(The Center Square) – Newly elected Judge Michele Oncken, presiding over the 338th District Court, appears to be the first in Harris County to deny bail to an illegal foreign national in a murder trial after new bail reform laws are in effect.
The decision is expected to be one of many in a new system voters have demanded for years. It’s also seen as a major win for Gov. Greg Abbott, who has championed bail reform and is seeking to turn Harris County red as part of a reelection bid.
Harris County First Assistant District Attorney Chandler Raine requested Oncken deny bail in a new 11D hearing process, created to allow prosecutors the opportunity to request bail be denied in certain violent crime cases.
The new process is an outworking of bail reform legislation Abbott signed into law in June, and a constitutional amendment 61% of voters passed on Nov. 4.
Raine is prosecuting Honduran national Angel Adonis Saldivar-James, 24, who is charged with murder in the shooting death of a taco truck owner in Houston on Dec. 4. The victim, Yaddua “Aless” Barraza, is described on a GoFundMe page as a “family man who worked hard and took pride in providing for his home.”
Authorities allege Saldivar-James shot Barraza through the truck window as an accomplice stole cash from a tip jar. They both fled the scene. Three days later, he committed aggravated robbery, authorities allege. Houston police arrested him on Dec. 9 after receiving a tip, according to the charges. He is currently charged with murder and aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon in two separate incidents, according to court records.
Saldivar-James, who is in the country illegally, also has a detainer request placed on him with the Harris County Jail by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Raine argued Saldivar-James should be denied bail because he represented an ongoing threat to the community because of the violent crimes he is accused of committing. Raine also argued the defendant is a flight risk because he had no ties to Houston and his identification documents appeared to be invalid.
Raine presented surveillance footage of the shooting and Houston Police Department interview, which appears to show the Honduran demonstrating how he committed the violent crimes he is charged with, including standing and acting as if he were holding a gun and pointing it at his victims. HPD detective Robert Rivas testified he believed Saldivar-James had committed these types of crimes before, saying, “It tells me that he’s done this a lot.”
Oncken granted Raine’s request and denied bail. The next court date in the case is scheduled for Feb. 6, according to court records.
The hearing was held just eight months after Abbott listed bail reform as a priority for the legislature to address. State Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, filed what Abbott describes as “the strongest bail reform package in Texas history.” It passed with bipartisan support.
One of the new laws, SB 9, prohibits “judges from granting bail for violent crimes like murder and rape if the prosecutor shows that the defendant is a flight risk and a danger,” Abbott said when signing it into law. “Judges who do release violent defendants on bail must explain their decision to the public in writing.”
It also authorizes prosecutors to appeal a judge’s bond decision, bars magistrates from setting bail in dangerous and high-risk cases, prevents nonprofits from using tax dollars to bail criminals out of jail, among other reforms, The Center Square reported. Sections of the law went into effect Sept. 1, others become effective Jan. 1 and April 1, 2026, according to the bill language.
Oncken’s decision was one Texas voters overwhelmingly supported in the November 2024 and 2025 elections. Last November, a bipartisan movement led by Houstonians urged Texans to vote out of office judges who repeatedly released violent offenders, The Center Square reported. Outrage has been expressed statewide over bail policies but Houstonians have led the charge for change, citing crime as a top issue in the 2024 election.
Last November, many new judges were elected, including Oncken, a former Harris County prosecutor. She was sworn into office Jan. 1, 2025.
Last month, voters passed the constitutional amendment after many again expressed outrage over judges continuing to release violent offenders onto the streets after they “promised” not to keep committing crimes.
