Texas City Council Feud Heads to Supreme Court Over Politically Motivated Retaliation

A small-town political feud that wound up with a Texas city council member behind bars is headed to the Supreme Court this week, where justices will consider whether the councilwoman can sue city leaders for politically motivated retaliation. 'I would never believe that I would be going to the Supreme Court,' Sylvia Gonzalez told Fox News. 'I would never believe that I was in jail either.

Indeed, the petition was in the binder, so Gonzalez handed it over and thought nothing of it. But two months later, she learned from a neighbor that there was a warrant out for her arrest. 'I didn't even know what I was accused of,' Gonzalez told Fox News. 'I'd never been in jail … and it was very scary to an old lady like me.' Trevino and Police Chief John Siemens used the briefly displaced petition to launch a criminal investigation into Gonzalez, her lawsuit alleges.

Gonzalez sued Trevino, Siemens, special detective Alexander Wright and the city in 2020, alleging they deprived her of her rights under the First and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Attorneys for Trevino and the other defendants did not return a request for comment. The city officials invoked qualified immunity, a defense commonly used to shield government officials from liability unless it can be proven that they violated a clearly established constitutional right.

Gonzalez will have her case heard Wednesday. Bidwell said Gonzalez's case could have wide-reaching implications, including the 2023 police raid of a local newspaper office in Marion County, Kansas. The police chief was allegedly 'infuriated' the newspaper was investigating his background, according to a federal lawsuit recently filed in the case. To hear more from Gonzalez and Bidwell, click here.

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