"I'm glad she's back. There's still a lot of unanswered questions about what she's been through, what she's been treated for," Schulte said. "We just need more information about her recovery so we can all be comfortable that she's back doing her job."
Hawk's spokeswoman, Brittany Dunn, said the DA and the office would not comment further Thursday.
Hawk was the first Republican to win a contested countywide race in 10 years. She defeated two-term Democrat Craig Watkins, who himself was an embattled district attorney. Some Democrats voted for Hawk, then returned to the party to vote in other races.
Hawk said after she returned to the office following inpatient treatment last year that she would run for re-election in 2018.
The county's Republican Party chairman, Mark Montgomery, recently resigned after he had trouble raising funds. Dallas County Democratic Party Chairwoman Carol Donovan could not be reached for comment.
Former county Republican Chairman Wade Emmert said earlier this week that Hawk must make both her health and the residents of Dallas County priorities.
"If she can do both, then I think she should," Emmert said. "When she is healthy and she is in the office, she's a great district attorney. If those are inconsistent, then I think she is going to have some decisions to make."
Both legal and political gossip circles have been in overdrive since Hawk began inpatient treatment at an Arizona clinic for a mood disorder and depression.
Earlier this week, Hawk's second-in-command, Messina Madson, said Hawk had "no plans to resign." Madson has run the office each time Hawk was hospitalized.
If she resigned before Aug. 26, voters could choose her replacement during the November general election. But if she resigned after Aug. 26, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott would appoint someone to serve out her term.
Past hospitalizations
On May 20, Hawk checked herself in to the Menninger Clinic in Houston, the same psychiatric hospital where she spent two months last year. A spokeswoman said Hawk felt ill only after returning to Dallas from a two-week vacation, which she took to "relax and refresh" in May.
She was released in mid-June but did not return to work. Days later, Hawk announced she was seeking additional inpatient treatment at Sierra Tucson. The facility is an internationally recognized treatment center for mood and anxiety disorders, as well as addiction.
"Mental illness is a fluid and dynamic disease that calls for unexpected and prolonged treatment," Hawk said in a written statement earlier this summer. "I did not choose this disease, but I am choosing to treat it aggressively and openly."
Hawk has struggled with prescription drug addiction in the past; she went to rehab at a different facility in Arizona during her campaign for DA in 2013. She said at the time she was having back surgery.
It's unclear whether Hawk will be paid for the time she was gone. She chose for her time away in 2015 to be unpaid. This time, however, her office has repeatedly said that she will decide issues of payment after her return. Hawk makes about $210,000 a year.
Full text of Hawk's statement:
"I have been able to work with a team of mental health professionals to aggressively combat my mental illness to ensure that I am healthy. While I have made it a priority to be completely transparent about my fight with this disease, my mental health team and I felt it was important to minimize my exposure to the media while I undergo treatment and refrain from announcing or even setting an official return date."
"I have had constant contact with my administration and my doctors, especially within the time leading up to today and we have decided that I am ready to physically return to my job as the Dallas County District Attorney and continue my commitment of seeking justice on behalf of our community."
"Maintaining optimal mental health will always be a priority. Mental Illness is a lifelong disease; however, as District Attorney, I am incredibly blessed to have such a strong and supportive administrative team and such incredible attorneys, investigators, and staff who have handled my absence with both grace and professionalism. I look forward to once again working with my staff to make Dallas County safe and thriving."
Source :http://www.dallasnews.com/
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