Report: Texas executed arrest warrant in March for Rep. Vasquez over 2002 traffic citations

May 28—Republicans pounced on Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez on Tuesday after a conservative news outlet reported Texas police executed an arrest warrant against New Mexico's freshman congressman in March over outstanding traffic tickets from more than two decades ago.

"FUGITIVE IN CONGRESS," the National Republican Congressional Committee tweeted along with a story by the Washington Free Beacon, which reported Friday that Vasquez failed to appear in court in 2002 after he was charged with driving without a license, driving without insurance and disregarding an "official traffic control device."

"Gabe Vasquez's arrest underscores his contempt for the law and law enforcement," Republican Party of New Mexico Chairman Steve Pearce said in a statement.

Republicans' assertions, though, were overblown.

Vasquez, who was 18 at the time of the offenses, was neither booked nor arrested at any time and settled the matter in March by paying a bond, Luis Yañez, an attorney for Vasquez, said in a statement.

Yañez said Vasquez never received notification of the outstanding citations but paid them immediately when he became aware of them.

"As soon as Vasquez found out about his missed court date, he paid the bond, and this is now a simple administrative matter that will be handled by counsel," Yañez said.

Sgt. Noe Juarez of the El Paso County Office of Constable confirmed the March arrest warrants "were executed by payment" per Texas law for unpaid traffic citations.

"Once it's a warrant and we get involved, the only way we can close them is 'executed by payment' or 'executed by booking,' " he said.

Vasquez's legal problem began in 2002 when he received three traffic tickets for driving without a license, driving without insurance and disregarding an "official traffic control device."

Yañez said Vasquez never received a notice that he had missed a court date.

"The state of Texas routinely fails to notify drivers of traffic infractions and the need to come to court, leading to a high volume of erroneous arrest warrants that are designed to bring attention to missed court dates — whether they knew about the original court date or not," he said.

But court records show that five years after the traffic stop, in 2007, the El Paso court mailed a letter to Vasquez notifying him to appear in court for a show-cause hearing, Juarez said. The letter would have been sent to the address Vasquez provided at the time of the traffic stop five years before, he confirmed.

Juarez conceded people change addresses: "That happens routinely, but it is the defendant's obligation to provide an updated and correct address to the court," he said.

But he disputed Yañez's assertion that Vasquez was unaware he had a court date, noting that when someone signs a traffic citation, it's a first notice and a promise to make arrangements to come to court.

"Now, once you receive the citation and you fail to come to court, then the court is authorized to issue an arrest warrant," Juarez said.

Vasquez's campaign manager, Dylan McArthur, told the Free Beacon the traffic fines stem from when the congressman was 18.

The fines "were paid off and no further action has been requested," he said.

Juarez called the traffic citations against Vasquez "not something major."

"And as an 18-year-old, a lot of people get traffic tickets at that age," he said.

But news of the arrest warrant gave Republicans an opportunity to go on the attack as they try to hold a majority in the House.

Vasquez, a Las Cruces Democrat, is in a hotly contested rematch against Republican Yvette Herrell in the November general election. Vasquez narrowly beat Herrell in 2022.

A spokeswoman for the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC dedicated to electing Republicans to the U.S. House of Representatives, took aim at Vasquez.

"Gabe Vasquez is a champion of the 'defund-the-police' movement, and it's abundantly clear why," Maureen O'Toole said in a statement. "Vasquez has zero respect for the law and those who enforce it."

The PAC announced last week it had reserved $141 million in ads for television, streaming and digital platforms across 37 media markets for the 2024 election cycle, including $2.3 million in Albuquerque.

Valeria Ojeda-Avitia, a spokeswoman for Vasquez, countered the congressman "has the utmost respect for law enforcement, which is why he has secured federal funding for law enforcement and public safety, the same funding that Yvette Herrell promised to never take."

Follow Daniel J. Chacón on Twitter @danieljchacon.