Frank E. Mann In the News: Dead Firefighters Wife is a Man

A lawsuit filed Monday seeks to dissolve the marriage of the Wharton volunteer firefighter who died battling the Maxim Egg Farm blaze, on the grounds his wife, Nikki, used to be a man.

Simona Rodriguez Longoria, mother of the late Capt. Thomas Araguz III, and Heather Delgado, Araguz’s ex-wife, both filed court documents after his July 3 death, stating he did not know his wife was a man. Longoria filed July 12; Delgado July 14.

The suit, filed in Wharton County’s 329th District Court, also sought a temporary restraining order freezing all of the couple’s assets, a request granted by District Judge Randy Clapp that same day.

A hearing has been set for 9 a.m. Friday, July 23 before Judge Clapp.

At that time, the order says the court will determine if a temporary injunction should be issued, who Thomas Araguz’s property should be awarded to; and whether all death and survivor benefit payments should be placed in a court-supervised account until a final decision is rendered.

In the meantime, Nikki Araguz is prohibited from removing, damaging or destroying any items from the couple’s Wharton home, selling any of their property, withdrawing any funds from any checking or savings account except as authorized by the court, or collecting any death benefits including life insurance policies.

The case also requests a court officer be appointed to look after the interests of the two children.Delgado and Araguz had two children together – Trevor, age 9, and Tyler, age 6.

Contacted by the Wharton Journal-Spectator Wednesday, Nikki Araguz would not comment on the case.

Longoria and Delgado, both residents of Wharton, referred newspaper inquiries to their attorneys. Longoria is represented by Chad Ellis of Richmond; Delgado by Wharton native Frank Mann III of Houston, who represented her during her child custody proceedings.

“The bottom line in all of this is the potential death benefits and the protection of her sons’ interests. Thomas’s mother has filed a probate action to contest the marriage (to Nikki Araguz,)” Mann said Wednesday.

He added that with certain benefits half goes to the spouse and half to the children, so it is in the best interests of the family to have the marriage voided.

Ellis said for now, the family wants the focus to be that “they are proud of their son and the sacrifice he made in protecting the community.”

The Argument

Texas law, the suit claims, prohibits the marriage of two same-sex people and cites the 1999 San Antonio case Littleton vs. Prange on the issue of sex changes.

“The courts have held that someone who undergoes a sex change procedure remains as a matter of law, the same sex they were born as,” the suit argues.

“Unknown to (Thomas Araguz), Nikki Paige Purdue was born Justin Graham Purdue, a male, in Monterey County, Calif.,” the suit claims. It includes a copy of what is purported to be his/her birth certificate listing the June 4, 1975 birth of a boy in Carmel, Calif. to Sheri Lynn Taylor, 20, of Bryan, Texas and Christin Wayne Purdue, 20, who was serving in the U.S. Army.

The suit says Nikki Araguz legally changed her name Feb. 9, 1996 from Justin Graham Purdue to Nikki Paige Purdue.

The suit includes a copy of the name-change request with the statement, “I, Justin Purdue, am a woman with male anatomy, working toward a sex change. I have been living and working as a woman for over one year and seek to make my new name legal and permanent” included in the filing.

A document on file at the Harris County district clerk’s office confirms that a Justin Graham Purdue born June 4, 1975 did change his name to Nikki Paige Purdue. Whether Nikki Araguz is that Nikki Paige Purdue will have to be determined by the court.

Before The Suit

Following the 1996 name change, Nikki Paige Purdue became Nikki Paige Purdue-Mata, but divorced in October 2007 and dropped Mata.

Thomas Araguz divorced Heather Delgado July 3, 2008.

On Aug. 23, 2008, Nikki and Thomas married in Needville.

While married to Thomas, Nikki Araguz began publishing the now-defunct free-distribution magazine Wharton County Living. She entered local politics this year seeking the mayor’s post in the city of Wharton, but in May was defeated 382-118 by city councilman Domingo Montalvo Jr., a retired Wharton volunteer firefighter.

On April 13, 2010, Heather Delgado filed an emergency petition in her divorce claiming Nikki Araguz made appointments with medical and school officials for her children without consent, prevented communication between her and her children and drank at inappropriate times.

On May 14, an agreement was reached giving Delgado medical and educational oversight of her children and ordering she be given telephone access. It prohibits posting of the childrens’ pictures on social networking sites.

The order includes a permanent injunction for Thomas Araguz to “do all that he is able to do to not allow Nikki Purdue Araguz to contact Heather Delgado in a harassing manner.”

Four days later, Heather Delgado requested a protective order against Nikki Araguz, claiming she had been threatened and harassed.

On May 28, that case was dismissed.

Thirty-six days later on July 3, Thomas Araguz, an 11-year veteran of the Wharton Volunteer Fire Department, died after entering the burning warehouse of Maxim Egg’s production facility just outside of Boling. His body was found in the building the next morning.

Funeral services for Araguz were held Sunday, July 11.

The suit seeking to void his marriage to Nikki Araguz was filed the next afternoon.

–Halvorson and Crabtree are news editors, respectively, of the Wharton Journal-Spectator and El Campo Leader-News. Brenda Sommer, a Leader-News reporter, contributed to this story.