|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
The mayor of Kendleton, a small freedman’s town along Highway 59 in Fort Bend County, faces an abuse of power charge, accused of unlawfully raising the water and sewer rates of a local RV park.
The charge handed up Thursday marks the second indictment of Mayor Darryl Humphrey Sr. in the last nine months.
Humphrey is accused in the latest indictment of using his power as mayor to raise the water and sewage rates of Todd Doucet, owner of the Lazy K RV Park.
Humphrey could not be reached for comment Friday.
The indictment was announced by Fort Bend County District Attorney Brian Middleton’s office.
“No one is above the law and everyone should be treated equally under the law,” Middleton said in the release.
Representatives for the city of Kendleton and the city attorney’s office could not immediately be reached for comment.
Doucet told the Fort Bend Herald earlier this year that his water bill increased from $100 to $700 a month after he built a shed to house a washer and dryer for his tenants.
Doucet told the Herald he believed the mayor was upset with him because his RV park was competing with the city’s King-Kennedy Memorial RV Park.
Doucet submitted public information requests in 2021 and 2022, seeking access to a city ordinance he said he was told was the reason for the water bill increase. The mayor never responded to the requests.
Humphrey was indicted last December for his failure to comply with Doucet’s public information requests. The mayor’s spending also came under scrutiny earlier this year after a Fort Bend Herald investigation alleged Humphrey and Kendleton’s city secretary had used city credit cards to buy groceries, eat out and shop online.
Wesley Wittig, spokesman for Middleton’s office, said the mayor remains under investigation, but did not elaborate.
While he is happy the mayor’s alleged actions are being brought to light, Doucet on Friday said he is not fully satisfied.
“Justice has definitely not been served,” Doucet said. “I've been battling this for a couple of years over this water bill and open records and I still don’t have the open records that we've requested.”
Republish our articles for free, online or in print.
