Carlos Uresti

Carlos Ismael "Charlie" Uresti, Sr.
Texas State Senator for District 19
In office November 2006 – June 19, 2018 (resignation)
Preceded by	Frank Lloyd Madla, Jr.
Succeeded by	Pending special election on July 31, 2018
Texas State Representative for District 118 (Bexar County)
In office January 1997 – November 2006
Preceded by	Ciro Rodriguez
Succeeded by	Joe Farias
Born	September 12, 1963 San Antonio, Texas
Political party	Democrat
Spouse(s)	Not first marriage: Margaret Lleanna Elizondo Uresti (married 2012, divorce pending)
Children	Two sons, Michael and Carlos, Jr., from previous marriage Two step-children from latest marriage Three grandchildren
Residence	San Antonio, Texas
Alma mater	St. Mary's University St. Mary's University School of Law
Occupation	Attorney Captain, United States Marine Corps

Carlos Ismael Uresti, Sr., known as Charlie Uresti (born September 18, 1963), is an American attorney, businessman, and a Democratic politician from his native San Antonio, Texas. From 2006 to 2018, he represented the geographically large District 19 in the Texas State Senate, which encompasses nearly a third of the United States border with Mexico. From 1997 to 2006, he represented District 118 in the Texas House of Representatives. On five occasions, the popular liberal was named "Legislator of the Year."

However, his fortunes sunk with eleven federal felony convictions in February 2018. He was found guilty of involvement in a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors in an oilfield company, FourWinds Logistics. Under state law, he is not required to resign as senator upon those convictions, but the Senate could expel him with a two-thirds vote.

In 2012, Uresti married the former Margaret Lleanna Elizondo (born c. 1975), a woman twelve years his junior and a former elementary school counselor and a real estate agent who was divorced from Joel Rodriguez/ Uresit was her attorney in the divorce. The ceremony was performed by Judge Orlando Garcia at the exclusive Kendall Plantation east of Boerne in Kendall County. The wedding was one of "glamour, glitz, elegance, and romance," consistent with Uribe's interest in the 1972 Marlon Brando and Mario Puzo mobster film, The Godfather. She brought two children into the marriage, Sebastian and Katalina. Uresti himself has two grown sons, Michael and Carlos, Jr.

Shortly after the convictions, Mrs. Uresti filed for divorce on the basis of adultery that came to light in the securities case against her husband. Uribe's chief accuser, Denise Cantu of Harlingen in south Texas, obtained a $2.5 million settlement for the deaths of two of her children in an automobile accident in 2010. She then invested $900,000 of that amount with FourWinds and said that she did not understand that Uresti was personally benefiting from her investment. At first Cantu told police that there had been no romantic interlude with Uresti; then she changed her story: and claimed that he had pursued her for sexual favors and boated of the size of his penis. Uresti denied the claims and questioned Cantu's credibility on the basis of her having charged him after first saying that there was no relationship. Then, on February 28, 2018, two more women came forward to charge Uresti with sexual harassment; one of them is Jenn Cervella, a data director for the Texas Democratic Party who first met Uresti in 2015. Throughout the trial, Mrs. Uresti had accompanied her husband to and from court and embraced him upon learning of his conviction in the five-week trial.

Uresti remains free on bond pending sentencing on June 28. He faces up to twelve years in incarceration and millions of dollars in restitution. He appealed the verdict and remains for the time being a state senator. Federal prosecutors said Uresti will likely owe more than $3 million in restitution to victims of his criminal fraud. They also claim the divorce is an effort to protect funds. Uresti and co-defendant Gary Cain are seeking a new trial based on their contention that Judge David Ezra erred in giving instructions to the jury. Uresti questions the disqualification of Mikal Watts as the lawmaker's first attorney, He further claims that Judge Ezra made "a multitude of public statements that appear to be heavily biased" against Uresti's presumed innocence.

Two of Uresti's brothers are active in San Antonio Democratic politics: Albert Uresti ran unsuccessfully for the United States House of Representatives in 2006 and was elected Tax Assessor-Collector for Bexar County in 2012. Tomas Uresti is until January 2019 the state representative for the District 118 seat once held by Carlos Uresti himself. Tomas Uresti was unseated in the Democratic primary election held on March 6, 2018, and leaves that position in January 2019.

After their wedding, Carlos and Lleanna Uresti built a $1.8 million house located on three acres at Helotes Creek Ranch in southwestern San Antonio.

Should Uresti step down from the state Senate, a special election will be held to choose a successor. Republican Pete Flores, a retired game warden from Pleasanton in Wilson County who lost to Uresti in the 2016 general election, has indicated that he will again seek the position if there is a special election in 2018. But Flores would face daunting prospects from the internally Democratic nature of District 19. Two Democrats expected to run are former U.S. Representative Pete Gallego, a former state representative from Alpine, and current state Representative Roland Gutierez of San Antonio.

On March 23, 2018, Uresti surrendered his license to practice law to avoid disciplinary action from the state bar. Had he not resigned from the law practice, he would have been automatically disbarred from his practice of more than twenty-five years upon his sentencing pending on June 28. On April 6, 2018, U.S. District Judge David Ezra denied Uresti's request for a motion of dismissal and for a new trial as well. Judge Ezra ruled that Uresti was "subjectively aware of the illegal conduct" surrounding FourWinds Logistics.

On June 19, 2018, Uresti resigned his state Senate seat. Governor Greg Abbott called a special election for July 31 to fill the five months remaining in the term. Among the candidates seeking to succeed Uribe is Peter Flores, a Republican. Uresti had urged that the seat remain vacant pending a special election for November 6, the date of the national congressional elections.