ASHLEY TERRY
The city of Pelican Bay has experienced an unprecedented amount of loss these past two months, with the recent passing of — not just one — but two integral city figures.
In November 2025, Pelican Bay City Council announced the unexpected passing of City Marshal Jason “JD” Debord, who served in the United States Army and as a police officer for the city of Azle. Debord passed away at the age of 50.
While city staff was mourning the loss of someone officials described as being a “bright light to all who came in contact with him,” the announcement of a second passing earlier this month sent another wave of grief throughout the community.
“Our Municipal Court Judge, James Wilson, who’s been the judge for our city since the 1980s, did pass away this weekend,” Mayor Tamra Olague announced at the Pelican Bay City Council meeting Jan. 13.
According to Wilson’s obituary on the Skyvue Funeral Home website, he was a respected member of the Fort Worth community and passed away Saturday, Jan. 3, at the age of 70. Known as a “man of many talents,” Judge Wilson’s career spanned several fields, including his time spent as a limo driver and furniture refinisher. He later decided to pursue a legal career, where he excelled as an attorney and ultimately a State District Court Judge before his retirement as a Senior District Court Judge.
As a “Pappy” of six and a “Great Pappy” of five, Judge Wilson “dedicated his life to service, law and family,” and enjoyed his passions of cooking, hunting, vegetable gardening and following college football. He leaves behind his loving wife, Amy, and four children.
“His legacy will undoubtedly live on in the hearts of his family and friends who admired his wisdom, warmth and integrity,” his obituary states. “He is remembered as a dedicated public servant, a loving family man and a friend to all who had the privilege of knowing him.”
appointments IN PROGRESS
Following Debord’s passing last year, city officials began to seek out his replacement. After a thorough search, the city hired James Lacker to serve as the new Pelican Bay city marshal.
“James works with the Fort Worth Fire Department,” Olague told council during the last meeting. “He was actually doing some reserve work for us and when he found out that we had the position available, he went and told the chief he was interested.”
Olague said she had no idea that Lacker was certified for both code enforcement and animal control — essentially having the same qualifications as Debord.
“It’s been wonderful because the transition has really been (seamless)," she said. “It’s been very easy to bring James in. His schedule is a little bit more free, which is good for us because it allows him to be here … I think it’s going to be a good transition.”
The plan, Olague said, is for Lacker to be available for the city throughout the week and every Saturday as well. She said she hopes to formally introduce him to council members next month so they can finally put a face to the name.
“He’s a really nice guy, he does a great job and he’s completely qualified,” Olague said.
The passing of Judge Wilson also posed a slight obstacle for the city, as officials realized they would need to appoint someone to serve as an alternate judge in his absence — a contingency plan City Secretary Cynthia Daniels said the city should’ve already had in place.
“Basically, we should have had an alternate judge, but of course, this is stuff that we didn’t know we needed in cases like this,” Daniels said. “When our judge passed away, we scrambled trying to figure out, ‘Should we hold court?’ ‘Should we postpone it?’ ‘What do we do?’ but luckily Dana, our court administrator, got with our prosecutor who knows many people, so what we need to do is appoint an alternate judge in case of emergencies.”
Olague said Bill Lane, the board president for the Azle Independent School District board of trustees, volunteered to serve as the alternate judge — offering to gladly step in when needed.
“There’s no conflict with him being on as the school board president because he was the city’s municipal judge years ago,” Daniels said. “But in order for us to conduct court this week, we need a judge, and we need him to be appointed.”
Place 3 Alderman Tracy Melton then made a motion to appoint Lane as the alternate judge for the Pelican Bay Municipal Court. Following a second from Mayor Pro Tem David Dryden, the motion passed unanimously.
“Bill will be our alternate judge going forward,” Olague announced. “If something happens to our regularly appointed judge or he’s sick and can’t make it, instead of canceling court, we can see if Bill can step in.”
With the city already receiving resumes from other judges, Daniels said council members should be able to vote on a permanent judge replacement by the next council meeting in February.
