Family Affair: DA Craig Watkins' Family Rolling in Dough From His Campaign Funds
Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins has paid family members or businesses they own more than $85,000 from his campaign funds, according to Unfair Park's review of his campaign finance reports.
We asked Craig Watkins about his campaign finances. He didn't answer.
In addition, after his election in November 2006, Watkins begin paying utilities for his campaign office, which include a total of $28,000 for phone bills (an average of $820 per payment, and this does not include his cell phone), $21,000 for electric bills ($630 per payment), $4,900 for gas bills ($220 per payment), $4,200 for lawn care bills ($135 per payment), $2,300 for water bills ($110 per payment) and $900 for alarm monitoring bills ($27 per payment).
The trouble is, his tiny campaign office shares space with a private business owned by Watkins and his wife, plus a handful of other businesses owned by family members, and it's not clear from the reports if those businesses are paying their share of the utility bills.
Converting campaign funds for personal use is against state law.
Unfair Park tried repeatedly to ask Watkins about the expenditures from his campaign funds, but he didn't respond to written questions and several phone calls, except to assert through a spokesman -- his cousin -- that he has done nothing wrong.
For years, the corner of Martin Luther King Boulevard and Atlanta Street near Fair Park has been a second home to the district attorney, and it's not hard to understand why. The two buildings he owns at 2531 and 2535 MLK Blvd. keep his family in close proximity to each other, and Watkins built his law practice at 2531 MLK before upsetting Republican Toby Shook to become the state's first black district attorney.
The two properties owned by Watkins: 2531 (left) and 2535 MLK Blvd.
The space at 2531 is occupied by a Fidelity National Title branch that he owns with wife Tanya, her political consulting business (Grass Root Strategies), cousin Kurt's public relations company (W Public Relations) and Pat Mays Realtors. Watkins also managed to squeeze his campaign headquarters into the 2,933-square-foot area. While we were not granted our request to inspect the premises, D magazine described it as "a closet-sized space so overcrowded it's a parody of a headquarters."
Next door at 2535, younger brother Greg runs T-Shirts Etcetera, a T-shirt screening company. And his parents, Richard and Paula, operate The Bridge, an adult daycare center.
The reports include a laundry list of payments to his relatives' businesses. Among them was $25,000 paid to T-Shirts Etcetera for sweatshirts and hats on Election Day in 2006, along with T-shirts for the "Senate 26, 16 convention" and "Obama Texas" in 2008. The Bridge was paid $21,000 to cater Christmas and Thanksgiving parties and to provide food for the wake and funeral dinner for Ted Watkins, Craig's uncle. Greg was also paid $32,000 for campaign work and sorting mail, and another relative, Reggie Watkins, has been paid $7,000 as a campaign worker. (We're not sure what relationship Reggie has to Craig.) All but $3,500 of the payments to Greg and Reggie were made after Watkins was elected.
Additionally, Watkins reported a $50,000 in-kind donation in 2007 from Time Warner Cable. In-kind donations are contributions of goods or services as opposed to money, and the nature of the donation is unclear based on the filing. The Texas Election Code prohibits donations from corporations to political candidates, and violations are third-degree felonies, according to the code.
The code also states that violators must knowingly commit an offense; however, as district attorney, one would assume Watkins is familiar with the law. Tim Sorrells, deputy general counsel with the Texas Ethics Commission, explains that the law is vague regarding how to determine whether someone knowingly accepts an illegal contribution. "It's something you would look at on a case-by-case basis," he says.
It's also possible that Watkins forgot to identify the contribution as coming from a political action committee, which is a private group organized to support issues or candidates, but he hasn't responded to requests to elaborate on the donation. (Corporations are allowed to create separate PACs to funnel contributions to candidates.)
Watkins' campaign reports also suggest that he may be subsidizing the utilities and other costs for his title company and other businesses sharing space with his campaign.
To determine whether his campaign is in fact paying the entire utility bills for the property at 2531 MLK Blvd. or perhaps even those of the building he owns next door, we contacted his PR man, Kurt Watkins, and asked for copies of six receipts before asking questions.
"I am more than positive you are aware of the state statute as it relates to campaign finance expenses and the reporting requirements," Craig Watkins said in a statement. "We have complied with this statute as it relates to reporting campaign expenses."
We got back in touch with Kurt, explaining our concern regarding several of the payments, including a $4,500 electric bill from July 2008 and $5,000 paid to Henry Jones for building maintenance. The address listed for Jones, 6834 Marla Drive, happens to be the former residence of Craig's grandmother, Myrtis Faye Jones Watkins, who died in November 2007. Kurt was unable to explain the bills or identify how Jones is related to Craig, and then he gave us another statement.
"Again, per state statute, we have complied with reporting requirements and campaign expenditure rules," Craig said.
Upon receiving the second statement from Craig, we asked Kurt via e-mail whether that meant Watkins wouldn't show us any receipts or answer direct questions on the expenditures.
He responded yet again with a guarded response from Craig. "And again, we have complied with reporting requirements and campaign expenditure rules."
We then forwarded 10 questions to Kurt on Thursday night regarding Craig's reports. He hasn't responded to numerous phone calls and e-mails.
Although Craig doesn't face a primary opponent, Kurt has cited Craig's busy schedule in previous e-mails and phone conversations as reasons why he's taken so long to provide statements. He has been campaigning with gubernatorial candidate Bill White, county judge candidate Clay Jenkins, county commissioner candidate Dr. Elba Garcia and others.
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