To view the RCCO3 Social Media Policy, go to: reevescounty.org/departments/constables In the state of Texas, a Constable is an elected law enforcement officer for a precinct of a county. Counties may have between one and eight precincts each depending on their population. Reeves County has four precincts. The constables are provided for in the Texas Constitution of 1876 (Article 5, Section 18) whi
ch mandated that constables would be elected at the precinct level. The term of office for Texas constables is four years. However, when vacancies arise, the commissioner's court of the respective county has the authority to appoint a replacement to serve out the remaining term. If no person is elected and qualified under law to fill an office of constable for seven consecutive years, the respective commissioner's court may declare the office dormant, and it may not be filled by election or appointment. However, the commissioner's court may reinstate the office by a majority vote or by calling an election where a majority of precinct voters approve it. Because of this, Texas constables are historically known as the "people's police" because they are elected by and closely serve their local precincts making them directly accountable to the citizens. The Constitution of the Republic of Texas (1836) formalized constables, mandating them in every county as primary peace officers, a role that continues today, making them the original peace officers in Texas. During the ten years of the republic's existence, thirty-eight constables were elected in twelve counties, the first in Nacogdoches County and the largest number (thirteen) in Harrisburg (later Harris) County. Shortly after Texas became a state, an act passed by the legislature specified that the constable should be "the conservator of the peace throughout the county," adding that "it shall be his duty to suppress all riots, routs, affrays, fighting, and unlawful assemblies, and he shall keep the peace, and shall cause all offenders to be arrested, and taken before some justice of the peace." Constables were the most active law-enforcement officials in many counties during the early statehood of Texas. Under the Constitution of 1869, a Reconstruction document that centralized many governmental functions, no constables were elected in Texas from 1869 to 1872, though some were appointed by justices of the peace. Many of these appointees lacked experience in handling violent offenders and access to secure jail facilities and had few deputies to call upon for assistance. They were no match for the poor, embittered, and heavily armed former soldiers from both sides of the civil war who roamed the state, often turning to crime. As a result, the office of constable began to diminish in importance, and the better-equipped county sheriffs began to assume a leading role in law enforcement. Today, constables numbering approximately 780 are elected from precincts in most Texas counties. Their law-enforcement roles vary widely, but in general their police powers are no different from those of other peace officers in the state. Constables and their deputies, like all other peace officers in Texas, are trained to the same state requirement and must graduate from a state-certified law enforcement academy. Additionally, because of their constitutionally mandated status, constables are required to have specialized and continual training in civil process. Constables have identical powers of arrest as county sheriffs and their deputies and are the primary enforcers of both criminal AND civil law. In fact, constables were foundational peace officers and pre-date the official election of county sheriffs and even the Texas Rangers! In Texas, constables and their deputies are fully empowered peace officers with county-wide jurisdiction and thus, may legally exercise their authority in any precinct within their county. However, some constables’ offices limit themselves to providing law enforcement services only to their respective precinct, except in the case of serving civil and criminal process. Constables and their deputies may serve civil process in any precinct in their county and any contiguous county and can serve arrest warrants anywhere in the state. The duties of a Texas constable generally include providing bailiffs for the justice of the peace court(s) within his precinct and serving process issued there and from any other court. Moreover, some constables’ offices limit themselves to only these activities, but others provide patrol, investigative, and security services as well.
