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JUDGE METTS-“BOSS OF THE YEAR”

SONY DSC Pct. 4 Justice of the Peace James Metts was recognized as Montgomery County Boss of the Year 2011 during Monday’s Commissioners Court. The contest was sponsored by the Montgomery County Employee Committee and open to all elected officials and department heads.

Employees submitted letters explaining why their bosses deserved the honor and the submissions were reviewed and voted upon by an impartial group of citizens. Monday marked the second time Judge Metts received the award.

“I was surprised and humbled to learn I was again receiving this tremendous honor,” Judge Metts said. “I try to treat others as I’d like to be treated, and that’s not my idea – it’s in the Bible.”

The judge and his entire staff attended Commissioners Court for the presentation of the award, which included a plaque and gift certificate, along with the reading of the letter of nomination sent to the Montgomery County Employee Committee.

The letter cited many reasons Judge Metts’ staff believed he should receive the award, not only including the way he treats them, but the example he sets by his treatment of others.

The full text of the letter submitted by the JP4 staff is below.

September 30, 2011

 

We, the employees of Pct. 4 Justice of the Peace James Metts’ office, believe he deserves to be named Montgomery County’s 2011 Boss of the Year for countless reasons.

 

Judge Metts is the kind of supervisor every employer should aspire to be, and every employee would hope to find. He leads by example, giving everyone the same respect he is given- sometimes more- and never expects more of his staff than he is willing to do himself.

 

In fact, Judge Metts goes above and beyond what is expected of his staff, sometimes working with very little sleep because he is often called upon in the middle of the night. Judge Metts personally responds to all death calls and conducts an inquest, which is not true of all justices of the peace and demonstrates the level of respect Judge Metts has for his position and shows for people in general. He is also on-call 24 hours a day to sign warrants for law enforcement if the need arises. He is always accommodating, regardless of his level of fatigue or what personal activity, including sleep, may have been interrupted. That part of the judge’s work ethic is not something the public ever sees, nor is it something he points out, but it is one more way he leads by example.

 

Judge Metts does what he believes is right, regardless of whether it will gain him recognition and sometimes even at the risk of drawing criticism, as in his tackling of the juvenile truancy issue in Precinct 4. The judge assembled a staff he knew shared his vision of saving young lives that were headed down the wrong path and together, they attacked the problem. Some of his new, and according to detractors, “unorthodox” methods drew criticism initially, but Judge Metts did not back down because his focus was on helping the children turn their lives around. He has significantly increased the attendance rate at the districts in his precinct and helped countless families and the community in the process.

 

Some of that help is seen by his staff, but never the general public. For example, a young man appeared before him because of repeated truancy. Having already been warned, the young man should have gone to jail for 72 hours. However, he asked the judge to reconsider because his father was dead and he was trying to help his mother keep her house. He missed school because he was working, and going to jail for 72 hours would cause him to miss work, which could have resulted in his mother losing her house. The judge listened and asked the young man to take a seat to the side of the courtroom. He later quietly confirmed the story with school officials, and then took the young man in his office where he shared words of encouragement. He told the young man he was going to give him another chance and then gave him money from his own pocket and told him to take his mother to dinner. The act of kindness was done privately, and the judge would probably want it kept that way, but it was included in this letter because it illustrates the example he sets for his staff.

 

Judge Metts shows genuine concern for every person who stands before him in court and everyone on his staff as well. Whether a staff member has a complaint or a suggestion, he is never too busy to listen to us and does so with an open mind.

 

The Judge recognizes hard work and effort and expresses his appreciation to his staff regularly, which makes everyone determined to do the best job possible. It may also partially explain how the office with the 14th largest caseload out of all 822 JP courts in Texas is current.

Judge Metts has created such a sense of unity that staff members voluntarily participate and volunteer their free time to events outside of the office that benefit the community, such as the annual school supply drive, providing needed supplies to underprivileged children in the community. The number of people who have been in Judge Metts’ Office for a considerable length of time speaks for itself.

 

Judge Metts should be a role model for people in positions of authority everywhere. He truly deserves this award, and we respectfully ask that you name him 2011 Boss of the year.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

The Staff of Pct. 4 Justice of the Peace, James O. Metts

 

Syble Eaves

Cathy Cain

Jamie Nash

Kim Parker

Gina Comeaux

Tammie Elliott

Marsha Edwards

Dianne Rogers

Jane Landers

Brian Stanley

Jerry Sue Hayden

Dayana Ramirez

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