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George’s Fort Bend Congressional reps weigh in on Venezuela strike misdemeanor trial postponed By Ken Fountain
KFOUNTAIN@FORRTBENDSTAR.COM
Reaction among Fort Bend County’s representatives in the U.S. Congress to the U.S. military operation on Saturday, January 3 that ended with the extraction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, to be taken to the U.S. to face narcotics trafficking charges fell, perhaps predictably, along party lines.
The misdemeanor trial of Fort Bend County Judge KP George has been postponed after defense attorneys filed a motion for continuance. Here, George is seen during an early court hearing. File photo
By Ken Fountain
The Trump Administration cited Maduro’s alleged participation in so-called “narcoterrorism” for the strike, the legality of which has been hotly contested across the political spectrum. In a press conference, Trump said that the U.S. would “run” Venezuela, which would be paid for by proceeds from production of the country’s vast oil reserves by American companies. On Monday, Maduro and Flores were arraigned in a federal court in New York City.
U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls of Richmond, a Republican who has long served as President Donald Trump’s most stalwart supporters on Capitol Hill, said in a Facebook post on Saturday, “I fully support this move.” “Nicolás Maduro and his illegitimate regime have flooded our country with deadly drugs, taking the lives of Americans,” Nehls said. “Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, his administration, our brave servicemen
and women, and law enforcement, Nicolás Maduro will face justice. “This is America First leadership in action. I applaud President Trump for doing what’s necessary to protect the American people,” he said. In November, Nehls, who was first elected in 2020, announced that he will not seek reelection to his 22nd District seat this year.
SEE VENEZUELA PAGE 2
NEW ARTS CENTER OPENS IN FORT BEND HOUSTON
KFOUNTAIN@FORRTBENDSTAR.COM
The trial of County Judge KP George on a misdemeanor charge of misappropriation of identity has been postponed after his defense attorneys filed a motion for continuance so that they could analyze new evidence provided by prosecutors on Friday, practically the eve of the long-awaiting trial. In the case, which was indicted in October 2024, George is accused of conspiring with a former staff member in a “fake hate” social media campaign during his 2022 campaign for reelection. The trial was set to begin Tuesday. A new trial date will be made available then, Wesley Wittig, Fort Bend County Second Assistant District Attorney and spokesman for the office, told the Fort Bend Star in an email. In the motion for continuance, filed late Friday, Jared Woodfill, George’s lead attorney, writes that on December 30, prosecutors told the defense “it had recently obtained new evidence, which would be available by the close of business” on Friday. “On January 2, 2026, there was a Zoom Status Conference to discuss the transfer of evidence. The State informed Defendant’s counsel and the Court that the new evidence would be ready by today; however, it was not ready until late Friday. Additionally, one business day is not enough time for Defendant’s counsel to analyze the evidence,” Woodfill writes. He requested that County Courtat-Law No. 5 Teena Watson grant a continuance so that he and Terry Yates, his co-counsel, could fully review the “voluminous” new evidence. The motion was unopposed by prosecutors, Wittig said. In a motions hearing last fall, the defense had strenuously argued that the misdemeanor trial, which had originally set for March, be pushed up so that it could be held before the March primary season got fully underway. George, who last June announced his switch in political affiliation from Democratic to Republican, is running for the Republican nomination to seek a third term in November. At the time of this writing, it was unknown how the continuance of George’s misdemeanor trial might impact his trial on felony money laundering charges, which is set to begin in March. The judge in that case, 458th District Court Judge
SEE TRIAL PAGE 2
Officials and other dignitaries take part in the ribbon-cutting of the new Robert & Bertha Edison Cultural Arts Center at a long-dormant shopping center in Fort Bend Houston on Monday. Photo by Juhi Varma
By Juhi Varma CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Nearly 200 people attended the Monday ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Robert & Bertha Edison Cultural Arts Center, a renovated, longdormant Kroger supermarket and shopping center in the area known as Fort Bend Houston. The celebration marked the opening of the Edison
Afterschool Arts Academy, a key phase of the center’s multi-year, multi-phase revitalization project. It is now ready to serve children in the community. “Afterschool-time is the most dangerous time of the day, when latchkey children are at home unsupervised,” said City of Houston Mayor Pro Tem Martha Castex-Tatum, who acted as emcee of the event. “Parents are
working, and sometimes children have a little bit more freedom to do some things that may not be the right thing to do. Now they have this facility to learn music, dance, and do all the things that will be provided here in our afterschool program.” Founder and executive director Charity Carter named the project in honor of her parents, who used to bring her to the former Kroger store
and shopping plaza. When asked what gap the program fills, Carter said the Edison Cultural Arts Center creates a sustainable arts hub in a historically Black and brown community – connecting Fort Bend and Houston artists to professional pipelines, affordable space and
SEE HOUSTON PAGE 4
Layne’s Chicken Fingers expands in Fort Bend with new Rosenberg location By Juhi Varma CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Texas-based fast-food chain Layne’s Chicken Fingers has softopened a new location in Rosenberg ahead of an official ribbon-cutting scheduled for January 10, said franchise owner Masroor Fatany. Fatany, a long-term franchise op-
erator known for bringing The Halal Guys to Texas, owns ten Layne’s locations in the Houston area, four of which are in Fort Bend County. All the Layne’s Chicken Fingers owned by Fatany are certified as Halal, meaning the food is prepared
SEE LAYNE’S PAGE 4
Layne’s Chicken Fingers has soft-opened a new location in Rosenberg ahead of an official ribbon-cutting scheduled for January 10. Contributed photo
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