Convenience Big Store: Harris County court had 800 eviction cases in one day

January 8, 2025

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It's Wednesday, y'all. Yesterday, the nominations for the Houston Film Critics Society's 18th annual awards were announced — and "The Brutalist" dominated. See who else was nominated here. Plus, explore a list of 2025's biggest films here.

☁️ Temperature check: High of 44; low of 37. Justin's insight: The worst of this week's freeze is basically over in Houston as clouds and moisture-rich air streams in today. A cold rain is soon to follow. Sign up for our Weather Radar newsletter for more weather news.

Yasmeen Khalifa, Audience Engagement Producer

yasmeen.khalifa@houstonchronicle.com

Visitors pack the hallway and entrance to Harris County Southwest Courthouse Annex 19 as landlords, tenants and attorneys prepare to appear before Justice of the Peace Court Precinct 5, Place 1 Judge James Lombardino Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025 in Houston.

Photo by: Kirk Sides (Staff photographer)

Nearly 800 eviction cases scheduled to be heard in a single day by a single judge in Harris County

On the coldest day Houston had experienced in nearly year, a whopping 759 eviction cases were scheduled to be heard Tuesday by one judge, causing hours of delays and frustration for residents forced to wait outside the courthouse.

There were so many cases that, even if each were resolved in a minute, it would take more than 13 hours, without meal or bathroom breaks, to hear them all. It was the largest number of eviction hearings set for one day in Harris County's history since the pandemic, according to the data firm January Advisors.

The megadocket was partially attributable to an outgoing judge's decision to reset many of the cases from his lame-duck period to the first eviction docket of the next judge. It was also due to a quirk in Texas law — and a sign of a growing problem.

Read more about how Texas law enabled this and whether a solution is possible here.

📰 Top Stories

AU REVOIR, VERLANDER: Justin Verlander is leaving the Astros for the second time in free agency after agreeing to a one-year deal with the San Francisco Giants.
BRINGING IN THOSE FEDERAL FUNDS: The Biden administration announced Tuesday that Houston and Harris County will receive a combined $382 million in federal money to assist in recovery from flooding in Kingwood and Hurricane Beryl.
ABBOTT APPOINTEE: Failed district attorney candidate Dan Simons was tapped by Gov. Greg Abbott to preside as a state district court judge for the next two years. He was appointed to the 496th District Court, one of Harris County's three new courts.
HOUSTON ISD ROUNDUP: Houston ISD announced a new "chief of schools" who will report to Superintendent Mike Miles and named Sandi Massey to the role. Plus, the district switched to UnitedHealthcare from Aetna, raising concerns over higher costs and deductibles.
STOLEN SAFE: Sunday Press owners are trying to replace stolen funds for the second time after a person broke into the café on Ella Boulevard early Tuesday and stole a safe with around $1,000 inside.

💼 Business

LANDRY'S VS. LANDRY: A Harris County jury will this week hear a lawsuit between Houston billionaire Tilman Fertitta and Landry's and Landry Distillery.
PANDEMIC TIMES ARE NO MORE: JPMorgan Chase reportedly plans to require employees to return to offices full time, potentially altering the commute patterns of hundreds, if not a couple thousand, employees in Houston.

📸 Photo of the Week

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, left, Pierce Bush, CEO, Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star, and Cindy Ramos, a Habitat for Humanity homeowner, sign a wall that honors President Jimmy Carter during a memorial event at the Barbara Bush Literary Plaza on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025 in Houston. The City of Houston and Houston Habitat for Humanity symbolically joined together symbolically raised a wall that citizens were encouraged to sign, honoring the countless contributions President Jimmy Carter has made to the organization and to Habitat homeowners for nearly four decades.

Photo by: Brett Coomer, Staff Photographer

City, county and Habitat for Humanity leaders gathered Tuesday morning in downtown Houston's Barbara Bush Literacy Plaza to celebrate the life and legacy of Jimmy Carter, who died on Dec. 29 at the age of 100, by raising a memorial wall for him.

☝️ One Last Word

Like most of you know, I'm not a big sports fan.

But maybe I would be if I was watching it through the eyes of SpongeBob and Patrick Star.

Saturday's AFC wild-card round playoff game between the Houston Texans and Los Angeles Chargers will have an alternate broadcast on Nickelodeon — for those of us who need a bit of goofiness with our sports.

— Yasmeen Khalifa