Mayor loses attorney
Mayor Pat M. Ahumada lost one of two attorneys representing him on state felony charges of theft, abuse of official capacity, and misapplication of fiduciary property due to a conflict.
Jon Schmid filed a motion in the state 107th District Court requesting to withdraw as Ahumada’s co-counsel. Attorney Ed Cyganiewicz is the main attorney representing the mayor.
Ahumada plans to announce a replacement soon for Schmid.
Two months ago today, visiting Judge Robert C. Pate declared a mistrial when the jury deadlocked in the mayor’s first trial. The charges stem from the deposit of a $26,139 check that the city issued Oct. 22 to New York vendor Tarsia Technical Industries Inc., which ended up in the mayor’s business account on Oct. 28, instead.
Barring the unexpected, the mayor will be retried Jan. 19 before a different jury.
According to Schmid’s motion, Ahumada and the Cameron County District Attorney’s Office are not opposed to his withdrawal.
Ahumada said that Schmid does some work for attorney Joe Valle who took a major case that requires most of Schmid’s time.
"Joe Valle’s office has been busier than ever. Since the time of the mayor’s first trial when my picture with the mayor in court was on the front page of your fine paper, The phone has literally been ringing off the hook," Schmid said, enumerating reasons why he can’t continue on the mayor’s case.
Ahumada said he is thankful for Schmid’s contribution to his case, "He worked very hard on my case and I appreciate his friendship and support."
The mayor said that Schmid conducted research and prepared motions on his case.
"I will be replacing him with another attorney to serve in the same capacity," the mayor said, withholding the announcement until he talks with Cyganiewicz.
Asked if he is prepared for a second trial, Ahumada responded, "The question is, ‘Is my attorney prepared?’ "
The mayor said he doesn’t know if he will testify or not in the second trial as he did during the first. "It all depends on what my attorney says I should do and not do," Ahumada said.
The mayor said that neither his attorney nor state prosecutors have proposed a plea.
"It was just an accident," Ahumada said, noting that he still doesn’t know how the check ended up in his possession. "That is the $64,000 question," the mayor said.
"Criminalizing an accident is a wrong message to send to anyone interested in getting involved in public service," Ahumada maintained.
