Sen. John Cornyn leads nationwide effort to better protect judges, court personnel

DALLAS - Texas U.S. Senator John Cornyn is leading the charge to try and better protect state and district court judges. 

A bill just recently passed would in part provide threat monitoring for judges and court personnel.

An Austin-area judge who was nearly killed by a defendant in 2015 helped to pass a statewide bill that gives Texas judges resources she says she didn't have before and after the shooting.

Now, she's working with Senator John Cornyn to try and get a similar bill passed nationwide.

Travis County Judge Julie Kocurek was sitting in the passenger seat of her car in the driveway of her Austin home when a gunman ambushed her in 2015.

"He shot me four times from just four feet away," she recalled. "And luckily the window was closed so I wasn't completely exposed."

Judge Kocurek’s then-15-year-old son, Will Kocurek, was with her.

"He just pulled out a gun from a hoodie and started shooting at her," he recalled.

The gunman turned out to be a defendant in Judge Kocurek’s courtroom.

"I knew immediately when he stopped after shooting me, I knew immediately it was because of my work as a district court judge," she said.

The Kocureks took part in a panel discussion at the UNT Dallas College of Law on Tuesday hosted by Sen. Cornyn where other judicial officers shared threats they've received. Some have been recently.

"I want to bash your brains in. You should be dead in retaliation," said Rockwall County DA Kenda Culpepper.

Also there, Erleigh Wiley, who was appointed as Kaufman County district attorney in 2013 when former Justice of the Peace Eric Williams killed DA Mike McLelland, his wife Cynthia, and prosecutor Mark Hasse in revenge for a criminal case against him.

"He wanted to kill me, and he had a hit list, and he had let that be known," said Wiley.

To help get state and district court judges the protection they need, Sen. Cornyn filed the Countering Threats and Attacks on our Judges Act.

"It involves technical assistance, training and threat monitoring," he said.

That can be accessed by the 3,200 judges in Texas. There are resources for prosecutors and support staff, too.

Judge Kocurek still presides over the 390th District Court. She says she'll continue to use her voice to help keep others in her position safe.

The act passed unanimously in the Senate two weeks ago. The House will now have to vote on the measure.

Cornyn says there is bipartisan support, and hopes it will pass there too, soon. 

Funding would come in the form of grants from the Department of Justice.