SMITH COUNTY, Texas — In less than two months, Smith County voters will be deciding between three candidates to choose who will be the next Precinct 1 Constable.
However, a lawsuit filed by the current Constable and candidate Bobby Garmon seeks to remove fellow candidate and Pct. 1 Deputy Constable Willie Mims Jr. from the race.
The lawsuit reads Bobby Garmon vs. Michael Tolbert, Chair of the Smith County Democratic Party because all the candidates are running as democrats. As the party’s chair, Tolbert accepts democratic candidacy filings in the county.
Inside the lawsuit, it states 85 of the 212 signatures Mims submitted with his candidacy were invalid. In the State of Texas, a candidate can appear on a ballot by either filing a required amount determined by the county of petition signatures with registered voters or pay a filing fee.
Garmon claims there are 17 signatures missing either the date of births or voter registration numbers and eight signatures do not provide the date of when the signatures were gathered.
According to documents, the Smith County Elections Office identified 32 people who were not registered to vote in Smith County and 28 who lived outside of Pct. 1.
Mims’ campaign manager, Claretta Allen, says the lawsuit will not affect the ultimate goal of the campaign.
“We are still on the ballot and we’re going forward,” Allen said.
Constable Garmon has also filed a temporary restraining order prohibiting Tolbert or anyone from acting on his behalf from printing primary ballots until the court has ruled on the request.
Mims and Garmon are not strangers as the two have worked together as Constable and Deputy Constable for Pct. 1.
Garmon has been the Constable since he was appointed to the position in 2017 after the previous Constable, Henry Jackson, was sentenced to six months in prison for income tax evasion.
Before that, from 1980 until 2012, Garmon worked for the Smith County Sheriff's Office. During his last nine years with the sheriff's office, he was the chief deputy.
Mims has served Pct. 1 since 2005. Mims campaign flyers state he is wanting to bring back two programs he was the coordinator for: The community policing and tobacco programs that ended in 2017, the same year Garmon took over as constable.
Curtis Traylor Harris, a Texas Juvenile Justice Department Corrections Officer, is also running for Pct. 1 Constable. There are no Republican candidates.
“It’s unfortunate for Mr. Mims because he is a member of the community like I was,” said Harris. “He was born and raised in this community. I always want to see a fellow community member doing great. We wanted to keep Precinct 1 in the hands of a member of the community. But we all have rules and regulations to follow.”
In the State of Texas, a county Constable serves as a licensed peace office and performs various law enforcement duties including issuing traffic citations.
CBS19 reached out to Constable Garmon and Michael Tolbert in regards to this lawsuit. Both did not want to comment on the matter.