Two Socorro trustees face criminal charges, and the wife of one of them has also been charged

Socorro school board members Pablo Barrera and Ricardo “Richard’ Castellano” were arrested Thursday on charges apparently related to official duties. Castellano’s wife, Gabriela, a former teacher in the Socorro Independent School District, was also arrested.

The nature of the charges appears to be related to official duties.

Ricardo Castellano, 61, and Gabriela Castellano, 57, each face two counts of obstruction or retaliation. Each was released on $4,000 bail.

Barrera, 39, was charged Thursday with four counts of obstruction or retaliation, two counts of official oppression, one count of undue influence and coercion of a public official or voter. Jail records show he was released on bonds totaling $6,000.

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The Castellanos and Barrera were part of a controversial conversation recorded by Gabriela Castellano in which they demeaned school employees. Barrera was recorded bragging to Ricardo Castellano, “We are school board gods.”

The August 10, 2021 recording was made by Gabriela Castellano and she uploaded the 33-hour audio file to Socorro’s computer system as part of a complaint against the principal of the school where she taught. El Paso Matters obtained the audio through a public records request.

The recording sparked an investigation by the Texas Rangers. The date of offense listed for the Castellanos couple was August 21, 2021, 11 days after it was recorded. The dates of Barrera’s alleged crimes were May 30, 2022 and July 1, 2022.

A county clerk’s official said court records for Barrera and the Castellanos were not immediately available, so the details of the charges could not be immediately determined.

Barrera’s attorney, Mary Stillinger, said her client was not told the details of the allegations against him.

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“No investigator or prosecutor had the courtesy or sense of fairness to contact Mr. Barrera or me to inform him of this investigation. We cannot speculate on the allegations, but I can say that Mr. Barrera is a hard-working and honest public servant who has always worked to protect SISD’s best interests. “We look forward to clearing him of what appear to be unfounded allegations,” Stillinger said.

El Paso County Sheriff Richard Wiles said the arrests were the result of an investigation by the Texas Rangers.

“You asked for assistance with the arrests today. We made the arrest of Barrera this morning. “The Rangers arrested the Castellano couple this afternoon and we assisted,” Wiles said.

Socorro ISD spokesman Daniel Escobar said the district was aware of the arrests but had no further information.

“The district’s focus remains on serving students and supporting staff to ensure the successful completion of the school year,” Escobar said in a statement.

Under Texas law, oppression or retaliation occurs when a person “intentionally or knowingly causes or threatens to cause harm to another person by any unlawful act,” in retaliation for another act or to prevent or delay the service of an officer or witness. It is a third-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Official oppression occurs when an official, acting under the guise of his office, “denies or impedes another from exercising or enjoying any rights, privileges, powers or immunities, even though he knows that his conduct is unlawful.” It is acting is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in prison and a $4,000 fine.

Coercion occurs when an official uses his or her authority to persuade an official or voter to violate a lawful duty that he or she knows. It is also a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by one year in prison and a $4,000 fine.

Undue influence occurs when a person “privately makes a representation, request, argument or other communication to a public official who is exercising or will exercise his official discretion in a legal proceeding with the intent to influence the outcome of the proceeding “on the basis of considerations other than those permitted by law,” Texas law states. It is also a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by one year in prison and a $4,000 fine.

Barrera is a retired Border Patrol agent and Ricardo Castellano is a retired El Paso police lieutenant. Both were narrowly elected in 2021 in an election that shifted the balance on the school board, which had supported Superintendent Jose Espinoza. He resigned shortly after the election.

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