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33-890: Texas State Representative Wayne Smith and State Senator Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa met with fellow Vietnam Veterans in December 2005, each donating $ 1,000 to form a nonprofit organization that would finance a monument commemorating Texans who served in the Vietnam War. Other members of the Texas Capitol Vietnam Veterans Monument Committee included Robert Floyd, John Miterko, Terry B. Burkett, Alan Erwin, Phil Price, Kerry Orr, Don Dorsey, Kinnan Golemon, Richard McBride, and Michael Wright. Lady Bird Johnson , wife of former President Lyndon Baines Johnson , served as Honorary Co-Chair. The legislators co-authored House Concurrent Resolution 36 - 79th Texas Legislature. The monument

66-751: A bachelor's degree in political science from Pan American University in Edinburg, graduating with honors. After receiving a Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., Hinojosa worked for the Legal Aid Society of Nueces County in Corpus Christi, and as an Assistant Attorney General in McAllen and San Antonio . First elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1981, Hinojosa served

99-487: A chargeable offense even if it's done recklessly [i.e. accidentally, as was the excuse Senator Hinojosa gave]". Judge Henley has refused to comment on why she dismissed the charges against Hinojosa. Hinojosa claims that he "was handled just like any other citizen"; however, in comparison, many people have been penalized for "accidentally" carrying a gun through security check-points in American airports. Hinojosa also made

132-459: A family was $ 41,066. Males had a median income of $ 31,571 versus $ 22,324 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 17,036. About 14.70% of families and 18.20% of the population were below the poverty line , including 24.00% of those under age 18 and 15.80% of those age 65 or over. In the 2000 U.S. Census , a portion of San Patricio was indicated as being in Nueces County. As of

165-669: A nonconsecutive total of eight terms before being elected to the Texas Senate in 2002. Hinojosa has earned a reputation for his criminal justice expertise. He authored the Texas Fair Defense Act and other reforms to establish court-appointed counsel for indigent defendants, prohibit capital punishment for defendants with mental illness, and streamline the court system to provide swifter justice. He also sponsored SB 3, which established procedures for DNA testing, use and preservation. In 2005, Senator Hinojosa authored SB 1125 to eliminate

198-471: A plurality of 48.6% to 47.1%, or 1,568 votes, the closest race since 1956. In 2020, Trump won the county again, this time with a slight majority and 2.9% margin, or 3,692 votes, over Joe Biden . Democratic strength is concentrated within the inland portion of the county, with particular strengths in center portion of Corpus Christi whereas neighborhoods that are predominately Hispanic and the city of Robstown . Republicans performed well in areas particularly in

231-591: A public statement soon after the incident, admitting he had made a mistake by "rushing to the airport and not checking my briefcase prior to entering the McAllen Miller International Airport." He said airport security did its job. Soon after the incident, Hinojosa sent a letter of apology to the chief of the McAllen Police Department. He also commended the department for performing its duty with utmost professionalism. In 2005, Hinojosa

264-628: Is being paid for by donations from individuals, corporations and veteran organizations, along with a $ 500,000 matching grant from the Texas Historical Commission . Nearly 60,000 Americans died in the Vietnam War, and 3,417 of them were from Texas. At a reading of the names of fallen veterans held in the Lady Bird Johnson Auditorium at the LBJ Library , newspaper reporter and Vietnam war correspondent Joe Galloway explained

297-430: Is illegal, ask to search your vehicle without probable cause, which is also illegal, and I refuse. But a lot of citizens don't know that and what they do is go through your car, snoop around, see what they can find and let you go if they don't find any money. Those drug task forces have no business operating in our state." Nueces County, Texas Nueces County ( / nj u ˈ eɪ s ɪ s / new- AY -siss )

330-514: Is located in the U.S. state of Texas . As of the 2020 census , the population was 353,178, making it the 16th-most populous county in the state . The county seat is Corpus Christi . The county was formed in 1846 from portions of San Patricio County and organized the following year. It is named for the Nueces River , which marks the county's northwestern boundary with San Patricio County before emptying into its mouth at Nueces Bay north of

363-484: The 1990 U.S. Census , the 2010 U.S. Census , and the 2020 U.S. Census , that particular area is indicated as being in San Patricio County. School districts: Del Mar College is the designated community college for all of Nueces County. Historically, Nueces County leaned Democratic in presidential elections, though in recent years has narrowly voted Republican . Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 became

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396-406: The 110,365 households, 36.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.80% were married couples living together, 15.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.80% were not families. About 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size

429-507: The 2007 legislative session, Hinojosa authored and passed SB 103; to completely reform the state's troubled Texas Youth Commission after sexual and physical abuse of youth were documented by the Texas Rangers. SB 103 made a number of fundamental changes, including ending the practice of housing children with older teenagers, and creating a Parent's Bill of Rights to guarantee swift and accurate access to information about caseworkers' duties and

462-456: The McAllen police chief Victor Rodriguez who said: "I think dismayed is probably...too kind...for [how we feel about Judge Henley dismissing the charges] but it's in that area. Because we operated under the idea yesterday that an arraignment would take place" [but then] "we learned that Judge Henley basically dismissed him. ... I've never seen a case basically tossed out at the arraignment point," and "The laws are very specific and very clear. It's

495-691: The Monument on the Texas Capitol grounds. The exhibit opened to the public at the LBJ Library in Austin, Texas on March 24, 2013. On the same day, a reading of the names of all 3,417 veterans was held in the Lady Bird Johnson Auditorium at the LBJ Library, and ground was broken at the Texas State Capitol. The exhibit will travel from Austin to San Antonio , Lubbock , Houston , Fort Worth and Beaumont while

528-686: The United States, a special recognition award from the NAACP for his work on TYC and criminal justice reform and the "Texas Medicines Best Legislator" award from the Texas Medical Association for his work to restore Children's Health Insurance Program funding and improve childhood immunization rates. Hinojosa is Vice Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. He is not related to Texas U.S. Representative Rubén Hinojosa , who represented

561-925: The Year," and he received the prestigious John Henry Faulk Award, presented by the American Civil Liberties Union . In 2006, he was the recipient of the Public Servant of the Year Award from the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities, and in 2007, he received the Patient Advocacy Award from the Texas Academy of Family Physicians. He also received the Humane Legislator award from the Humane Society of

594-586: The agency's grievance policies. Senator Hinojosa was appointed to the TYC Legislative Oversight Committee to continue working on the reform of the troubled agency. Hinojosa has twice been named one of Texas' "top 10 legislators" by Texas Monthly magazine, and in 2007 he again received accolades from the magazine for his work reforming the Texas Youth Commission. The National Organization for Women (NOW) named Hinojosa "Legislator of

627-463: The county and onto ranches, before returning west to Laredo . According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has an area of 1,166 square miles (3,020 km ), of which 838 square miles (2,170 km ) are land and 327 square miles (850 km ) (28%) are covered by water. It borders the Gulf of Mexico . As of the census of 2000, 313,645 people, 110,365 households, and 79,683 families resided in

660-433: The county. The population density was 375 people per square mile (145 people/km ). The 123,041 housing units averaged 147 units per square mile (57/km ). The racial makeup of the county was 72.03% White, 4.24% African American, 0.64% Native American, 1.16% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 18.74% from other races, and 3.13% from two or more races. About 55.78% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of

693-488: The first Republican candidate to carry the county. Prior to that year, the only times Nueces County did not vote for the national Democratic candidate was in its first presidential election in 1848 for Whig Zachary Taylor , and in 1860, supporting Southern Democratic John C. Breckinridge . Since Eisenhower's election, the only other Republicans to carry the county in the 20th century were Richard Nixon in 1972 and Ronald Reagan in 1984 . So far, Bill Clinton remains

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726-403: The last Democratic candidate to win Nueces County, having done so in 1996 . Since 2000, Nueces County has voted for every Republican presidential candidate, with only George W. Bush in 2004 having carried it by a double digit margin, and his 56.8% of the vote is also the highest for any Republican in the county's history. In 2016 , Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the county with

759-474: The monument is being constructed. 30°16′32″N 97°44′20″W  /  30.2755°N 97.7390°W  / 30.2755; -97.7390 Juan %22Chuy%22 Hinojosa Juan Jesus " Chuy " Hinojosa (born March 7, 1946) is an American politician and attorney who is a member of the Texas Senate , representing the 20th district , which stretches from Corpus Christi to McAllen . A Democrat , he

792-633: The monument will be 3,417 handcrafted dog tags , representing each of the Texas veterans who died in Vietnam. The estimated cost of the monument is $ 1.5 million. The Texas Vietnam Heroes Exhibit is a visual representation of the 3,417 Texans who did not survive to come home from Vietnam. It was designed by Excalibur Exhibits and consists of hand-embossed dog tags featuring the name, rank, branch of service, and date of loss and home of record for each veteran. A second dog tag bearing duplicate information will be entombed in

825-523: The officers who stopped him. Hinojosa told the agent during the stop that he had no reason to pull him over and that the tint on his windows was factory-issued. Hinojosa was allowed to continue his travel after being cited for the window tinting. Hinojosa later told Guillermo X. Garcia, a reporter for the San Antonio Express-News , that the task force agent followed him for 3 miles before pulling him over. In 2005 legislative discussions, Hinojosa

858-555: The port of Corpus Christi. Nueces County is part of the Corpus Christi metropolitan statistical area . The Indian tribes that lived in and raided the county were the Lipan Apache , Karankawa , Coahuiltecan , Kickapoo , and the Seminole . The final recorded Indian raid in the county happened in April of 1878, when Lipan Apache, Kickapoo, Seminole, Mexicans , and a white man briefly entered

891-582: The purpose of the Texas Vietnam Veterans Monument is to "encourage hometowns across America to go all out to welcome Vietnam veterans--the welcome they didn't get 50 years ago." The monument is a 14-foot-tall bronze sculpture featuring five seven-foot tall infantry figures in patrol positions situated atop an eight-sided base. Designed to represent the diversity of Texas Vietnam Veterans, the figures will be Hispanic-American, African-American, Asian, Native-American, and Caucasian. Entombed within

924-568: The same general area in Congress as Senator Hinojosa does in the state senate. In 2005, Hinojosa carried a gun past an airport security checkpoint at McAllen Miller International Airport . He was detained as police verified his concealed handgun permit and identity and traced the weapon before releasing him. Before Hinojosa was even arraigned, the criminal charges were dropped by local judge Kathleen Henley, prompting allegations of special treatment and corruption, including from Texas gun-owners, and from

957-513: The state's few remaining rogue drug task force operations and put them under the jurisdiction of the Department of Public Safety. In the wake of the Tulia drug arrests scandal , Hinojosa worked to improve transparency and oversight by requiring that drug task force operations submit to state oversight, with failure to do so to result in an inability to receive state-administered federal grant money. During

990-401: Was 3.30. In the county, the age distribution was 28.40% under the age of 18, 10.50% from 18 to 24, 28.90% from 25 to 44, 21.10% from 45 to 64, and 11.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males. The median income for a household in the county was $ 35,959, and for

1023-689: Was first elected to the Senate in 2002 and has represented parts of South Texas in the Texas Legislature for a combined total of over 35 years. Born in McAllen, Texas , Hinojosa was a farm worker who worked his way through school to earn a law degree. He served his country in the United States Marine Corps from 1966 to 1968, and was a squad leader in Vietnam War . Returning to South Texas, he earned

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1056-439: Was pulled over by an agent from a South Texas Drug Task Force on Hwy 281 while traveling south. The agent stated that the reason for the stop was that Hinojosa swerved his vehicle from lane to lane, and that the tint on Hinojosa's car was too dark. Hinojosa accused officers of racial profiling; the entire incident was videotaped and Hinojosa never proved the racial profiling accusation to the internal affairs division that supervises

1089-589: Was quoted as saying, "These drug task forces are out there just interdicting and stopping people illegally without probable cause asking to search their vehicles and pretty much harassing citizens of the State of Texas. And all they are trying to do is see if they can find money that they can seize to fund their operations. To me what they do is illegal, improper, and not good public policy." Hinojosa also said of Texas' Drug Task Forces, "They don't need probable cause to stop you. They just stop you. They will profile you, which

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