his license to practice before the courts of Texas in April, 1962. Two years later he was admitted to practicing law before the Federal Court. Vela moved to Brownsville in November 1963 and opened his own office. He represented clients in both civil and criminal matters. He practiced law until his departure for the bench of the 107th District Court of Texas in January 1975. Of note from this period was the 1970 civil rights case Lucinda Escalante v. La Feria Independent School District . Vela acted as local counsel and assisted the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF) attorney Mario G. Obledo. The case was instrumental in establishing the pursuit of due process by governmental bodies. It was among the first of its type of civil case to hit South Texas.

Around the same time Vela entered private practice with his brother he had become an active member of the Political Association of Spanish-Speaking Organizations (PASO). As an organization PASO sought to place Hispanics in political office. Vela volunteered to run for office. In May 1964 he ran in the Democratic primary against Cameron county Texas House of Representative incumbent Menton J. Murray. He was defeated in his first bid for elected office.

Vela was General Counsel for the Cameron County Child Welfare Unit of the Texas Department of Public Welfare from 1971 to 1973. In addition, in 1971 he won his first elected office, becoming City Commissioner of Brownsville for a two year term that lasted from November 1971 to December 1973.

In November 1974 Vela was elected to serve as judge of the 107th Judicial District Court of Cameron and Willacy Counties, Texas. Before taking office he attended training at the First Texas College of the Judiciary in Austin, Texas. His first 4 year term began in January 1975. Judge Vela presided over both criminal and civil cases in the court of general jurisdiction. Reelected in 1978, his second term started in January 1979.

In August 1979 Senator Lloyd Bentsen put forth the name of Filemon B. Vela as a possible candidate to replace the recently promoted Judge Reynaldo G. Garza. Informed that he had been nominated by President Carter, Vela and his wife flew to Washington to appear before a congressional judiciary committee. Only a few questions were asked by the committee before it recommended his confirmation by the full Senate. He was confirmed by the U. S. Senate on June 25, 1980. The investiture of Judge Vela occurred on July 3, 1980 at a ceremony in Harlingen, Texas.

As a federal judge of the Southern Region of Texas, Brownsville Division, Vela held sway over both federal civil and criminal cases in the southernmost parts of Texas. Due to the large number of drug and immigration related cases the Southern District was one of the busiest federal districts in the country. In his twenty years on the federal bench Judge Vela heard thousands of cases and made just as many decisions. Three stand-out cases from his years on the federal bench included: In 1981 was the Espinos v. Besterio case, which determined that a school district must provide special services for each disabled student so that they can benefit from the education services given to them. In this case an air conditioned cubicle was not considered sufficient as it did not allow for interaction with the teacher or with other students. In a 1989 decision Vela ordered the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to lift travel restrictions on asylum seekers entering the United States. No longer limited to points of entry or border regions, refugees continued on to their destinations. Reaction was swift from both pro and anti-immigrant forces. In U.S. v. Juan Raul Garza, the defendant was convicted under the 1988 federal Anti-Drug Abuse Act which allowed for the imposition of the death penalty. Found guilty, Garza?s death sentence was the first for a federal prisoner since 1963. Due to many appeals and a higher priority being put on the execution of Oklahoma bomber Timothy McVeigh, Juan Raul Garza ended up being executed on June 19, 2001 eight days after McVeigh.

Among all his official duties the one that brought the most joy to Judge Vela was administration of the oath of allegiance to new citizens. In addition to judicial duties Judge Vela was a member of U.S. Sentencing Commission and the Judicial Conference Committee on the Administration of the Federal Magistrate System. He also participated in many judicial conferences throughout Latin America promoting a better understanding of the differing judicial systems found in each country. On May 1, 2000 he retired and took on the status of senior judge. He continued to serve the court until 2004.

Outside of his professional and judicial activities Vela was heavily involved in his community. Throughout his legal career his support of civic activities and organizations continued unabated. He was both mentor and leader of many youth programs. He was founder of the La Esperanza Home for Boys in the 1970s and chairman of the Rio Grande Marine Institute in 1980s and 1990s. In 1972 he started co-hosting Despacho Jurídico, a legal-oriented radio program, with his friend Rogelio Botello Rios. In the program Vela and Rios discussed and answered many questions dealing with different aspects of the law. The program was popular in South Texas and northern Mexico and would continue to be broadcast for many years. Judge Vela also participated in over 200 recording sessions for the radio program Enriquezca Su Vida, Termine Sus Estudios which encouraged young people to stay in school. As part of his ongoing anti-drug effort Vela would bring convicted drug offenders to local schools and have them speak to the students. In January 1992, in honor of his leading role in the community and his support of educational causes, the Brownsville School District renamed the Paredes Line Ninth Grade School as the Filemon B. Vela Middle School. In 2003 he started the Filemon B. Vela Pre-Law Academy at the University of Texas at Brownsville. It was a two week preparatory program for those interested in studying law. Judge Vela was only able to participate in the Academy?s inaugural year. Many of the programs and institutions he created during his lifetime have and will continue have to an impact on the lives of current and future South Texas citizens.

In 2003 Judge Vela was diagnosed with stomach cancer, and he died on April 13, 2004.

On June 29, 2005, President George W. Bush signed into law bill H.R. 483, designating the federal courthouse in Brownsville, Texas as the Reynaldo G. Garza and Filemon B. Vela United States Courthouse.

References:

Alvarado, Antonio. 2001. "Well, Let's Talk About That Next Week". Texas Bar Journal. 64 no.1:49.

Burford, Katie. 2000. "His Honor: Vela's vigil extends beyond the bench." Brownsville Herald, March 19. sec. C.

H.R. 483, 109th Congress (2005): An Act to Designate a United States Courthouse in Brownsville, Texas, as the "Reynaldo G. Garza and Filemon B. Vela United States Courthouse".

Rozeff, Norman. Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "Vela, Filemon Bartolome" http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/VV/fve21.html (accessed August 15, 2008).

From the guide to the Filemon Bartolome Vela Papers 2007-02., 1952-2004, (Benson Latin American Collection, The University of Texas at Austin)