The City of Houston has uncovered bits of rampant corruption across the county in recent years. There was the bid-rigging scheme that involved Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and her staffers, and most notably, a massive Texas Rangers investigation into the Houston Water Department. The latter surrounded a multi-million-dollar kickback scheme which cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

After that investigation, former manager at the Houston Water Department Patrece Lee was charged for orchestrating the scandal. She received a 10-year sentence in February, much to the delight of Houstonians. Finally, blatant corruption was met with a punishment to fit the crime. But just four-months after that sentence, Lee is already eligible for parole July 5th.

A person who costed Houstonians millions of dollars may walk without serving much of anything. It is just one of the latest slaps to the face of residents. Charles Blain of Urban reform says this kind of thing is wearing on people's patience.

"It is frustrating for people in Harris County, because you see these things happen all the time...and you start to wonder if there will ever be any serious recourse for public corruption locally," he says.

The explanation for why Lee is eligible for parole is fairly simple. State law says non-violent offenders only are required to serve one-quarter of their sentence before parole eligibility. Lee banked about 250 days served while awaiting trial, and got marks for good behavior, which added numerous days to the time served.

The final decision does rest with the parole board though, and just because she is eligible for parole next month, does not mean it will be granted. Lee very well could be denied parole and serve a chunk of the sentence. That just leaves a bad taste in the mouth for people.

"When you look at public corruption, you would hope there would be more of a heavy hand when it comes to this kind of stuff," says Blain. "These are people we bestow with our public trust, and we hold to a high regard. It is frustrating to see, even if it is state law."

It still leaves people feeling like justice was not actually done, and the next official will get away easy as well. It sets a precedent that leaves people wondering if anyone cares about the law.

Part of it though is because white-collar crimes are typically seen as lower on the totem pole of criminality. We do not abhor them as much as violent offenses. But we need to take them as seriously as violent offense, because crime is crime.

"I think it is some of the worst crime, because it affects all of us as taxpayers, but also erodes more trust in our institutions," Blain says.

The Harris County District Attorney’s Office has not yet announced if it will formally protest Lee’s parole consideration.

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