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Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare, right, speaks during his State of the County address Aug. 23, 2024. (Cecilia Lenzen | Fort Worth Report)
” data-medium-file=”https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/IMG_3496-scaled.jpg?fit=300%2C225&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/IMG_3496-scaled.jpg?fit=780%2C585&ssl=1″ tabindex=”0″ role=”button”>At his State of the County address on Friday, Republican Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare praised Sheriff Bill Waybourn and the county’s public safety measures while pointing to a “mental health crisis” across the country. During the annual event, he vowed to do whatever he can to maintain law and order and maintain public safety across the county throughout his tenure as county judge. “I’m a big proponent of law and order,” O’Hare said during the event hosted by the Fort Worth Chamber. “The last thing that I want to see in Tarrant County is for us to end up looking like some of these really large urban areas or cities where there’s chaos on the streets.”O’Hare delivered his address in a banquet hall full of elected officials, county staff and local leaders at the Worthington Renaissance Fort Worth Hotel on Aug. 23. The event marked his third time speaking on the state of the county since entering office in January 2023. Before his election as county judge, O’Hare worked as a lawyer and served as mayor of Farmers Branch. A former chair of the Tarrant County GOP, he promised to make Tarrant County more conservative as county judge. During the address, O’Hare said he’s been surprised to see what he describes as a “law enforcement bias” permeating the county, especially among young people. He added that that bias makes it hard to recruit and retain law enforcement officers, pointing to the understaffed Tarrant County jail as an example. “I’m not saying that if somebody does something wrong they shouldn’t be punished. They absolutely should,” O’Hare said. “But this anti-law enforcement bias that exists and has been perpetuated, it has effects.” He claimed bias against law enforcement is evident in how local media reports on the Tarrant County jail, as well as on Waybourn. In recent months, the sheriff has faced intense scrutiny and calls to resign over the April death of Anthony Johnson Jr., who died by mechanical and chemical asphyxia after a physical altercation with jailers. His family sued the county and jailers in July.Johnson was one of more than 60 people who have died in county custody since Waybourn took office in 2017.“I believe we are very fortunate to have Bill Waybourn for sheriff,” O’Hare said. “He’s a good man, and he gets some bad press from time to time.” O’Hare alluded to Johnson’s death, saying, “we’ve had a couple of incidents that I would say, ‘Yeah, this is bad.’” But, he added, Waybourn handled the matter when he fired two jailers involved in the altercation with Johnson. Waybourn originally fired the two jailers, Rafael Moreno and Joel Garcia, in May but reinstated them soon after and placed them on leave. In July, he fired them again. After discussing Waybourn and the jail, O’Hare shifted focus to mental health, saying the jail often doubles as a psychiatric ward because the county lacks a mental health facility. The Tarrant County Commissioners Court unsuccessfully asked the state legislature to fund such a facility last year, but they plan to ask again this year, he said.He said there’s a “mental health crisis” across the country, and Tarrant County is feeling the effects. “I think partially, it’s a spiritual problem. Our country has shifted away from biblical values and respects. That’s part of it,” O’Hare said. “I think the other part of it is there’s been this movement to legalize drugs.”Other topics of the address included increasing growth opportunities across the county and keeping tax rates low. O’Hare and commissioners approved the county’s most significant tax rate cut in decades last year alongside an $8 million budget cut. Cecilia Lenzen is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at cecilia.lenzen@fortworthreport.org or @bycecilialenzen. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.