The Board of Disciplinary Appeals (BODA), appointed by the Supreme Court of Texas, has dismissed two grievances filed against former Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg. One was filed by criminal defense attorneys representing two defendants accused of the rape and murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray and one was filed by Joshua Reiss, general counsel for the Harris County District Attorney’s Office. BODA held that none of the actions complained of constituted professional misconduct. The dismissals, issued October 30, 2025, are final and not subject to appeal.
“These dismissals confirm what we’ve maintained all along — that former DA Ogg did nothing unethical or improper in speaking publicly about a case of enormous public concern,” said Jennifer Hasley, one of Ogg’s attorneys.
The grievances stemmed from Ogg's public comments as district attorney as well as afterward about the death penalty prosecutions of Franklin Peña and Johan Jose Martínez-Rangel, cases that drew national media attention and were cited by President Trump in support of his stance on illegal immigration and violent crime in his State of the Union speech and elsewhere.
The grievances alleged Ogg had violated the trial court’s ‘gag’ order, prejudicing the defendants’ right to a fair trial. The court subsequently ordered Ogg to appear at a show-cause hearing to determine whether she should be held in contempt.
“As district attorney, her duty was to seek justice and protect the people of Harris County. She should never have had to defend her right to stand up for crime victims. Because the State Bar grievances alleged the same content as the complaints underlying the contempt allegation, we’ll be filing a motion to dismiss that action shortly,” said Michael Wynne, another of Ogg’s attorneys.
“I’m grateful the Board of Disciplinary Appeals upheld the rule of law and my First Amendment rights as Harris County’s former chief prosecutor and as a private citizen. I also want to thank the excellent lawyers who defended me and ensured that attorney oversight in Texas remains guided by evidence, not politics,” Ogg said.
About Kim Ogg
Kim Ogg served as Harris County’s district attorney from January 1, 2017, to December 31, 2024, representing more than 4.5 million residents and leading the nation’s third-largest prosecutor’s office for eight years. During her tenure, she implemented data-driven reforms and accountability measures that reshaped local criminal justice policy. Ogg launched a comprehensive review of bail reform and authored a 2021 report highlighting its impact on public safety, created a mental health diversion program that redirected over 13,000 non-violent offenders to treatment instead of jail, instituted independent review of all police-involved shootings, and prioritized prosecution of repeat violent offenders and public corruption. Before her election, Ogg managed a successful civil and criminal law practice, served as a chief prosecutor under District Attorney John Holmes, directed Houston’s first anti-gang task force, and led Crime Stoppers of Houston as its executive director.
Media Contact
Josh Delano
josh@delanoye.com
+1 409-242-5430