WilCo Judge Gravell Fined $1K For Violating Own Coronavirus Order

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TX — Williamson County Judge Bill Gravell on Tuesday pleaded guilty to having violated his own stay-at-home order earlier this year, according to a published report.

Referencing court documents, KWTX reported Gravell will pay a $1,000 fine as a result of violating his own stay-at-home order issued to help blunt the spread of the coronavirus. The fine is the same amount Williamson County residents violating Gravell's since-suspended order would have been assessed for not complying with the directive, as the original order showed.

In April, Gravell was accused of violating his own since-suspended shelter-in-place order when he was photographed arriving at a grandson's birthday party while donning firefighter gear borrowed from an area fire department. The social outing was in violation of a Williamson County stay-at-home order Gravell personally signed in late March that had since been extended to April 30, compelling residents to stay indoors amid the spread of COVID-19.

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To further compel residents' adherence to the order, punitive measures aimed at violators were attached — a $1,000 fine or up to six months in jail, according to the order.

Despite the red level status under which the county finds itself, Gravell has said he has no plans of issuing a similar order in deferring to the governor's similar stance.

In a separate statement issued shortly after the county was moved to red, Gravell reminded residents that the safety tactics were not requirements: "The guidelines are suggested for planning, but are not requirements," he wrote. "Local guidance may be superseded by an executive order from Governor Abbott."

Gravell's statement also said that personal protective measures were the best ways to prevent the spread of the coronavirus despite there being widespread consensus that restrictive measures slow the spread: "The increasing transmission rate and movement into the WCCHD [Williamson County and Cities Health District] red phase is a great opportunity to remind people during this Thanksgiving season to wear a mask, wash hands frequently, and keep six feet of distance from others not in your household,"he wrote. "While the number of cases has increased, other indicators, such as the hospitalization rate for our region, are below Governor Abbott's threshold for adopting more stringent guidelines under Executive Order GA-32. Personal protective measures are the best way to keep ourselves and those we care about safe."

During a Williamson County Commissioners Court meeting on Tuesday, the president and CEO of the regional blood bank named We Are Blood, Marshall Cothran, made a presentation on the convalescent plasma program as it relates to coronavirus patients. Gravell interrupted the blood bank official as he began to discuss rising hospitalization rates due to the coronavirus.

"You know, Marshall, let me say this: I don't want you to get into that because I don't agree with you on that. Let's just stick to the convalescent plasma discussion." The exchange can be seen at the 12:25 mark of the archived recording of the Williamson County Commissioners Court meeting.

Yet the data maintained by the county tells a different story. On Friday, the dashboard shows, 18 patients were being treated at intensive care units. Of the 63 total hospitalizations recorded on Sunday, the number of ICU patients had grown to 23, according to the data. There were 40 non-ICU patients on Sunday, according to the dashboard, down from 41 the previous day.

The number of non-ICU patients on Nov.15 was 22 — representing a jump of 18 in one week's time — as shown on the county dashboard. There were 21 patients being treated at intensive care units one week from this past Sunday, according to the latest figures available on the dashboard.

Meanwhile, hospital bed stock continues to dwindle. According to the dashboard, 25 percent of hospital beds currently are available for use with just 10 percent of intensive care unit beds open for patients.