22 Sides

Where Democracy Breaks Or Heals: Down-Ballot Power with Melanie Miles

• Robin & Alexis • Season 2 • Episode 2

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Melanie Miles for Justice of the Peace- Precinct Seven, Place 2 click here: https://milesforhouston.com/

Courts shouldn’t feel like a maze. They should feel like a place where neighbors are heard. We sit with attorney and candidate Melanie Miles to unpack how a Justice of the Peace can turn a stressful day in court into a fair, navigable process—and why Precinct Seven, Place 2 needs that shift now. From the first “good morning” at the clerk’s window to how cases are scheduled and supported, Melanie lays out a people-first plan that treats tenants, landlords, and small-claims litigants with dignity and clarity.

We talk brass tacks: building a resource ecosystem inside the courthouse—computers, printers, legal aid, and volunteer clinics—modeled on the best JP courts in Harris County. We also get tactical about access: adding one Saturday and one evening docket each month so working families aren’t forced to choose between a paycheck and a hearing. And yes, judges need to show up. Reliability on the bench is a form of justice.

Policy takes center stage with SB 38, Texas’s response to squatters that also accelerates evictions. We break down the risks of four-day response deadlines, email-only notices, and default judgments, then outline practical safeguards like bold, plain‑language notices and fill‑in response forms served with the petition. The aim is balance—protect property owners while preserving due process for lawful tenants who need a real shot at being heard.

Along the way, we swap stories about voter apathy, wellness rituals that prevent burnout, and the power of year-round civic culture—volunteering, endorsement screenings, and bringing a friend to the polls. Down-ballot races like Justice of the Peace shape daily life far more than headline offices, determining whether a crisis becomes a scar or a solvable problem. If you care about housing stability, fair hearings, and a court that actually serves the community it lives in, this conversation is your roadmap.

Make a plan to vote, share this episode with a neighbor, and leave a review so more Houstonians find it. Your circle is your superpower—use it.


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Melanie Miles:

Okay, girl. Okay. We're trusting you. The light is red.

Alexis Melvin:

Okay.

Melanie Miles:

I'm just the soundboard's lit up.

Alexis Melvin:

It is. It looks good.

Melanie Miles:

I believe you. Hey, you know what? I have faith in this. Exactly. Exactly. I believe in you.

Alexis Melvin:

I mean, I'll fake it if nothing is. I mean, we're getting a transcript so I could do that.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah, and I'm double-miced. There you go.

Alexis Melvin:

Um, I'm Alexis Melvin, and I'm here with Robin Mack.

Melanie Miles:

Hey, hey. And Melanie Miles. Yes.

Alexis Melvin:

And this is 22 Sides. Today we're going to be talking about all sorts of stuff. All sorts of stuff. And I have to say, right up front, we had a technical difficulty. I believe it was my fingers that were the technical difficulty. Those good nails were. Ultimately, Melanie was a nice person and decided that she'd help us out so that I didn't have to continue to whine and beat myself up about it. And she'd come back. So what we're going to talk about is a whole lot of things today. Yes. Because some things we couldn't talk about because they hadn't happened yet. For instance, I'm just very curious. Did you do your caucus screening? I did. And see, nice thing is I know nothing about it, so I don't have to worry about being confidential because I can't.

Robin Mack:

She's getting ready.

Alexis Melvin:

She's getting ready. You know, we we talk about the hot seat routine.

Robin Mack:

Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

So we'll talk about that a little bit. But the thing I really want to know is we'll start off. What are you doing to get yourself elected?

Melanie Miles:

Oh my gosh, I am doing so much. You know, I am working so hard. I'm like, what's a day in a life? Like, how do you do it? Oh my goodness. You know, I mean, I'm up at 4 30 in the morning, you know, I mean, just kind of getting ready.

Alexis Melvin:

There's a 4 30 in the morning.

Melanie Miles:

There is, you know. I I see it every, every, every day. So we're doing it all. We are we really do have a people focused campaign. We are, you know, um out there knocking on doors, uh, texting, mail, of course. We do phone banking every single day, six days a week. Wow. Um and uh we're doing events. I'm kicking off this uh Coffee with Mel whole series thing, which is the pre-block walk event, right? So if we're going into a community, we're texting them and saying, Hey, come have coffee with me the day before. Nice, you know, it's cool. It is. And so I get to talk to people and then let them know I'm gonna be in the community, you know, so you're not caught off guard. And uh the next day we're in there block walking. So nice. Yeah. So we're we're trying to, you know, do as much as we possibly can to make uh everybody aware in the precinct, which is precinct seven, that I'm running and why.

Alexis Melvin:

Well, I look at it this way. I did the same thing I usually do, which you start everything backwards.

Melanie Miles:

So what are you running for? That's a good question, right? I am running for Justice of the Peace, Precinct Seven Place Two. Um and so if for all of those listening, if you don't know where Precinct Seven is, it is this weird big area, and it is literally from uh Third Ward, Midtown, Sunnyside, South Park, Hiram Clark, over down South uh uh postoke, Brayswood, and parts of even Montrose.

Robin Mack:

So you get around. I do. That's a large demographic. It is, and they're all very different. I mean, that's like a nice little piece of Houston. It is, you know, a lot of diversity. And I think the vote is March 3rd.

Melanie Miles:

It's March 3rd. Okay. It's March 3rd, and it is uh early voting starts February the 17th. We're around the corner. It is, oh my gosh, it is totally around the corner.

Robin Mack:

Okay. And how long have you been campaigning for? Like when did you throw your hat in the ring?

Melanie Miles:

I threw my hat, let's see. Uh we had to declare in December, so I threw my hat in the ring, I would say like in September.

Robin Mack:

Okay. So you're you're you're feeling the endurance at this point. You're you're mid-marathon, basically. Okay. And and what are the things that you do to keep yourself well?

Melanie Miles:

Well, 4 30 in the morning I actually get up usually and go to the gym. Okay. So I go to the YWCA downtown. Yeah. And um, you know, the days that I don't go, I can really feel it. I can feel it in my mental health, I can feel it in my body. I'm achy, you know, especially when block walking. I mean, it's just, you know, beating your body up. So so that's the first thing that I try to do every single morning is do that. And then in the evening, I just have my window time where I just want to just go totally brain dead. So I watch something stupid on television with my husband or daughter, or you know, it's like 90-day fiance or something like that. You know, it's got a good script and you're just fine. Yeah, yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

That's sort of like, you know, a lot of days I'm sort of like, I don't want to watch something serious.

Melanie Miles:

Exactly. I do not. I want something that's going to just be light, you know, h happy or whatever, or but I don't want anything serious and anything sad. And you're doing it with your loved ones. Yes.

Robin Mack:

You know, and that's a beautiful thing, because Alexis and I have interviewed a few politicians along the way. And when I ask them what do they do for their wellness, they're like, oh I'm not gonna lie, there's not a lot. But I mean, I think that's very important because especially in these political days, it's not like you're gonna be in a seat where you're just gonna be coasting. You know, you're going to be, from what I hear, taking it up a whole lot of notches for what the accessibility is in these neighborhoods to some modern day convenience. Right. You know, so you're gonna be hitting the ground running when you get that seat. You might as well get endured now, right?

Melanie Miles:

That's exactly right. There's so much that needs to be fixed, improved, you know, thrown out the window, um, and start over when it comes to this particular um seat, you know. I mean, it's just so many things is So what things you're gonna do different when you win? Yeah, that's a good question. My my 90-day plan. What can we count on you for? Okay, well, the first very first thing is we're gonna throw the doors open and we're gonna make sure that everybody who walks into that courtroom is treated with dignity, kindness, respect, and they are heard. That's a real upgrade. So, oh my gosh, it's huge because right now they are not treated that way. They're rushed, the cases are stacked on one day. Um, usually the defendants are not, and when I say defendants, whether it's a tenant or in a small claims case, uh, these are this just JP courts is friendly, should be this friendly court in our neighborhoods, right? That the judge kind of knows a lot of the people and because there are people in the community where the judge also lives. I live in this community.

Robin Mack:

Right, and that's basically the court most of us would end up in in our neighborhood, right?

Melanie Miles:

Right, right. So to walk in there and to to encounter someone who's on the bench that's yelling and screaming and doesn't allow you to speak and doesn't look at your documents and doesn't actually give you a chance to be heard is unconscionable. So that's the first thing.

Robin Mack:

That's not a neighbor.

Melanie Miles:

No, it's not. That's a good word for that, is not a neighbor.

Robin Mack:

That well, Alexis and I were talking a little bit before this, is like, where are we getting back to like knowing thy neighbor, like being friends, like actually human? Like we some people are saying forget the parties, we gotta get back to being human. Oh my gosh.

Melanie Miles:

Will you say that again? Mm-hmm. Forget the parties.

Robin Mack:

We got to get back to being human. And and I it's it's very timely because I think it's important that you're highlighting that not all communities have the same level of support in their uh Justice of the Peace courts.

Melanie Miles:

They don't, you know, in every precinct, which there are eight across Harris County, um there are two JP courts. And in this one, I'm running for JP7. JP1, which is uh Wanda Adams Court, I mean, oh my gosh, they they have everything. They have legal aid, they have legal assistance, they have lone star legal aid, all the universities, law schools, uh from TSU to U of H South Texas, they're all there with clinics providing legal support. They have rental assistance and you know, utilities. They even have like the unions down there hiring people and explaining about jobs and stuff like that.

Robin Mack:

So you're you're coming in, you're talking about evictions, you're gonna need these things. You do you know, and then if you're down on your look and you get a case, sometimes these cases and convictions can follow you for a while, so you want it to go well.

Melanie Miles:

Absolutely. Absolutely. And the court that I'm sorry, let's go. Go ahead. I was just gonna say that um this particular court, precinct seven, has zero, zero resources whatsoever.

Alexis Melvin:

So Yeah, no, I was just gonna say one of the things is that if you treat people well and you get them the things they need, it stops them from escalating because escalation once it starts is not a pretty thing.

Melanie Miles:

It's not. It's really not. And once you get a judgment, uh especially one of eviction on in your record, then you know, when you try to find another apartment, it's gonna show up, right? And so you're gonna have a problem. That's hard. If you try to get a job on a background check, it's gonna be a problem. Even in a fast food is it's going to be an issue. That's hard. And it's on your credit report. So um, you know, it's just so easy to try to um provide justice off the bench before they even walk up in that hallway. Right. You know, you can hopefully serve people so that this crisis in their lives isn't permanent situation.

Robin Mack:

So that's beautiful. I thank you for putting your time and your commitment and your team and your family behind this because you know, we randomly had Steve Duble uh come in here. We were doing a podcast about ghost stories. Actually, it was a bunch of pals talking about ghost stories, and we got a knock at the door, and him and his husband were canvassing. We said, Hey, come on in, you want to do a commercial? He's like, Oh, this is the best. And he was telling, I mean, it was a learning experience for us because even though I care about voting, I haven't always been in the courts. And so he was saying that, you know, he in his uh JP space, he has uh computers and uh court support and uh a printer. Like who has a printer these days, you know, and and by the time you get to the court, if you don't have something printed, that's not the time to to worry about it, right? So I just appreciate what these judges are trying to do. And you wouldn't hear about that on the news. You wouldn't think that your your representatives are working for you. So I like that we're highlighting that because uh we're bringing it back to the civics that a lot of us might be missing right now. And Alexis is a huge advocate for like going and getting to know your court system and even sitting in there just going and listening.

Alexis Melvin:

I mean, one of the things that we end up doing a lot is uh I'm president of the Transgender Foundation of America. We we get calls from people in our community that are having problems. And usually they have no idea what to do, and if they're upset about something, they're gonna go complain and they don't even know who to complain to.

Robin Mack:

Yeah. And they're afraid. I mean, come on, everything from the bathroom. You don't want to go to a court space. No, yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

But uh but you know, I mean, there have been several times when after listening to what their problem is, they're basically being illegally uh evicted. And I'm like, okay, so go down to your JP court, talk to the clerk. The clerk will tell you everything you need to do. It's gonna cost you a little bit of money, but not a whole lot.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

And usually the clerk suggests they go talk to the judge that day, and usually they know exactly what's going on at the end of it. And what they find out is that if they're doing if the landlord's doing something illegal, well, the court takes care of that just like they do the other side.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah. Well, that would not be the situation in this court, I can tell you that. For sure. What's it like right now? Well it's gonna be though, right? It is, it is, right? Yeah, you know. Um what it's like right now is first of all, she will not allow her clerks to speak to anyone at all because she considers that giving legal advice. Even if their question is, how do I navigate the website so I can find my case? They will not provide any information.

Robin Mack:

And we need user help these days. Come on.

Melanie Miles:

Exactly. And and like you said, Steve Duble, Judge Dubble, is is has done it so, so right, in my opinion. Um, you know, that resource room that he has there, simple things like providing a computer, um, you know, those are just easy things. I mean, you can get computers donated, right you know? I mean, you don't even have to go and use your you know funds to do that. You can get, you know, the resource room donated, which is what he did. He wrote a grant to do that. That's great. But but there are lots of organizations. I mean, I was just endorsed, I think I mentioned this the last time, by the Houston Evictions Advocacy Center. It's a beautiful thing.

Robin Mack:

Say more about that.

Melanie Miles:

Oh my gosh, they are great. It was founded by Mark Melton and out of Dallas, and he provided, he pro he sourced up the funds to provide legal assistance for every JP court in Dallas, and now they brought it to Houston. Wow. Houston's Commissioner's Court has also adopted the program and put money behind it. And so, but it's not in this court. I can tell you that. So it's not in this one. So, which is precinct seven place two, if you haven't forgotten already. But um and and so it's it's a it's a great thing, right? Um and so when you walk in, and your example, Alexis, if you walk into this court, they're not going to service that person, you know. They're they're gonna just say, you know, hey, wait your co wait for your day in court, and then that person shows up, they still don't know what to do, and they just get poured out, you know. Um legal terms were turned away, you know. So yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

Yeah, and you know, uh some of the other courts I I know do the same thing that uh like used to be Creshency's court, now it's uh Carter's court. And uh, you know, it and it it's like the clerks are told you know, help any way you can, don't give legal advice and they understand where the line is.

Melanie Miles:

Yes.

Alexis Melvin:

And and you know, and then usually they get to see the judge without anything else, just to find out what they can do. And frequently it's all taken care of right then.

Melanie Miles:

Well, the problem also here is the judge is not there. So if you if you show up on a Monday, yeah, it makes it hard, right? Justice can't be served if the judge isn't there. So um if it's on a Monday, this judge is never gonna be there. She takes a four-day weekend every week, every every single time. So, you know, you're that that's the thing. If it's after one o'clock, the judge isn't there. So you cannot serve the people if the judge is not present.

Robin Mack:

So And this is just not a season to be coasting in your seats. So I hope that uh you have some leads on how to flip it and how to be in it. And do you have anybody else running against you or is this just you versus her? I wish and that. Are you like a district 18 where you have 30 people running with you? Oh no, it's not that bad.

Melanie Miles:

Well, there is one other person in the race. Um and um and I don't have anything uh to say except that I think she's lovely. Um you know, I think I'm the better candidate, but um but yeah, so I think we're both on the same.

Robin Mack:

It's looking good for that district if people show up and vote.

Melanie Miles:

Yes. Okay.

Robin Mack:

And do you think that they will? Like, are you getting a sense that people are finding reasons and times to actually come out and vote these days? Because a lot of people have been very discouraged.

Melanie Miles:

You know, i I mean, it it's all pre-designed, right? You know, to you know, for voter apathy to exhaust us. I mean, how many times? And and I'm in Congressional District 18. So you both start laughing.

Robin Mack:

Yeah, I mean, that's just been you know, I mean it's a perfect example of uh I was telling Alexis earlier today because uh Amanda and uh uh Christian Menefit you're gonna have a debate at a church. Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

And and are they not including Al Green? I mean I think Al should crash the debate.

Robin Mack:

Right. Well, and I'm in the district with Sylvia, so like what happens to her? She just fades away. Like, I mean, nobody's really talking about this. It's and and um who knows if there's we lawsuits against it, but probably so. But just you know while that seat goes vacant, all of us suffer.

Melanie Miles:

Absolutely.

Robin Mack:

And it just shows us how much every seat matters.

Melanie Miles:

You know, the the big bill, I will refuse to call it beautiful, you know, but the big ugly bill, you know, uh it passed by one vote, and that was Congressional District 18. You know, if we had someone there, it wouldn't have passed.

Alexis Melvin:

And and I'm sort of surprised that someone in 18 hasn't sued Abbott over all of that.

Robin Mack:

Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

You know, individually, but no one has. Because I mean, basically he's denying them representation.

Melanie Miles:

Absolutely. For a long time. For a long time. Yeah. So, you know, I I think to answer your question about, you know, do I think people will turn out to vote? Um, you know, I I hope so. I hope that everyone is not just tired and apathetic, but I hope they're m getting mad. Uh-huh. You know, I mean, people tend to like ah when they're mad, right? Like, okay, that's it.

Robin Mack:

Yeah. That's it. I want to go down and click some boxes. We're gonna listen this time. And by the way, clicking boxes at the local place for two weeks with endless hours where you can go with maybe little to no lines is now easier than ordering a Domino's pizza. Like we can't get too like, you know, upset about this. But in fairness, like some people don't have a car, some people have to get babysitters, some people are authentically scared, some people have been registered their whole time and have never had the courage to vote. That's so true. So, I mean, I do joke about it, but Alexis and I both have watched many people through the lines as buddy support because we found people that were registered, but they've been on the news too much or on the computer too much, and they got afraid. You know, they're like, Oh god, these lines must be horrible. We're like, not really. Well, the people must be violent. Not really. Yeah. Well, but I don't know what to do. I'm like, okay, well, here's an endorsement card. Like it's practically a cheat sheet. Yeah. They already did the work for you.

Alexis Melvin:

And and like there was one person that says, you know, I just can't risk it and that. And I'm like, so you're worried about people hassling you and all that. I'm like, tell you what, I'll go with you. I'll take all the hassle. I'm pretty used to it. Yeah. And they said, Well, okay. And I said, My guess is if you don't mind driving us short ways up to West Gray, you'll have no problems whatsoever.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah, that's so true.

Alexis Melvin:

There's so much law enforcement there all the time.

Melanie Miles:

I mean, my my friends and I, it's just like, okay, you know, everybody in the household has to go. You know, I mean, we're just like all going together. It's like an event. Yes. You know, like everybody's in in that house, I don't care how old you are, yes, you know, from 99 to you know, nine, even if you're nine, you can't vote. You're going anyway. Yes.

Robin Mack:

You know, I mean, so when we had 24-hour voting, I was telling every drag queen, I was like, listen, you could get every bar to sponsor a bus to go vote after your show. There is no reason for you to not have a busload of your people voting your way together in amazing outfits. I mean, let me not let me not limit you, right? But there would be a whole lot less rhetoric and bands if that had been the case. That would be great. You know, they have a microphone, use it. You have a platform, use it. You know, because a lot of times to that. Why not? Well, now we don't have 24-hour voting. They got rid of it. So it's not a thing we keep doing.

Alexis Melvin:

But it was we have started doing a drag show to vote up at West Grave.

Robin Mack:

Yes, yes. And our emergency responders got to vote for the first time. Some of those people were double triple shifts, and they're not allowed to leave like the ambulance. So that's a big deal. And I do want to remind people that if you cannot get out of the car, they still bring tablets to the car. It's more accessible than you let on. And Harris Votes has done a great job of uh tutorial. Videos about like what to expect, you know, and how to uh come prepared so that way you don't waste your time and and you know what to do. And I do wonder at this point, like how are you supplementing your schedule? You're running it all hours, like what do you do for fun?

Melanie Miles:

So um for fun, um, that's a good question. So besides hanging out with my family, right? I told you my downtime. So I think for fun, you know, when I'm not campaigning, right now my husband might say, like, hey, let's go out for dinner or something like that. And I feel like, oh God, please no.

Robin Mack:

Just throw the cucumbers on the bed right here.

Melanie Miles:

Like torture. He's like, I'm like, oh god, more spoons. But normally, normally when I'm not campaigning, I would love that. Yeah, regular season, I would love that. Or going just to see a movie. We like to travel a lot to you know, he likes to go to all kinds of strange places and stuff. And so, um, you know, just you know, I I mentioned before I like a garden, you know, I'm into gardening and stuff. I I'm not into growing, but gardening, you know.

Robin Mack:

It's like its own lottery system. Yeah, not catching the situation.

Melanie Miles:

Exactly, exactly. So I I can't wait for spring so I can garden again, even though I think I'm supposed to start now. But I feel like the plants don't even know what to do with our seasons.

Robin Mack:

So season are we on? Oh, well, that's we don't really have one. I don't think, yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

It's like perpetual summer into Hell's Kitchen, like you know, but then the pre-cause we have a week of winter every now and then. We do sometimes.

Melanie Miles:

I think we're gonna have a freeze soon. And I I I'm really kind of looking forward to it, you know.

Alexis Melvin:

I mean the one thing the freeze does is kill the mosquitoes.

Melanie Miles:

That's right. Maybe you know a good thing. Well, usually some of them just hide out, I think.

Alexis Melvin:

I think they have hand warmers or something.

Melanie Miles:

But you were talking about, Robin, you were talking about videos and stuff that Harris Vogue has. I mean, I think that's such a great idea, and I know a lot of people use that um, you know, to get over that fear, and it's a great non-intimidating way to you don't have to say, hey, I don't know, you don't have to raise your hand. You can just sit in your home and actually, you know, watch a video um and figure it out. And frankly, I think that's what we should do. Like, that's what I plan to do with this court, you know, have videos and video series and things like that. It's just so easy.

Robin Mack:

It's important because we have to bring back the civics. And look, we clue into education when we have the time, when we're not nervous, and even when like you're gonna get a jury duty summons, like, okay, I'm gonna want to know what to do. Like, you that's not the time to ask your friends. No, it's not. I I was just talking to my niece, she said, Oh, I've got my first jury do jury summons. I don't think I'm gonna go. And I was like, What, what, what? What else are you doing? And she said, No, I don't want to go because my friends told me that um if you go to jury duty, then uh what was it? No, if you she didn't want to vote because she thought if she was gonna vote, she was gonna get more jury duty. And I was like, I don't really think that's how it works. Yeah. You know, um it this hearsayness is not worth it. But I told her, I said, so let's go back to you didn't vote. How do you feel about that now? She says, Well, I didn't vote. I don't have a place to complain. I said, Okay. But how do you feel with less rights? Because the people who showed up voted for you to not have rights. And she said, Yeah. And I said, Do you think you'll change your mind? And she goes, I don't know. Like she was real thinking about it, you know, but it's gonna be a while until she gets there. And that's why I'm always asking politicians, like, what are you doing to influence the people who don't go? Because I think if you're party-based, you get this like cookie cutter, here's who shows up, here are your low-hanging fruit that's gonna like you, and then run with that first. And that makes sense, don't get me wrong. But what about the people who are outnumbering those people now who are not showing up? You know, who have felt like the system hasn't worked for them. And then in real time it's broken, especially in your areas, right? Yeah. And so, like, how do you get that belief back in there? That that that, I don't know, what is it like accountability meets new action, meets like let's try again.

Melanie Miles:

Next week, I am actually I was asked to speak to a bunch of students about networking um and you know the importance of it. And these are these are law students, right? So I'm a lawyer, um, I've gone through the whole process and and that's what the talk is about. Um, but you know, that's I think so. In other words, I think it starts not when you're running for office, I think it starts year-round, every year, you know, all the time. And I think it's through real lived experiences. You know, I mean, you hopefully, hopefully, if you are running for office, or even if you're not, even you have a podcast. Right, right. You know, I mean, really you're you're you're doing this because one, you have a heart for people, you you're trying to educate, you're trying to give something back, right? Yep. Um, and and hopefully influence others in a positive way. And so that's a that's a you know, all the time, whenever you see an opportunity, you do it. And and that's what I think is going to influence people to vote. We have elected officials who have influence, who really, you know, you have these, you know, most people are kind of starry-eyed and like, oh wow, you're an elected, you know. And I've never even met someone who is a big, you know, yeah, they're this or this, you know, whatever. And so use that platform. Use it year-round, you know, to do something really good and to influence people. And I think that's how we start to move the needle, you know.

Alexis Melvin:

And I think one of the things is that we have to get over this bit of because you are elected, you're anointed to be something way above the people that elected you. Right. That's not the way it works or should work. And you know, I I one of the things that I tell a lot of people, and and that is, you know, when you're doing this, the key is to make friends with people that you think might be what I sort of call pre-politicians. Because, you know, you can look and it's like, yeah, they're gonna run for office somewhere. I don't know whether they'll be good at it, I don't know whether they'll win, but they're gonna run for office. And so, you know, start being friendly and give them some advice that you know they may need because usually someone who's new has no idea what they're doing or getting into.

Melanie Miles:

True.

Alexis Melvin:

And that sort of stuff. Well, what happens is that later on you find out that you end up having a lot of influence just because they trust you. And and you know, there's there's certain things that they'll figure out, and then there'll be some people who have no influence whatsoever because they know them.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

And and you know, I've heard people all the time say, Well, I don't have any influence, I don't have any stroke with these people. It's like you don't have to just give them money. There's a lot of ways that you can do that just by working with them.

Melanie Miles:

Absolutely.

Alexis Melvin:

So, what would your campaign need other than money?

Melanie Miles:

My campaign can use a lot of things other than money. Um, you know, num number one is just this forum that we're in right now, you know, as much as um you can spread the word, talk about uh this particular race, you know, talk about my candidacy, um, and you know, what I'm trying to do in Precinct Seven Place Two. That's that's one, right? Just share and spread the word. Um share this podcast um to other people that you know. Um so that's one. Two is I can always use volunteers. Volunteers, you can phone bank from home, you can do it virtually. Um, you can block walk with me, you know, and my team. Uh you can sponsor uh coffee if you know someone uh in the precinct. I told you it's a big area. So if you live in the area or you know someone who does, then it you don't have to do it in your home or their home. I can meet you at, you know, uh McDonald's and we'll have coffee there. Like a place. Yeah, Chipley's, whatever.

Alexis Melvin:

I mean, and and I'm talking, we're doing donuts now. Yeah, there you go.

Melanie Miles:

Less donuts. And I love those kinds because people can come and go freely, right? Right. I can buy them a cup of coffee, we can sit there and chit-chat, and you know, and then folks can, you know, they don't have to feel obligated. They can get up and leave whenever they want, right? And so that that's really good. Just invite some of your neighbors and friends and say, hey, I want you to meet Melanie Miles. Uh you know, um, and and that that would be great. And then of course, voting. Voting is just like the ultimate, right? That's what needs to happen. Yes, we we absolutely need to.

Robin Mack:

But like you said, taking your family, taking your friends to the polls and and making a plan. Like, don't save it to the last minute because we might have a freezer, we might have some rain, and it does go on a little bit for early voting, so there's plenty of time. And I mean, if houselessness is important to you, you're breaking the path. You know, you're keeping people into cases that'll actually be heard and you're expanding the office hours so the cases can actually have a little bit more time to go back and forth and to explain their situation. And I think that it's important to not be missed about uh the fact that you want to be in your community because a lot of the leadership right now, you turn on the television like a lot of nationally, people cannot get their representative to pick up the phone or show up at their office or be accountable. So, you know, start with people who want to be.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah right?

Robin Mack:

Right. Like, I mean, really.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah, to totally, totally. You know, I mean, one of my you mentioned it, Robin. One of my um uh 90-day uh promises is that we will change the office hours. Someone asked me, matter of fact, on a uh screening interview, I think it was on the caucus screening interview. Oh, the LGBT political caucus? Yeah, I think I think someone's I know it was. I remember the person. Endorsement season.

Robin Mack:

Yeah, and so I was we still don't know the final endorsements at the recording of this, so yeah, yeah.

Melanie Miles:

But the question was so one of my um things on my platform is that I would like to add a Saturday once a month and an evening once a month. And that would be helpful. Exactly, right? You're talking about working people, sure and um and so it would be really helpful. And so the question was, well, do you think you would have to go to commissioner's court to get permission to do that? And my response is I don't think so, because there are 12 clerks in this court and they handle um the same well, they handle half the number of cases as some of the larger courts that handle uh twice as much. And they and one of them in particular has the same number of clerks as this one. So if they're handling twice as many cake cases with the same number of clerks, then I think we can just manage this court better, which it's in my opinion, is not managed very well now. There's no cross-training of clerks and you know, any of that. I mean, so if there's a freeze or COVID or a flu or anything and three or four go out, then you the court is just that's hard. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So because there's no cross-training. But I believe that with proper management, we will be able to implement these some of these new things without having to ask for a budget increase from commissioner's court or something. That's a beautiful thing. Yeah.

Robin Mack:

Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

Go ahead. People who aren't thinking about it. So if you have uh court some nights and some evenings or whatever, now we're talking about night court, so it could be very comical.

Melanie Miles:

Yes, it could, couldn't it?

Robin Mack:

Just saying. Well, and I'm thinking maybe you know, people can uh manage their kid care a little bit better or get to their job and take less time off a little bit better or something like that, or maybe go like Alexis loves to encourage people to just go sit in the court and view a little bit more. Like if you really care about the law and you want to see the system working, maybe you can go sit in.

Melanie Miles:

You know? Absolutely. I mean, if you're already in a situation where you're late on your rent, you can't afford to ask now can I also take off because I've got to go to this hearing because I'm actually being illegally evicted, you know, and I did pay it. I paid it late, but I paid it to Joe, the office worker, and you know, it's not showing up is what you're telling. I mean, you know what I'm saying? And there are just a lot of reasons, just not every case is different, yep, and every person's situation is different, and you need the time to be able to hear it all. Right. Hear it all.

Alexis Melvin:

Right. And and the nice thing about JP court is that a lot of the cases, in fact, most of them, are taken care of in one shot.

Melanie Miles:

True.

Alexis Melvin:

I mean, it's not like some of the trials that go on for weeks and weeks and weeks and weeks.

Robin Mack:

That's right. Oh, okay. Yeah, you don't have to go back for four days.

Alexis Melvin:

And so it it's sort of like watching a uh an an episode of a series.

Robin Mack:

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, if you've run out of episodes to watch, go to your local court.

Melanie Miles:

Yes.

Robin Mack:

And you'll be surprised that it's not like Judge Judy and things. But uh it's it's real, it's important, and and it can be kind of scary. So I'm glad that you're trying to make it more of a welcoming, accessible environment. And when you were w endorsing with the caucus or other coffee chats that you've been doing, what do you think has been the best question that's been asked to you? Like something that in has inspired you to sort of like live into this position.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah. So there is, I think the best question is, and that's what I was gonna ask you all, have you heard about is SB 38. Have you guys heard about this new Senate Bill 38 that's come about? Okay. So our our legislature, our Republican run legislature, they voted to change to it was uh couched and we are addressing the squatters and the squatter issue. Okay, right? Um so there is a problem with people moving into spaces, homes, apartments, whatever, and they don't, uh they're not leasing there and they won't leave and et cetera, et cetera. So that is a real issue, right? So uh however they created this SB 38, which essentially changes the laws with regards to evictions. It makes it much faster. So the constable has to actually serve it in uh a shorter period of time, like five days, right? Um the after a person is served, they have four days to respond. So right now, if your landlord serves you with an eviction, you don't have to respond, you don't have to do anything. You can just show up on the day that you get notice, right, that the the hearing is going to take place. And that notice has to come, they have to like post it on your front door, or a constable has to serve you with it, you know, something like that, or the constable has to get permission to post it on your door. Well, now um you have to respond to it, okay? If you don't respond, then they can get what's called kind of like a summary judgment, meaning you don't have to ever show up, no trial, no nothing, and you're evicted. Okay?

Robin Mack:

All right. How do we feel about this?

Melanie Miles:

We don't feel good about that.

Robin Mack:

I don't know. We don't, we don't, okay. We do not know. She was like, no, no, no.

Alexis Melvin:

I was looking over when you said, How do we feel about this? I'm like, I don't know how I feel about it.

Robin Mack:

It's not a camera podcast. We have to we have to express our feelings.

Alexis Melvin:

Well but the interesting thing about it with this bill No, no, no. It's addressing a real problem. And you know, it it's like a lot of other things, you've got to be really careful when you're addressing a real problem because sometimes you're creating more.

Robin Mack:

Correct. Yes.

Alexis Melvin:

And and you know, I mean, the whole squatter thing is ridiculous.

Robin Mack:

It's really gotten out of hand.

Alexis Melvin:

You know, it has essentially you leave your house for a short while, you come back, someone else has moved in, they falsified some paperwork that they can show the constable, yeah, and you can't get them out.

Melanie Miles:

You can't get them out.

Robin Mack:

Well, I keep hearing that squatters have more rights than landowners right now, or something like that. And and then the landowner ends up having to pay for them basically to be there, unfortunately, and and they cause damage. And the last recent news report I saw was of a guy who thought it was his divine right to just assume the land. And they're like, no, you do not live here, you know? No, and doing all sorts of things that he should not be doing in that house. And I mean it's all documented, but can't get him out. So what where do you think maybe maybe because I mean we've seen this a lot in the trans committee, right? People pitch that there's an issue, and there may or may not be, but in the squatter issue, there's an issue, and then they create a policy, and then they just you know, wiggle waggle and try to pass at midnight BS that's not gonna help anybody. So is this just not the bill that's gonna help people, or is it there's there's some parts that will, some parts that won't? What do you what do you think about it?

Melanie Miles:

You know, I think it's just like such a difficult situation because, like you said, squatter issue is a real issue. Yeah, it is. You know, for probably it's like you go on vacation, you know, say, hey, we're gonna go spend a month in Europe. Right. You come back and then there are people over here. You know, I mean, it's like what that they break a window and they move in, and it's just like what the heck, right? Um, so that is an issue. I don't necessarily know that I have the fix to that, but I do know that when it comes to tenants who are being impacted, they have a lease agreement, right? And so now if they don't respond, and it's a complicated situation, so they're not getting a notice. They would if I'm elected. That notice telling them about their trial date when they're served by that constable, actually before the trial date, when they're first served by that constable, right, with that eviction, right? Then at that point in time, that notice should lay out you must in big bold letters underlined you must provide a response. And here is a copy of in a fill-in-the-form response, you know, that you must complete and return within four days of receiving this. Right. Because if not, a judgment can be issued against you without you doing anything. Okay? Without you doing so that's that's one, and then the other thing is let's say the tenant has agreed to receive notices via email now. I know lots of leases are like that, right? Well, now if you've agreed to an email notice from your landlord, they could possibly send you notice without it going through the constable just via email. Now who's up on their email?

Robin Mack:

I mean, again, if if you're on vacation or it got lost in the landslide, like that that could be a little dangerous, actually. Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

I mean the one nice thing, this is the positive part, is usually in Texas when we get one of these bills that's really solving a problem and they try and they're trying to solve a problem and it didn't work, usually in the next session a much better bill shows up.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah, they try to fix it.

Alexis Melvin:

And and hopefully that'll be the case here because it yeah the way it was is wrong, the way it is is wrong, so it's gonna be a real problem.

Melanie Miles:

I think that you know, they I think you have to uh think, and I don't know how much, you know, we have the apartment associations, um um what is it, lobbying group. You know, they are in favor of this and have led the charge. Of course they are. Yes, exactly, right? So they're in favor of it and they have led the charge on it. I don't know that there is a tenants group. Maybe the unions, maybe AFL, CIO, um, but we definitely need a um a lobbying group. And I and I do know that several groups lobby because this bill was much, much worse than this to start off when it came to tenants, right? Right.

Robin Mack:

Sometimes it gets better the longer it's being picked at. And I think that if I were having a seat at this podcast table and I click play on this episode, because we truly want people to feel like they are invited to every conversation that they're welcome to like and I just met you, Melanie. Like, what I hear is you want transparency, fairness, and accessibility to, you know, justice. And I I think that's a beautiful thing for you to run on and to stand for and to put your time in. And most importantly, I'm really glad that you're taking time to be with the people and staying well. While you're doing it, because that's not easy. So thank you. Like you will always have a seat at this table. And if you are just tuning in or skipping through, we want you to come out and vote this season. If you're in Houston, March 3rd is the final day, probably. Early voting is February.

Melanie Miles:

February 17th through the 27th.

Robin Mack:

You can find out more information about Melody at milesforhouston.com.

Melanie Miles:

That's Miles M-I-L-E-S F-O-R-Houston.com.

Robin Mack:

And if you're listening to the podcast, I want you to take care as well. Subscribe and share because this may be the only way that someone finds out about it. And they might be a little curious too. Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

The other thing about it that I do want to make sure we say, and that is we have a very long ballot in Harris County.

Robin Mack:

Yes.

Alexis Melvin:

And you need to go all the way down the ballot. All the way down the ballot. Some of the positions at the bottom are going to affect you way more than the positions at the top because you'll probably never see the people at the top.

Melanie Miles:

Especially you won't see me. I'm down at the bottom.

Alexis Melvin:

You know, you will see the people at the bottom once they're elected. So go make sure you vote for them. And some people have said, Well, I could just start at the bottom. No, you really can't. You've got to go through all of them.

Robin Mack:

Right. And this is a time to not skip because we've got everything from city to state. And that's you can make a big difference with your time if you go to the voting poll this time. So please, please consider it. If you're in Harris County, go to Harris Votes. And I look forward to you finding out if you're in her district and who you could actually support if you're not. And maybe check out the caucus endorsements, the LGBT political caucus, because they do a lot of good work.

Alexis Melvin:

There's there's a few other ones that you might want to check out also.

Robin Mack:

Like what?

Alexis Melvin:

Like Invoter.

Robin Mack:

Like what? Okay. Like invoter.com?

Alexis Melvin:

Yep, invoter.com.

Robin Mack:

Okay.

Alexis Melvin:

And it'll be up shortly.

Robin Mack:

Okay.

Alexis Melvin:

But here's another thing. So what did you think of the caucus and uh screening? I mean, I didn't screen you, so I have no knowledge or anything else.

Melanie Miles:

Um, you know what? I really I mean I don't know if I'll get it or not, but I really felt good about it. I thought it was a good screening. It was an hour, you know. So that's not just some little I mean, I was in another one, it was like speed dating, you know. It's just like, oh my God, you know, this is just you know, in ten minutes it was over, you know. So um, but but no, it was very thorough. The questions were thought out. It wasn't just some routine check the box, hey, okay, ne on next to the next person. They were really very, very thorough, which I expected that anyway, but um, but yeah, it was it was really, really a good screening. I mean, uh, you could tell that everyone was virtual. I mean, so there are quite a few people in the screening meeting, and you could tell that each one who asked questions, um, they, you know, were looking for real information, right?

Robin Mack:

Yeah, we'll add this into the show notes because the LGBT political caucus has been around for a while and you know, they've waxed and weaned on membership and how they do things and whatnot, but they've always had a place for uh an average person to just get involved and uh learn about politics, learn about how they can actually talk to political leaders, whether they're in the seat or they want the seat, and maybe hand out some cards at the uh voting booth. So it's a great way to meet people and get and new get newly educated. If you don't know anything, you could you could still volunteer and be a part of it. Absolutely.

Alexis Melvin:

And the other thing that a lot of people miss, because this is sort of the behind the scenes part, is you know, they do the interviews and it's a long questionnaire actually that you filled out. It's a lot of work. You rarely ask anything that's already on the questionnaire unless it's confusing. Yeah. And and then after they've interviewed every one of the candidates for whatever race it is, the screeners who all have to have interviewed everyone for the race that they're in, have a discussion.

Robin Mack:

Yeah.

Alexis Melvin:

And some of those discussions get very, very heated.

Robin Mack:

Do they? Oh, yeah. Well, then some of the members get a s a chance to even get in that discussion on the endorsement day, right?

Alexis Melvin:

Well, then endorsement day, there's another round if people want to. Yeah.

Robin Mack:

So this is like three times cooked of homework. And and if someone's like, I don't know where to get started, I always send them the caucus card because I'm like, they did half of the work. Like here. You know, take it as a starting sheet.

Alexis Melvin:

And you know, even if it's not exactly the politician that you might like, or there might be something with them, they aren't turkeys, is the way I usually put it. Yeah. You know, I mean, somebody that's just like, no, this person shouldn't even be around, will be excluded pretty quick from the caucus information.

Robin Mack:

Yeah, and I like the fact that the caucus is accessible virtually now because you know it's a good way for people to like dip their toe in a political conversation and and just kind of see what's happening in real time in Houston politics. So I appreciate the work that they're doing.

Alexis Melvin:

Aaron Powell, and again, there's a lot of other groups that screen. Sure. Some of them are pretty good. Some of them I don't know how they call it a screening, but that's just my personal opinion.

Robin Mack:

Aaron Powell Well, and there's things like the Houston Chronicle and uh you know, like you said, Invoter.com. And so we'll we'll list a few just so people can get started with their uh homework. And you're right.

Melanie Miles:

Every organization, I mean I was kind of just joking around, but some lean more to just some don't screen at all. They really rely upon the questionnaires, which are very, very thorough. And so they don't feel the need to do an in-person sort of uh conversation because they're really looking for the depth in that questionnaire.

Robin Mack:

I absolutely wish that people would screen in-person and stuff. I mean, uh I I did some screening when uh Beeto ran against Cruz a while back, and again, it was a very large ballot and and uh the things that some people would say at a table they would never get elected for if someone heard that in in real time. Really? Oh yeah. And we're seeing it now a little bit in the media where because you can live stream into the legislature now. You can you can see some of these video clips that people are saying um at like a federal level and and you're like, oh my god, did they say that? It's like they probably said that when they were getting elected. Yeah, you know, yeah. So that's true. If it if it smells bad, if it sounds bad, if it is bad, like just stop putting these people in the seat and we will not have as many problems as we do. Yeah, you know, so it it can start with just volunteering if you're curious. Like, and the cool thing is you do get to talk to politicians, you get to ask judges and city council members and things like this, like, you know, what did you do here? What would you do differently, or how does this even work? Like all those questions.

Melanie Miles:

Yeah. And you know what, to your point, when I mean, I've been on several screening committees and and for endorsements of different organizations. And you're right. I mean, when you have a candidate and they show up and they're like prepared, and I mean, especially virtually and in person, right? You know, they're prepared, they're ready to go to I mean, versus a candidate that they're not prepared, they're you know, you can tell physically, mentally, you know, the whole thing.

Robin Mack:

They're just like, eh, well, you're not prepared, you don't you don't even know who you're talking to. Yes. And then somehow I'm supposed to think you're gonna know how to do this for your job. I mean, I don't get employed and stay employed like that. I don't think they should either, right? Right, right. But we don't want to take any more of your time. We're really thankful for you to come and come back, and you're always welcome here. So thank you very much. Anything else, Alexis?

Alexis Melvin:

Nope.

Robin Mack:

It's gone by so fast. I know. Well, thank you, listeners. It's your turn to click play.

Alexis Melvin:

That's why I keep looking over.

Robin Mack:

I'm like, I know. Thank you for leaving reviews. Robin's finishing it up. Thank you for spreading the word. Thank you for taking care. Bye bye. Bye, thank you.

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Robin Mack

Host
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Alexis Melvin

Co-host