Charges against Oakley dismissed in the ‘interest of justice’
Several 2023 criminal charges filed against former Burnet County Judge James Oakley were dismissed on May 20. File photo
Several criminal charges filed against former Burnet County Judge James Oakley were recently dismissed in the “interest of justice.” The charges, originally filed by Burnet County’s former district attorney, had loomed over Oakley since 2023.
According to court documents filed in the 33rd Judicial District Court of Texas, the March 2023 charges of abuse of official capacity, tampering with evidence, and official oppression were dismissed on May 20 by 452nd District Attorney Tonya Ahlschwede, who had been appointed in December 2025 by the court to handle the case after local 33rd/424th District Attorney Perry Thomas voluntarily stepped away from the case in November 2025.
“I’m just pleased at the swift actions of the appointed (district attorney’s) office,” Oakley told DailyTrib. “It’s been stressful.”
The reason for dismissal on all of the charges was noted as in the “interest of justice” on all three motions to dismiss filed in 33rd District Court.
DailyTrib was unable to reach DA Ahlschwede or presiding Judge Dibrell “Dib” Waldrip for comment by the time of this article’s publication, but the term “interest of justice” is used when the prosecution or judge believes that continuing the case wouldn’t serve justice.
Background and proceedings
Two of the dismissed charges against Oakley stemmed from his involvement in a vehicle accident in 2021. He was accused of manipulating evidence and attempting to intimidate the other party involved in the accident. The “abuse of official capacity” charge was connected to a perceived conflict of interest in serving as both county judge and as a board director for the Pedernales Electric Cooperative.
The charges were originally filed by former 33rd/424th District Attorney Wiley “Sonny” McAfee, who left office at the end of 2024. All three of these charges were “quashed,” or tossed out, by visiting Judge Waldrip in July 2023. Before McAfee left office, he appealed the judge’s decision, and won the appeal in November 2024, making the charges once again eligible for prosecution.
After taking office at the beginning of 2025, DA Thomas was undecided on whether or not he would pursue the charges.
“(The charges are) back in my office’s hands at the moment, and we’re evaluating where to go from here,” Thomas told DailyTrib in March 2025. “I can’t say at the moment (what will be done). I don’t think it would be appropriate to make a comment just yet.”
Ultimately, Thomas voluntarily recused himself from the case in November 2025 due to his acquaintanceship with Oakley personally and socially.
“I believe that voluntary recusal is appropriate in this case to avoid even the appearance of impropriety arising from my previous public interactions with the defendant as a private citizen and as an attorney in the private practice of law discussing the facts and possible defenses of the case,” Thomas said in his filed motion to recuse himself.
Following Thomas’ recusal in November 2025, 452nd District Attorney Ahlschwede was appointed to prosecute the case in December 2025.
A status hearing was held for the case in February of 2026, with another hearing scheduled for May 21, but the cases were officially dismissed by the prosecution and the court on May 20 before that hearing took place.
Oakley
While three 2023 charges against Oakley were only recently dismissed, he did go to court on a fourth charge, of misuse of government property for driving a Burnet County vehicle to PEC meetings while he still served as an elected director for the cooperative.
He was found not guilty on that charge in August 2023 after a jury trial. He had been suspended from his role as Burnet County judge for about six months after his original indictments in March until he won his case in August.
Separate from the criminal charges filed against him, Oakley was publicly reprimanded by the Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct in December 2024 for courthouse security violations and the sexual harassment of Burnet County Precinct 2 Justice of the Peace Lisa Whitehead and at least two other women.
Shortly after the commission’s reprimand, Oakley announced his resignation as Burnet County judge, and officially left office in January 2025.