A Valley View school board candidate was transported to a Corpus Christi hospital after a fight broke out at a polling site Sunday afternoon.
A Valley View school board candidate was transported to a Corpus Christi hospital after a fight broke out at a polling site Sunday afternoon.
Details about the bloody beating remained unclear as of press time Sunday night. Pharr police responded to the incident, but did not return calls for comment.
Photos of Prisciliano “J.R.” Treviño showing an injury to his face began appearing on social media shortly after the fight. Blood can be seen running across his face from a cut to the left brow and a swollen eye.
Multiple sources said Treviño was allegedly “mouthing off” to a voter when the fight broke out between the candidate and a school bus driver. Accounts of what transpired between them varied depending on political affiliation.
One group alleged Treviño was harassing a voter, which upset a nearby bus driver. An altercation broke out and the driver suffered a kick to the groin. The man’s identity remained unconfirmed Sunday night.
Treviño’s son, Eric Treviño, said his father was “kicked in the groin and sucker punched.” Paramedics treated him at the scene, and at one point afterward, a recommendation to seek specialty care in Corpus Christi was made.
Treviño has a fractured orbital socket, his son said.
“My dad is seriously injured,” he said. “We’re afraid he might lose an eye.”
This isn’t the first time the incumbent is involved in a scuffle outside a polling location. In June, Treviño and Hidalgo Council member Rudy Franz got into what police called a “minor” altercation outside the Hidalgo City Hall polling site during the runoff election for the city.
Franz, who was fined for pushing Treviño in the first reported incident, said he was not surprised when he learned about the fight.
“This is J.R.’s style,” the council member said. “He’s been doing that for years.”
Alex Treviño defended his father.
“I know my dad talks, but he’s never fought,” the candidate’s son said.
Susana Arredondo, Treviño’s opponent for Place 7 on the Valley View board, expressed her disappointment with the altercation.
“I’m just surprised by everything that happened,” she said. “I hope that this goes back to peace. I’ll keep praying that this turns out best for the students.”
It’s unclear if any charges have been filed in connection with the fight.
