Adolfo G. Contreras Judge of the Peace Adolfo G. Contreras has announced his candidacy for re-election to the Justice Court of Precinct 3 in Nueces County.

He will run in the March 2010 Primary.

Judge Contreras began serving as Justice of the Peace in 2007, and since that time has worked as a full time judge to better serve the citizens of Bishop, Driscoll, Petronila, and the outlining areas of Southern Nueces County, he said.

Born and raised in Bishop, Contreras worked as an independent insurance agent for 20 years where he took courses in ethics and recalls his childhood spent around his family who worked in the cotton fields.

“I have a lot of respect for hard working people because I was a witness to that growing up,” Contreras said. “The principles and lessons I learned from them have stayed with me my entire life and career.”

Contreras, who sees 75- 100 cases every month, works with citizens to explore all their options after they plead guilty or no contest.

“I do the best I can to work with people and try to help them out, I don’t refuse to talk to anyone and am willing to hear their situations,” Contreras said.

The JP candidate stated that meeting with people and knowing that he is able to make a difference is his favorite part of the job.

“In this position you can’t come in with personal agendas, I have a great respect and passion for the rule of law and the ability to help individuals,” he said. “That is my focus for this position and I take it very seriously.”

Aside from his duties as Justice of the Peace, Contreras is heavily involved in community projects and events such as the upcoming Bishop Centennial celebration.

“We recently put on the 2nd annual Dia de la Madres and we hope to make it a tradition here in Bishop,” Contreras said. “Our Centennial is also coming up next year so to be here for that event is a great feeling.”

At the time of his election, Contreras became the first Hispanic Precinct 3 Nueces County Justice of the Peace in nearly 100 years.

“People have told me that they never thought they would be able to see the inside of this office but since I was elected it became more accessible,” said Contreras.

“I have heard elderly citizens say they never thought they would see a Hispanic elected to this office in their lifetime so I have a great sense of responsibility to the people to try to serve them to the best of my ability.”

“I will continue to work with the people of the area and have an open door policy to their issues and problems,” he said. “You never know what’s coming up and there is always experiences and challenges that make this position rewarding and worthwhile.”