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→Corruption in Duval County
Shepperd spearheaded an investigation of longstanding corruption in Duval County, the political machine province of George Berham Parr (1901-1975), also known as "The Duke of Duval", located in the barren dusty area east of [[Laredo]] in south Texas. Shepperd’s work produced some three hundred indictments of county and school officials.
Shepperd spearheaded an investigation of longstanding corruption in Duval County, the political machine province of George Berham Parr (1901-1975), also known as "The Duke of Duval", located in the barren dusty area east of [[Laredo]] in south Texas. Shepperd’s work produced some three hundred indictments of county and school officials.
===Land Board scandal==
===Land Board scandal===
In 1954, the Veterans' Land Board scandal shook the Shivers administration when it was revealed that certain corrupt land speculators tried to enrich themselves at public expense. Bascom Giles, the elected commissioner of the Texas General Land Office and chairman of the Texas Veterans Land Board, was indicted, convicted, and served a prison term for his role in the scandal. Neither Shivers nor Shepperd was implicated in the wrongdoing, but both as ''ex officio'' members of the land board had missed meetings where the abuses had occurred. Another scandal involved [[insurance]] companies accused of fraudulent activities. Shepperd had been expected to seek the gubernatorial nomination in 1956, but he left elected politics to become general counsel of Odessa Natural Gasoline Company, later El Paso Products Company, and to establish a new law firm there called Shepperd and Rodman.<ref name="state historical society" /> The governorship went to U.S. Senator Price Daniel, who secured a narrow runoff victory over Ralph Yarborough. In 1958, Yarborough was elected to the first of two terms in the Senate; he occupied the seat that Daniel had vacated to become governor. Daniel had also been Shepperd's predecessor as Attorney General.
In 1954, the Veterans' Land Board scandal shook the Shivers administration when it was revealed that certain corrupt land speculators tried to enrich themselves at public expense. Bascom Giles, the elected commissioner of the Texas General Land Office and chairman of the Texas Veterans Land Board, was indicted, convicted, and served a prison term for his role in the scandal. Neither Shivers nor Shepperd was implicated in the wrongdoing, but both as ''ex officio'' members of the land board had missed meetings where the abuses had occurred. Another scandal involved [[insurance]] companies accused of fraudulent activities. Shepperd had been expected to seek the gubernatorial nomination in 1956, but he left elected politics to become general counsel of Odessa Natural Gasoline Company, later El Paso Products Company, and to establish a new law firm there called Shepperd and Rodman.<ref name="state historical society" /> The governorship went to U.S. Senator Price Daniel, who secured a narrow runoff victory over Ralph Yarborough. In 1958, Yarborough was elected to the first of two terms in the Senate; he occupied the seat that Daniel had vacated to become governor. Daniel had also been Shepperd's predecessor as Attorney General.