About Joey
Contact Joey G. Dauben
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Joey G. Dauben
Cell | 972-891-2135
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The Price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance. The Ellis County Observer Fulfills That Role to a T.
“If calling elected and public officials to account, ensuring that my friends, neighbors, residents’ liberties are protected, and making sure that politics is conducted openly and honestly makes me a troublemaker, then I’m guilty as charged.”– Joey G. Dauben
“He’s [Joey Dauben] the Woodward and Bernstein of Ellis County.”
- KDFW Fox 4 reporter Jeff Crilley
“There’s not many smiling faces when people in City Hall hear your name.”
- City of Midlothian employee/friend
“If anyone can help [Ellis County], it’s him [Joey Dauben]. He has balls.”
- Jeff Crilley
“Joey Dauben is the most powerful man in Ellis County.”
- Overheard in a Republican-owned cafe in Palmer
“You know more about the Texas judiciary than 95 percent of the people in this state.”
- Chief Justice Tom Gray, 10th Court of Appeals
“You’d make a good judge.”
- Former Waxahachie Fire Chief James “Jimmy” Turner
“One of the most colorful politicians in Ellis County.”
- Midlothian Today newspaper
“Feisty.”
- Dallas Observer
“Everybody hates Joey Dauben.”
- Assistant Ellis County District Attorney Patrick Wilson
“Joey Dauben, eat shit!”
- Midlothian Mirror editor Floyd Ingram (shouted in public at the Ellis County Courthouse)
“I will support you Joey Dauben in everything that you do. You are a very smart man, and you are what this county, state, and one day, country needs.”
- Robin (MySpace friend)
“I think you might be the hottest [politician] since the Kennedy’s Mr. Dauben.”
- Valerie Goole
“He [Joey] can make or break your political career.”
- Midlothian Councilman Ken Chambers
“You’ve got to be the most controversial person on campus.”
– SAGU grad Jennifer Manuel
“If I could get away with murder, I’d run [Joey Dauben] over.”
– Palmer resident Dianne Epps
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Publisher Joey G. Dauben talks about his mission and purpose for an independent watchdog in Ellis County: (via www.EllisCounty.tv)
What I Believe:
* Free-market capitalism
* Honesty in politics, business, religious, community relations
* Dealing with problems in an open dialogue format, not a suppress-and-damage-control mode of operation
* Personal responsibility and accountability for public/elected officialsWhat I Don’t Believe:
* That society, groups, or local/state/federal governments are the solution to our problems
* Any restriction, regulations, tax or other obstacle that interferes with our ownership of production of goods, services, or our right to raise our children and teach them
* Dishonest politicians
* Dishonest local media outlets
“A political writer, journalist or blogger’s first mission and principle is to report the full truth. Anything other than that is intellectual prostitution.” — JGD
The Ellis County Observer was launched in October 2005 by former investigative reporter Joey Dauben, at the time a staffer at the independent weekly The Ellis County Press. Dauben later returned to The Ellis County Press as its news editor in December of 2007 (to February 2009.)
The original intent of the blog was to report on Ellis County’s campaigns and elections, but it mushroomed into one of the most politically influential blogs in Texas, according to BlogNetNews.com’s famous rankings.
Since its inception in ’05, The Ellis County Observer has had:
* Over 494,032 Page Views (hits + unique visitors) (Source: WordPress.com Counterize Stats)
* Ranked by BlogNetNews.com on Aug. 8, 2008 as Texas’ No. 1 blog for ‘Conservative Influence’
* Ranked by BlogNetNews.com on April 19, 2009 as Texas’ No. 3 blog in the ‘Most Politically Influential’ category
* Registered 6,000 hits on Texas’ March 4 primary night as election results were postedThe Ellis County Justice Center
Just a couple of photos (videos available at ECP-TV.com) I took the last time I traveled to Ellis County:
This is the foundation of a second round of Ellis County governmental buildings. The first “Justice Center” was built with a tax anticipation note, despite the fact that Ellis County voters rejected the government center twice.
Excessive mold and water damage was found in the first Justice Center and had to be torn down.
Taxpayers are still footing the bill for the TAN that paid for the first Justice Center.
JW
January 11, 2008
This was on a Houston TV station last night.
11:36 PM CST on Thursday, January 10, 2008
By Rucks Russell / 11 News
It isn’t often we can peak behind the walls of the Department of Public Safety to see firsthand the pressure some troopers are under — the pressure to perform.
But after 11 News obtained interoffice memos about quotas for criminal charges and DWI arrests, a retired trooper was willing to break what he calls the department’s code of silence.
“The troopers that are working are afraid to come forward because of retribution,” he said. “They’re afraid to come forward and say anything.”
11 News verified his background but is hiding his face and altering his voice to conceal his identity. He said it’s the only way he feels safe to speak out. We’ll call him “Bill.”
“They’re under extreme pressure,” Bill said. “The morale in the department has gotten so bad, because of these issues.”
Issues like quotas, according to Bill. He said they’re used as a measuring stick to award job promotions and more pay but often cause troopers to use poor judgment.
“It causes them to make arrests that normally they wouldn’t make,” he said. “They are under that strain and under that pressure that they have to produce those numbers.”
Like the numbers spelled out in a memo from last month, instructing troopers to make at least one DWI arrest by Dec. 31 and four in 2008. It warned that failure to do so could have a negative impact on a year end review.
“The problem with quotas is statewide,” Bill said. “It’s not isolated to Houston, Dallas or Austin.”
11 News wanted to speak with someone from DPS about the allegations, but a spokesman said, on the phone, that there would be no on-camera interviews, while insisting the department fully complies with state law prohibiting quotas for traffic enforcement.
“They can say whatever they’re going to say, but it doesn’t make it true,” 11 News legal expert Gerald Treece said.
He believes there is no question DPS is breaking the law.
“The last time I checked, driving while intoxicated requires you to be driving in traffic,” Treece said. “That’s why I think the statute applies.”
At least one state lawmaker, who looked the memos over for himself this week, agrees.
“These are inappropriate policies for the Department of Public Safety, and they need to be rescinded,” state Rep. Garnet Coleman said.
In a written statement, an official said: “The Department of Public Safety does not support using specific numbers to communicate work goals for commissioned personnel. However, DPS does expect troopers to do the jobs that Texas taxpayers are paying them to do ….”
But Bill said enforcing the law by breaking the law is not what he and other troopers signed up for.
DPS has not yet replied to the question about whether any disciplinary action would be taken against the supervisors who wrote the two memos.
Lawsuit Louie
February 7, 2008
Joey, it seems some of your posts were removed and you are quiet to day. Could it be the result of pending litigation that’s changed your beat a little? I told you man, you just didn’t want to listen.