Nick Chu Named Pct. 5 JP

Nick Chu

County commissioners on Tuesday unanimously appointed Nick Chu, a felony prosecutor with the Travis County District Attorney's Office, to replace retiring Judge Herb Evans as Interim Precinct 5 Justice of the Peace. Evans announced his retirement in January after 16 years of service. Chu becomes the county's first Asian-American JP. He told the Chronicle he hopes to "moderniz[e]" the court by making Precinct 5 completely paperless, which, he noted, will save the court time and money. "More importantly, we will be able to provide better and faster customer service; staff will have immediate access to files, and be better equipped to serve the public," he added. Chu was running against local attorney Jade Meeker until Monday when Meeker withdrew. The A.D.A. and UT alum expects to be sworn into office on May 1 and will preside over the Downtown civil and criminal court until the winner of next November's election takes oath in January 2019. Chu has announced he will run for the seat, and has yet to draw a challenger.