Colony Ridge Developer Was Biggest Donor To Sheriff Who Let Him Out Of Jail Early

Colony Ridge developer William “Trey” Harris, one of the men behind the sprawling Texas land development known for systematically recruiting illegal aliens, was the largest donor to the most recent campaign of the local sheriff who let him out of jail early after he was arrested for drinking and driving.

Harris, who was arrested with a blood-alcohol content above 0.15 in May 2024, received early release from jail after first being sentenced to 45 days due to “good conduct credit.” Early releases must be approved by Sheriff Clint McRae himself. A report in the Houston Landing called Harris, who only served half his sentence, “the beneficiary of uncommon treatment given by longtime Walker County Sheriff Clint McRae.”

This “uncommon treatment” came months after Harris made a $5,000 donation to McRae’s campaign in February 2024, the largest reported donation to McRae during the campaign cycle.

Sheriff McCrae did not respond to a request for comment. When questioned at the time of Harris’s release, McRae told local media that he had “absolutely no shame” about his decision and “would do it exactly the same way if the situation were to occur again.” The sheriff was reportedly contacted by two unnamed judges who encouraged him to sign off on an early release for Harris.

Colony Ridge spokesman Art Rascon addressed the original controversy by directing any questions about Harris’s early release to the sheriff and the judges who recommended his early release.

Harris’s good behavior has not lasted since his release for the DUI charges, however. The Colony Ridge developer was arrested again in late December by the Walker County Sheriff for public intoxication.

It isn’t just the Colony Ridge developer, but also the Colony Ridge development itself, that is in trouble with the law. Colony Ridge faces a joint lawsuit from the Department of Justice and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the first predatory mortgage lending case from the agencies in American history.

The suit claims that Colony Ridge “targeted Hispanic consumers with predatory loans, misled borrowers about the water, sewer, and electrical infrastructure on its lots, and exploited language barriers by conducting most of its marketing in Spanish while offering important transaction documents only in English.”

Colony Ridge was also hit with a lawsuit from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, which similarly alleges that the development uses deceptive trade practices to churn buyers through a cycle of foreclosures.

Paxton told The Daily Wire that “literally every sale” made by Colony Ridge could be fraudulent, with each violation coming with a penalty of at least $10,000. With an estimated 50,000 to 75,000 residents, the financial penalties could be catastrophic for the development.

Colony Ridge also faces an ongoing investigation from the Environmental Protection Agency, the scope and results of which have yet to be made public. The development is also reportedly facing investigations from the IRS, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

While the development’s practices may have violated the law, the consumer-finance lending scheme and an aggressive marketing campaign urging foreigners to “own land in the United States” has brought in numerous criminals and multiple illegal alien murderers, including some wanted by the international police. Another man, an illegal alien smuggler who was found to be responsible for a “mass casualty event” was also caught living in Colony Ridge after buying multiple properties at the development.

A representative of Trey Harris did not respond to a request for comment.