Judge George Gallagher (Tarrant County, Texas) Biography

George Gallagher Biography – George Gallagher Wiki

George Gallagher is a judge for the 396th Judicial District Court, Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas. He was elected to the bench on November 7, 2000. Before his election, Gallagher was a partner at Zachry, Hill, Beatty, Butcher & Gallagher. Before that, he spent time as an assistant district attorney with the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office.

Judge Gallagher received a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University. He then earned a J.D. at St. Mary’s University School of Law in 1982. He is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Judge Gallagher is also a member of the Tarrant County Bar Association, the Tarrant County Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, and the Eldon B. Mahon American Inn of Court. He is registered as a Republican.

Controversy

In 2016, Judge Gallagher presided over the trial in a criminal case styled State of Texas v. Terry Lee Morris. As a result of Mr. Morris’ disruptive behavior at pretrial hearings, Judge Gallagher’s bailiffs recommended a stun cuff be placed on Mr. Morris’ ankle for the trial. During the trial, Judge Gallagher ordered his bailiffs to activate Mr. Morris’ stun cuff three times.

On appeal, the El Paso Court of Appeals overturned Mr. Morris’ conviction and ordered a new trial, finding Judge Gallagher did not order the activation of the stun cuff for legitimate security purposes. The Appellate Court stated Judge Gallagher’s conduct caused it to harbor “grave doubts as to whether Morris’ trial comported with basic constitutional mandates” and concluded it had “no choice but to overturn Morris’ conviction and remand for a new trial.”

The Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct determined the Honorable George Gallagher should be publicly warned for engaging in willful conduct that cast public discredit upon the judiciary and the administration of justice in violation of Article V, Section 1-a(6)(A) of the Texas Constitution, when he ordered the activation of Mr. Morris’ stun cuff which resulted in injury to Mr. Morris and his absence from the remainder of the guilt-innocence phase of his own criminal trial.