Raquel "Rocky" Jones
Democratic · TX · Judge, 203rd Judicial District Court (Dallas County)
Raquel "Rocky" Jones has been a Dallas County felony district judge since 2019, after 19 years as a felony prosecutor in Dallas and Fort Worth. She runs a mental health specialty court and says she focuses on accountability and fairness to both victims and the accused.
Where Raquel "Rocky" Jones stands, based on their records
Supports
Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties (1 record)
Track record
Track record — Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties
Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties · 1 support
In a report published March 16, 2022, Jones described co-founding Conversations Regarding Our Women Now with the 204th District Court in 2021. The eight-week programme mentored women ages 17 to 25 serving felony probation. Completion brought eligibility for reduced fees, waived community-service hours or early probation discharge. She reported that a second cohort had begun in February 2022.
March 16, 2022Supports Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties
Source: texasmetronews.com
Track record — General
General · 6 records
Presided over Dallas County's ATLAS mental-health court, which provided 12 months of supervision, mental-health referrals and medication monitoring for eligible people facing felony cases. The county identified Metrocare as the treatment provider. The programme began in 2006, before Jones became a judge; the source does not establish that she founded it.
October 15, 2026
Source: dallascounty.org
Contributed to the Texas Young Lawyers Association’s How Texas Courts Work public education project. Jones appeared with lawyers in a video explaining drunk-driving cases, including arrests, possible defences, hiring a lawyer and court appearances.
May 3, 2023
Source: howtexascourtswork.tyla.org
Presided over Billy Chemirmir's separate capital-murder prosecution for the death of Mary Brooks. The October 7, 2022 conviction carried an automatic life sentence without parole because prosecutors did not seek the death penalty. The appeals court permanently ended this appeal on September 26, 2023 after his death. It withdrew an earlier order for an appellate-record hearing and did not decide whether the conviction was correct.
October 7, 2022
Source: search.txcourts.gov
On September 8, 2022, the Texas Secretary of State declared Jones elected to another term as judge of the 203rd District Court because she was unopposed for the November 8 general election. The signed official certificate lists her among the candidates declared elected. It does not report a vote tally.
September 8, 2022
Source: co.refugio.tx.us
Presided over the Lu Thi Harris capital-murder case against Billy Chemirmir. Jones declared a mistrial on November 19, 2021 after the jury deadlocked. At the retrial on April 28, 2022, a jury convicted him and she imposed life without parole because prosecutors had not sought the death penalty. The appeals court permanently ended his appeal on September 25, 2023 after his death, without deciding whether the conviction was correct.
April 28, 2022
Source: nbcnews.com
Won election to Dallas County's 203rd District Court on November 6, 2018. The county's final summary, headed unofficial results, lists 474,550 votes for Jones, or 98.77 percent, and 5,893 write-in votes. She began serving as judge in January 2019.
November 6, 2018
Source: assets01.aws.connect.clarityelections.com
Track record — Legal Competence
Legal Competence · 2 favorable · 1 unfavorable
On October 22, 2024, Jones's court revoked Anthony Duncan's probation for failing to report to his supervision officer and sentenced him to two years in prison. The Fifth Court of Appeals upheld that ruling on November 10, 2025. It ruled that the lack of an in-person visit from an officer did not provide a defence because Duncan was arrested before probation ended. Its final instruction to the trial court issued January 20, 2026.
October 22, 2024Favorable on Legal Competence
Source: search.txcourts.gov
On March 20, 2023, the Fifth Court of Appeals overturned two convictions from Jones's court in the Burkley case because he had not given the required consent to a plea hearing by video. Defence counsel had proposed video after a COVID-testing request was denied, but then objected to it. Applying a later controlling decision, the appeals court sent both cases back. Its final instruction to the trial court issued May 31, 2023.
March 20, 2023Unfavorable on Legal Competence
Source: search.txcourts.gov
On May 10, 2019, Judge Raquel Rocky Jones dismissed the murder cases against Stanley Mozee and Dennis Allen on the basis of actual innocence. Earlier reviews found withheld evidence and false or misleading witness testimony. The original convictions had already been reversed before she took office.
May 10, 2019Favorable on Legal Competence
Source: klif.com
Past race Raquel "Rocky" Jones ran in:
- District Judge, 203rd Judicial District · November 3, 2026 · Dallas County, Texas · incumbent