Criminal Law

Opponents of Amarillo halfway house misunderstand their own safety interests

Posted on August 03, 2008
As Texas lurches toward reinvigorating its carceral drug treatment programs after draconian budget cuts eliminated most of them in 2003, gaps in services and NIMBY opposition to transitional treatment centers threaten to stymie some of the legislatively mandated programs, particularly the drug treatment program SAFP (pronounced Safe-P), which stands for Substance Abuse Felony Punishment...

Harris County voters won't see jail bond vote this November; Tyler will

Posted on August 02, 2008
While Smith County (Tyler) voters will vote on proposed jail bonds in November for the third time in as many years, in Houston the Harris County Commissioners Court wisely declined to subject voters to a second jail bond election this November, suggesting they may ask again next May or even sometime beyond that...

Stratfor: Bioweapons an unlikely means of terrorist attack

Posted on August 02, 2008
News this week of the suicide by a US bioterrorism scientist just before his indictment for the 2001 anthrax attacks caused me to dredge up some old research and writing of mine from before the launch of this blog on the topic of emerging bioterrorism threats...

Governor believes his comings and goings should be secret from taxpayers; Attorney General disgracefully agrees

Posted on August 01, 2008
I mentioned last month that Governor Perry doesn't want the public to find out where he's going. Now it turns out he also objects to telling them where he's been, refusing to release travel vouchers from the Governor's security detail. Reports the Houston Chronicle:Attorneys for three Texas newspapers are expected to appear in district court here today in an attempt to force the Texas Department of Public Safety to release travel records of Gov...

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

Fort Detrick anthrax case shows homegrown threat is biggest bioterrorism concern

Posted on August 01, 2008
After 9/11, much-publicized anthrax attacks on Congress and the media set off massive new spending in biodefense research. But in retrospect, that decision funneled money precisely to those most likely to infect US civilians, either intentionally or by accident...

How much time do Texas judges spend on cases?

Posted on August 01, 2008
How much time do judges spend on the cases before them? A study released in June (pdf) from the National Center for State Courts analyzed judicial need in Texas by asking a judicial officers in 97 Texas counties to track the time they spent on different types of cases...

TYC tries to move forward, but history's anchor still drags down agency

Posted on August 01, 2008
A couple of stories in the Dallas News this morning will pique the interest of readers following the Texas Youth Commission drama.How long for TYC conservatorship?First off ("Texas Youth Commission will lose another top official," July 31), TYC is about to lose their 6th top official in two years when conservator Richard Nedelkoff leaves the agency: Gov...

Dallas Public Defender to lose 2 more positions

Posted on July 31, 2008
An informant brings word that the Dallas Public Defender Office may soon lose two more spots because county commissioners are requiring courts to assign felony PD lawyers 40 felony cases each month. Judge Carter Thompson and Judge Susan Hawk are each cutting a felony trial PD effective in August...

Self-paced learning at TYC the "least effective" approach

Posted on July 31, 2008
Though it's a long and substantive document, anyone interested in an inside look at what's going on with education services at the Texas Youth Commission should consider the new report (pdf) from the Ombudsman's office a must-read. (I'm particularly hoping the Sunset Commission staffers are paying close attention...

Jail costs, new criminal court driving Travis County tax hikes

Posted on July 30, 2008
From news reports I've seen, most jurisdictions in the state currently contemplating property tax increases are doing so to pay for pretrial detention at overcrowded jails and staffing overbuilt detention centers. Here in Austin, I've already discussed how the city budget has become bloated with public safety costs, and today the Statesman brings word that Travis County, too, will likely raise taxes to pay for mostly criminal justice related expenses:The increase would pay mainly for a new county criminal court, increased fuel costs, a 3 percent pay raise for most county employees and 31 corrections officers to staff a new detention building at the Del Valle Correctional Complex...

Smith County commissioners fixated on jail building despite clear voter message

Posted on July 30, 2008
Hoping the third time will be the charm, this November Smith County voters for the third year running will get to vote on a jail bond proposal on the ballot that will boost the average property tax hit by $31.33 per year, from $381.11 to $412.44, the Tyler Morning Telegraph was told in an editorial board meeting pitching plans a new jail...

Wednesday Morning Roundup

Posted on July 30, 2008
I've got a busy day today but wanted to point out these stories that deserve Grits readers attention:History's JudgmentYears after his death, DNA exonerations have tarnished the legacy of legendary Dallas District Attorney Henry Wade, according to a widely published AP report, declaring that "The new DA and other Wade detractors say the cases won under Wade were riddled with shoddy investigations, evidence was ignored and defense lawyers were kept in the dark...

Commissioner wants off Waco jail privatization train

Posted on July 30, 2008
After previously vowing with his colleagues to consider only privatization-centered options as solutions to McLennan County's jail overcrowding problem, Commissioner Joe Mashek reversed course this week and called for ending the use of privatized jails, reported the Waco Herald Tribune ("Idea of county-run facilities debated as solution to overcrowding," July 30):Mashek?s proposal would see the county again running the downtown jail, which has been leased to a private detention company since 1999...

TCJC on probation officer turnover, 'revisiting treatment basics,' and whether a public defender can work in Harris County

Posted on July 29, 2008
There was so much good stuff in this month's e-newsletter from the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition I wanted to share these portions for the poor, uninformed souls who don't subscribe to their email list or regularly visit their website:Find Out Why There is Turnover Among Texas Adult Probation OfficersDon't miss out on the Probation Advisory Committee's latest report, titled 2008 Texas Adult Probation Turnover Intention Study: Line Community Supervision Officers and Direct-Care Staff, which analyzes the reasons for voluntary turnover among Texas adult probation officers...

Guards and contraband smuggling in prisons and jails

Posted on July 29, 2008
I'm not sure I've ever heard of a Rogaine-related smuggling offense before, but a former guard from a federal prison in Beaumont just received a two-year prison sentence after he "accepted money from inmates in exchange for marijuana, MP3 players, Rogaine and tobacco...

Abrogating Mexican murderer's rights puts Americans at risk abroad

Posted on July 29, 2008
Presidential candidate Barack Obama's perhaps premature victory lap overseas emphasizes the extent to which one of the major implications of the fall elections will be repairing America's image in the world after eight years of our government thumbing its nose at other nations...

Austin budget crunch caused by massive police raises

Posted on July 29, 2008
Belatedly realizing the city's bloated public safety budget necessitates draconian fee hikes and slashing basic services, the Austin city council must now change course and "think first of the Austin taxpayers," said the Austin Statesman in a Sunday editorial...

Smith County will create pilot mental health court

Posted on July 28, 2008
When conservative Smith County in Deep East Texas decides to implement a mental health court, it's safe to say the trend toward creating courts with specialized probation caseloads is now in full swing everywhere in the state. Reports the Tyler Morning Telegraph ("Pilot program for mental health court approved," July 28):Smith County commissioners today laid the groundwork for a pilot mental health court, which will seek to divert non-violent mentally ill arrestees from the criminal justice system...

Rozita Swinton's Bad Call

Posted on July 28, 2008
Newsweek supplies the most extensive background yet published in the mainstream media about Rozita Swinton, the hoaxer whose prank phone calls sparked the Great Eldorado Polygamist Roundup. Give it a read.Though Grits focus on the topic has recently lagged, see more news from the Eldorado case:AG Greg Abbott at US Senate hearing on polygamist groupsHarry Reid calls polygamist groups a "form of organized crime"Eldorado custody battle separated into 234 separate cases

Allowing invited graff best way to reduce unwanted graffiti

Posted on July 28, 2008
Last summer Grits featured a series proposing a three-pronged approach to graffiti enforcement based on restorative justice principles consisting of enforcement, rapid cleanup and provision of space for invited graffiti art. Everybody does the enforcement part, or tries; some municipalities have embraced the rapid cleanup idea; however scarce few have committed resources to providing spaces for invited art...

Offer online comments to the Sunset Commission on TYC, juvenile probation, and jail standards commission

Posted on July 27, 2008
Once every 12 years Texas state agencies undergo what's known as a "Sunset" review where the Legislature evaluates the agency as a whole and decides whether it still serves a function or deserves to be eliminated. Most agencies are routinely continued, though some agencies are permanently "sunsetted," or eliminated...

TDCJ publishes FY 2007 prison stats

Posted on July 27, 2008
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice just published its annual statistical report (pdf) for Fiscal Year 2007 containing a great deal of data relevant to topics frequently discussed on this blog. Let's walk through a few highlights.In broad overview, at the end of FY 2007 TDCJ held 152,661 offenders in prisons and state jails and supervised 431,495 people on probation and 103,122 parolees...

Criticisms aired of Nacogdoches private prison proposal

Posted on July 27, 2008
In Nacogdoches recently, the head of the local economic development corporation told officials the prison would be so nice people would "want to break in." But a newly formed local group and students at Stephen F. Austin University are opposing plans to open a new private immigration detention center in that county...

Jail deaths due to medical neglect seem too frequent this year; Should state regulators do more?

Posted on July 26, 2008
Inmate deaths in county jails may be bubbling to the surface as a statewide issue of concern in 2008. Several recent cases collectively give me the sense that we're starting to see patterns that inevitably will become more common with so many people locked up...

Police union backs using citation authority at Austin PD

Posted on July 26, 2008
It pleased me to see the Austin Police Association came out in favor of using citations instead of arrests for low-level offenders in an article on the topic in this week's Austin Chronicle:Given the stresses on the city's budget, "if we really want to be fiscally responsible, we have to have all these options on the table," said Austin Police Association Vice Presid­ent Wuthipong "Tank" Tantaksinanukij...

Baylor studying neuroscience and the law

Posted on July 25, 2008
Having written a couple of posts recently on the intersection of cutting edge neuroscience and the law, I was pleased this afternoon to run across the website of the Baylor College of Medicine's Initiative on Neuroscience and the Law. Especially useful, they've posted their conference materials (pdf) and webcasts of each presentation from their conference in May.

Jail costs driving tax hikes in Lubbock

Posted on July 25, 2008
According to the Lubbock Avalanche Journal ("Lubbock County jail costs may sharpen tax bite," July 25), taxpayers in the Hub City must pay higher taxes to keep the county jail full and fully staffed:The Lubbock County sheriff doesn't think the county can support its new jail without raising taxes...

Eyewitnesses and the 'feeling of knowing'

Posted on July 25, 2008
I'm increasingly convinced that recent advancements in neuroscience will, in a very few years, begin to revolutionize several fundamental sets of assumptions on which the criminal justice system is presently based - most immediately regarding eyewitness identification and the reliability generally of witness testimony...

Assassination of Mexican prison warden highlights out of control border security crisis

Posted on July 25, 2008
Just more than halfway through 2008, Ciudad Juarez across the river from El Paso has witnessed more than 500 drug-related murders out of 1,800 or more this year nationwide. The most recent victims were a prison warden and his bodyguard:A group of hitmen armed with automatic weapons ambushed the head of a giant prison in a northern Mexican city on Thursday soon after he received threats on his life from suspected drug gangs, said police...

Reform commission urges abolition of California youth prisons, shifting juvie justice to counties

Posted on July 25, 2008
Earlier this year Senate Criminal Justice Committee Chairman John Whitmire urged "abolishing" the Texas Youth Commission and moving most juvenile justice functions to the counties. His proposal enjoyed a mixed reception, largely because the political will seems lacking to pay for adequately beefing up capacity at the counties...

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.