Fort Worth City Council candidate who robbed pair at gunpoint in 1999 ruled ineligible

After drinking nearly half a fifth of Southern Comfort whiskey at a Seattle club in 1999, Erik Richerson, then 17, robbed a couple of $160 using an unloaded 9-mm handgun.

On Friday, the Fort Worth City Secretary’s Office declared that because of the felony conviction, Richerson, a candidate for the District 9 city council seat, was ineligible for the office.

City Secretary Mary Kayser said that on April 9, a packet was delivered to her office that included certified copies of documents from the Superior Court of Washington related to the Richerson robbery case in Snohomish County. Other information was provided to Kayser’s office on Friday. Kayser did not say who delivered the material.

District 9 includes downtown as well as parts of south and central Fort Worth.

Richerson, now 39, was with another assailant when he robbed the victims at an apartment in August 1999, according to a probable-cause affidavit supporting the robbery charge. The other assailant told a law enforcement officer that he and Richerson went to the apartment to buy marijuana.

“Yeah, you got jacked [expletive],” Richerson said before leaving, according to the affidavit. He and two men were arrested as they drove from the apartment building. Richerson pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery. He was sentenced to about 7 1/2 years in prison.

Another District 9 candidate, Darien George, said on Tuesday that he would withdraw from the race after he faced criticism for aggressive behavior that included directing a profanity at another candidate after a Near Southside forum. George said he had faced harassment of his own.

The Texas Election Code is a bit vague on the matter of candidate criminal history.

State law prohibits people with felonies from running unless they have been pardoned or had their full citizenship rights restored, but does not specify all means by which felons can restore them. The code says candidates must be pardoned from their felonies or “otherwise released from the resulting disabilities.” Lawmakers have in recent years proposed clarifying or eliminating the line.

Richerson is the second local candidate whose arrest record has jeopardized a bid for office this year.

In Arlington, mayoral candidate Jerry Warden was kicked of the ballot last week after opponent Jim Ross lodged a complaint. Warden has multiple felony convictions and a lifetime registration in the state’s sex offender registry. He told the Star-Telegram that his rights had been restored.