OTIS POWERS, JR. THREATENS ERASMO CASTRO AT BISD CANDIDATE FORUM

Erasmo Castro, Herman Otis Powers, Jr.
Candidates for BISD Trustee, Place 2

"I'll take you outside and beat the shit out of you!" threatened former BISD trustee Herman Otis Powers, Jr. to Erasmo Castro at a BISD Candidate Forum held at the Brownsville Public Library Wednesday evening.

"He just threatened me!  He just threatened me on live videotape!" Castro responded.  

Mr. Powers had seemed to chafe much of the evening as Castro repeatedly called attention to letters sent to vendors recently by Mr. Powers and his sister-in-law, Dr. Sylvia Atkinson, asking for contributions as large as $7,500 to create a board majority.  

Atkinson is currently a BISD board member, holding Place 7, while Mr. Powers is a former board member, now seeking Place 2.

"Those contributions, especially those from insurance vendors, do not come freely," Castro reiterated several times during the forum.

"They are most assuredly paid back and that money comes from funds needed for the education of Brownsville's children, including those with special needs."

Released court documents from the 2010 Tony Juarez vs. BISD trial, show that Otis Powers had admittedly been involved in the fraudulent practice of "backdating" contracts and a conspiracy to oust former Superintendent Hector Gonzalez.

The forum was sponsored by B.E.S.T., an acronym for Brownsville Educators Stand Together, a teacher's union.