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Students should plan to write 10 precis before the end of the term. Students should submit precis to this dropbox. Canvas will submit your precis assignment to turnitin.com. To earn credit, a student must:
Write a precis. A precis is a short description of a chapter reading assignment, much like a book report. It should not contain any interpretation, examples, or objections, and does not require any outside research. It should be limited simply to outlining the positions and arguments as they are found in the reading. Precis should be between 250-300 words (about a page), and should be typed, double spaced, 12pt font, or equivalent. It should contain no itemized bullet points or enumerated lists.
To earn credit, it should be related to the chapter that we read for that module, and turned in during the week that we discuss and cover that chapter in class. Late precis will not be accepted for credit.
A precis should never directly quote any author, or any part of the text. Instead, summarize the main points, and cite your sources. Any precis that includes a direct quote from any author, either attributed or unattributed, will receive no credit.
The purpose of this assignment is to get you to think about the reading, and participate in class discussion. It is also a valuable exercise to assist you in studying for higher stakes assignments, since a precis is essentially an outline of the chapter, or part of the chapter, we cover in the module.
Save your precis as a .docx or .pdf file and attach your precis to submit. Ensure you receive a receipt from Canvas before logging off.
Precis must be free of grammatical and spelling errors. If you are unable to guarantee this yourself, please take your precis to the writing studio.
Read:
Resources on the Texas Criminal Justice System:]
1. Texas Reduction in Crime and Incarceration https://www.realclearpolicy.com/blog/2016/09/08/how_texas_reduced_both_crime__incarceration_1710.html
2. Texas is Closing Two Prisons, but Why? https://www.texastribune.org/2020/02/20/texas-closing-two-prisons/
3. Safewise Safest Cities 2021 https://www.safewise.com/blog/safest-cities-texas/
4. Texas DPS Crime Report Page https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/crime-records/crime-texas
5. Crime in Texas Dashboard from the DPS https://txucr.nibrs.com/
6. Where does Texas rank? https://kinder.rice.edu/urbanedge/texas-named-americas-5th-most-dangerous-state-2020
7. 2021 Study Ranking https://wallethub.com/edu/safest-states-to-live-in/4566
8. Death Row Information https://www.tdcj.texas.gov/death_row/index.html
9. Faces of Texas Death Row https://apps.texastribune.org/death-row/
10. this article on a sentence commutation https://www.texastribune.org/2018/02/22/texas-gov-greg-abbott-thomas-whitaker-death-sentence/
11.Crime Statistics Reports https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/crime-records
12. Criminal Justice News Linkhttps://www.texastribune.org/topics/criminal-justice/
Texas Government Chapter 10: https://tccd-tx-govt.github.io/posts/m10-criminal/
Module 10 Criminal
January 11, 2024
The Criminal Justice System in Texas
The Criminal Justice System in Texas
Chapter Learning Objective
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
Explain the purpose, structure, and behavior of the criminal justice system in Texas
Introduction
Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have committed crimes. In Texas, the criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions whose goals are to identify and catch unlawful individuals to inflict a form of punishment on them.
Insider Perspective: Theory Meets Practice
Figure 12.1 The jury sits along one side, between the judge/ witness stand and the tables for the defense and prosecution. Image credit: Andrew J.Kurbiko C BY-2.0
Typically a person charged with a serious crime will have a brief hearing before a judge to be informed of the charges against him or her, to be made aware of the right to counsel, and to enter a plea. Other hearings may be held to decide on the admissibility of evidence seized or otherwise obtained by prosecutors.
If the two sides cannot agree on a plea bargain during this period, the next stage is the selection of a jury. A pool of potential jurors is summoned to the court and screened for impartiality, with the goal of seating twelve (in most states) and one or two alternates. All hear the evidence in the trial; unless an alternate must serve, the original twelve decide whether the evidence overwhelmingly points toward guilt or innocence beyond a reasonable doubt.
In the trial itself, the lawyers for the prosecution and defense make opening arguments, followed by testimony by witnesses for the prosecution (and any cross-examination), and then testimony by witnesses for the defense, including the defendant if he or she chooses. Additional prosecution witnesses may be called to rebut testimony by the defense. Finally, both sides make closing arguments. The judge then issues instructions to the jury, including an admonition not to discuss the case with anyone outside the jury room. The jury members leave the courtroom to enter the jury room and begin their deliberations (Figure 12.1).
The jurors pick a foreman or forewoman to coordinate their deliberations. They may ask to review evidence or to hear transcripts of testimony. They deliberate in secret and their decision must be unanimous; if they are unable to agree on a verdict after extensive deliberation, a mistrial may be declared, which in eﬀect requires the prosecution to try the case all over again.
A defendant found not guilty of all charges will be immediately released unless other charges are pending (e.g., the defendant is wanted for a crime in another jurisdiction). If the defendant is found guilty of one or more oﬀenses, the judge will choose an appropriate sentence based on the law and the circumstances; in the federal system, this sentence will typically be based on guidelines that assign point values to various oﬀenses and facts in the case. If the prosecution is pursuing the death penalty, the jury will decide whether the defendant should be subject to capital punishment or life imprisonment.
The reality of court procedure is much less dramatic and exciting than what is typically portrayed in television shows and movies. Nonetheless, most Americans will participate in the legal system at least once in their lives as a witness, juror, or defendant.
Have you or any member of your family served on a jury? If so, was the experience a positive one? Did the trial proceed as expected? If you haven’t served on a jury, is it something you look forward to? Why or why not?
References and Further Reading
Texas Department of Criminal Justice (2019). Texas Board of Criminal Justice. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
Licensing and Attribution
CC LICENSED CONTENT, ORIGINAL
The Criminal Justice System in Texas: Introduction. Authored by: Andrew Teas. License: CC BY: Attribution
CC LICENSED CONTENT, SHARED PREVIOUSLY
The Criminal Justice System: Theory Meets Practice. Authored by: Rice University. Provided by: OpenStax. Located at: https://cnx.org/contents/W8wOWXNF@15.7:7SLLEy8U@2/The-Rights-of-Suspects. License: CC BY: Attribution
Classifying Criminal Offenses in Texas
Learning Objective
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
Understand how Texas classifies criminal offenses
Introduction
The vast majority of crimes are prosecuted at the state level. In every state, crimes are put into distinct categories. The categories are usually “felony,” and “misdemeanor.” Decisions on crime classification are made by state legislators; the determination focuses on the seriousness of the crime. This section discusses the classification Texas uses.
Classification of Criminal Offenses in Texas
There are two types of crimes in Texas: misdemeanors and felonies.
Misdemeanors are considered minor crimes, and felonies are defined as major crimes. Misdemeanors and felonies are in turn classified according to the relative seriousness of the offense into three and five categories, respectively.
OffensePunishmentCourt of Original JurisdictionMurder(Capital Felony) Examples: Murder of a law enforcement official, prison guard, or firefighter on duty; commits murder with other types of felonies; murder for hire; mass murder; the murder of someone under the age of 10Life without parole or death penaltyDistrictFirst-degree felony Examples: Murder; theft of property worth over $200,0005-99 years in prison, and a possible maximum fine of $10,000DistrictSecond-degree felony Examples: Manslaughter; theft of property worth between $100,000-200,0002-20 years in prison, and a possible maximum fine of $10,000DistrictThird-degree felony Examples: Impersonating someone online; theft of property worth $20,000-100,0002-10 years in prison, and a possible maximum fine of $10,000DistrictState Jail Felony Examples: Possession of 4 ounces to 1lb of marijuana; theft of property worth $15,000-20,000180 days-2 years in prison, and a possible maximum fine of $10,000DistrictClass A Misdemeanor Examples: Resisting arrests; theft of property worth $500-1,500maximum of 1 year in jail, and/or a maximum fine of $4,000CountyClass B Misdemeanor Examples: Terroristic threat; theft of property worth $20-500maximum of 180 days in jail, and/or a maximum fine of $2,000CountyClass C Misdemeanor Examples: theft of property worth less than $20; a person under the age of 21 purchases, attempts to purchase, or in possession of alcoholmaximum fine $500Justice of the Peace or Municipal
Table 12.1 Classifications of Criminal Oﬀenses in Texas, from Most Serious to Least Serious
References and Further Reading
“Huntsville Prison Blues”. National Public Radio. All Things Considered. September 10, 2001. Retrieved on
December 2, 2009.
Texas State Law Library. Texas Constitution. Accessed October 11, 2019.
Texas Department of Criminal Justice (2019). Texas Board of Criminal Justice. Accessed September 10, 2019.
Texas Constitution and Statutes: Texas Penal Code. Accessed September 9, 2019.
Licensing and Attribution
CC LICENSED CONTENT, ORIGINAL
Sources of Law. Authored by: Kris S. Seago. License: CC BY: Attribution
CC LICENSED CONTENT, ORIGINAL
Criminal Law Penalties: Revision and Adaptation. Authored by: Kris S. Seago. License: CC BY: Attribution
Crime and Criminal Defense
Learning Objective
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
Explain the right to counsel in Texas
Introduction
This section explores how Texas provides legal counsel to defendants
Crime and Criminal Defense
People accused of a crime can represent themselves or may retain a criminal defense lawyer to represent them. Since the famous Supreme court case Gideon v. Wainwright, persons too poor to hire a lawyer have the constitutional right to have an attorney appointed to represent them in serious cases.
How exactly that counsel is provided, however, was left to states to decide, and in Texas, this “how” gets further relegated to the state’s 254 counties — meaning that each county decides how to appoint, and pay, lawyers for the poor. Last fiscal year, there were roughly 474,000 indigent cases in Texas. There are 19 public defender’s offices, which 39 counties rely on in some capacity, but the majority of counties contract with private lawyers, who are generally paid a modest flat fee per case. (This is the most common way that states fulfill their Gideon v. Wainwright obligations.) More than 150 counties also participate in a public defender program for death penalty cases.
Because the Supreme Court did not, in its 1963 ruling, specify how states should pay for counsel, local policymakers facing other costs — for schools, roads, law enforcement — consistently shortchange indigent defense. This is why public defender’s offices are chronically understaffed. It’s also why court-appointed private lawyers are overloaded: The fees they’re paid are often so low that they are forced to take on a multitude of cases just to make a living. Some overburdened lawyers, in turn, contribute to so-called plea mills, in which, critics say, they encourage defendants to plead guilty because they are either too swamped to investigate claims or incentivized not to. (In Travis County, for instance, court-appointed lawyers are paid $600 for a felony case whether they secure a plea deal or get the charge dismissed.)
The problem of funding is especially acute in Texas. Since 2001, when the state legislature passed the Fair Defense Act — a law that aimed to overhaul and standardize how the state’s poor received counsel — total spending on indigent defense has increased significantly, from some $91 million in 2001 to roughly $273 million in 2018. But Texas ranks among the states that spend the least per capita: Its counties, which shoulder most of the costs, are some of the fastest growing in the country, and what little the Legislature chips in to help — some $30 million last year — does not match demand. This creates a woeful game of numbers on the ground. In 2017, for example, the average court-appointed lawyer in Texas made only $247 per misdemeanor case and $598 per felony.
In Texas, the situation is complicated by another factor: Indigent defense is largely overseen by judges. Contrary to the American Bar Association’s principles of public defense, which call for defense lawyers to be independent of the judiciary, judges in most Texas counties decide which lawyers get cases, how much they are paid and whether their motions — say, to reduce bail or test DNA — have merit. (Counties do have fee schedules for lawyers, but judges set the schedules and retain discretion over payment.)
Given that judges are elected based, in part, on the efficiency of their courts, this is an inherent conflict of interest. “Whatever the judge wants to do, it’s probably not acquit your client,” said Charlie Gerstein, a lawyer for Civil Rights Corps, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that has spent the past several years challenging criminal justice abuses around the country. “The judge wants to move the docket. The judge wants to get reelected.” (Civil Rights Corps filed the class-action lawsuitagainst the bail system of Harris County in 2016.) Lawyers trying to work a case properly — by devoting more time or requesting an investigator — face a quandary: Why make the effort if a judge can retaliate by appointing them to fewer cases or cutting their pay?
References and Further Reading
Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963)
United States Courts. Facts and Case Summary – Miranda v. Arizona. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
Vanover, J. W. (1998) Utilitarian Analysis of the Objectives of Criminal Plea Negotiation and Negotiation Strategy Choice University of Cincinnati Law Review, 183.
American Bar Association. Rule 1.3 Diligence – Comment Retrieved October 23, 2019.
“How judicial conflicts of interest are denying poor Texans their right to an effective lawyer.” The Texas Tribune. August 19, 2019.
Licensing and Attribution
CC LICENSED CONTENT, ORIGINAL
Plea Bargain. Authored by: Wikipedia. License: CC BY: Attribution
Types of Law and Texas Criminal Justice Process. Authored by: Daniel M. Regalado. License: CC BY: Attribution
The Integrity of the Texas Criminal Justice System
Learning Objective
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
Understand the integrity challenges facing Texas’ criminal justice system
Introduction
Texas’ criminal justice system has faced a number of serious integrity allegations. This section explores some of those allegations.
Texas Criminal Justice Process
The Texas court systems have two conflicting goals: they must protect the people and the accused. Therefore the state of Texas must ensure that every person is treated equally in legal matters- this is known as due process. The steps in the Texas criminal justice process are: 1. Arrest, 2. Indictment, 3. Plea bargaining, 4. Trial, and 5. Post-trial.
Arrest. One aspect pertinent to arrest are the Miranda Rights. Miranda Rights derived from the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Miranda vs. Arizona (1966). During the Miranda case the question was whether or not procedures must be utilized by law enforcement officials to ensure that an individual’s 5th Amendment Self-incrimination rights are not violated. The United States Supreme Court ruled that a person must be made aware of their rights prior to being questioned. (Note: http://www.uscourts.gov/ educational-resources/educational-activities/facts-and-case-summary-miranda-v-arizona) Once an arrest is made, the defendant is arraigned and bond is set. Arraignment is when a defendant is formally charged and made aware of their rights. After this the defendant may receive bail, although bail is not guaranteed (Texas Constitution Article 1, Section 11 & 11a-b).
Indictment. If the charge is a felony then an indictment must occur for the process to continue. A grand jury is in charge of determining whether there is enough evidence to move forward with the charge- 9 out of 12 grand jury members must agree that the process can move forward. If this occurs it is known as a “true bill” (indictment), if not it is known as a “no bill.”
Plea bargaining. Due to the fact that there are overcrowded dockets, plea bargaining is the mostcommon method for resolving criminal cases in Texas. Plea bargaining is when the defendant and the prosecutor negotiate a deal to avoid having to go to trial- the concept is that this saves time and money.
Trial. If the case reaches trial, the defendant may choose to have a trial by jury (guaranteed by the Texas Constitution Article 1, Section 15); or waive that right and choose trial by a presiding judge. Texas utilizes an adversary system, which means the two sides will attempt to convince the jury or judge why they are correct.
Post Trial. Post trial is the final step where the defendant, if found guilty, will receive a form of rehabilitation or punishment. Some examples of rehabilitation or punishment are prison time, probation, parole, house arrest, and fines.
Licensing and Attribution
Texas Criminal Justice Process Daniel M. Regalado. CC BY: Attribution
Rights of Crime Victims
Texas has long been known as a law and order state. The United States Constitution has a Bill of Rights that guarantees certain rights for those accused of crimes. While the Texas Constitution has a Bill of Rights with an extensive list of rights for the accused, it is one of the only states that follows that list with a specific list of rights for crime victims.
*Sec. 30. RIGHTS OF CRIME VICTIMS.
(a) A crime victim has the following rights:
(1) the right to be treated with fairness and with respect for the victim’s dignity and privacy throughout the criminal justice process; and
(2) the right to be reasonably protected from the accused throughout the criminal justice process.
(b) On the request of a crime victim, the crime victim has the following rights:
(1) the right to notification of court proceedings;
(2) the right to be present at all public court proceedings related to the oﬀense, unless the victim is to testify and the court determines that the victim’s testimony would be materially aﬀected if the victim hears other testimony at the trial;
(3) the right to confer with a representative of the prosecutor’s oﬃce;
(4) the right to restitution; and
(5) the right to information about the conviction, sentence, imprisonment, and release of the accused.
(c) The legislature may enact laws to define the term “victim” and to enforce these and other rights of crime victims.
(d) The state, through its prosecuting attorney, has the right to enforce the rights of crime victims.
(e) The legislature may enact laws to provide that a judge, attorney for the state, peace oﬃcer, or law enforcement agency is not liable for a failure or inability to provide a right enumerated in this section. The failure or inability of any person to provide a right or service enumerated in this section may not be used by a defendant in a criminal case as a ground for appeal or post- conviction writ of habeas corpus. A victim or guardian or legal representative of a victim has standing to enforce the rights enumerated in this section but does not have standing to participate as a party in a criminal proceeding or to contest the disposition of any charge.*
How Fair is the Texas Criminal Justice System?
Texas has a reputation for long sentences, tough prisons (most, until recently, without air conditioning) and tough-on-crime judges.
Every two years, the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court is required by law to deliver a “state of the judiciary” address to a joint session of the Texas Legislature. In February, 2017, Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, a conservative Republican jurist from Dallas, warned the legislature of the astonishing number of people incarcerated in Texas jails who had not been convicted of the crime with which they were charged, but simply couldn’t aﬀord to pay the necessary bail to remain free until their trial:
Twenty years ago, not quite one-third of the state’s jail population was awaiting trial. Now the number is three-fourths. Liberty is precious to Americans, and any deprivation must be scrutinized. To protect public safety and ensure that those accused of a crime will appear at trial, persons charged with breaking the law may be detained before their guilt or innocence can be adjudicated, but that detention must not extend beyond its justifications. Many who are arrested cannot aﬀord a bail bond and remain in jail awaiting a hearing. Though presumed innocent, they lose their jobs and families, and are more likely to re-oﬀend. And if all this weren’t bad enough, taxpayers must shoulder the cost—a staggering $1 billion per year.
Take a recent case in point, from The Dallas Morning News. A middle-aged woman arrested for shoplifting $105 worth of clothing for her grandchildren sat in jail almost two months because bail was set at $150,000—far more than all her worldly goods. Was she a threat to society? No. A flight risk? No. Cost to taxpayers? $3,300. Benefit: we punished grandma. Was it worth it? No. And to add to the nonsense, Texas law limits judges’ power to detain high-risk defendants. High-risk defendants, a threat to society, are freed; low-risk defendants sit in jail, a burden on taxpayers. This makes no sense.
Two months later, Federal District Judge Lee Rosenthal ruled Harris County’s bail system unconstitutional. A proposed settlement approved by Harris County Commissioners in 2019 would essentially end Harris County’s practice of requiring the posting of bail for all but the most violent oﬀenders, or those who pose a substantial flight risk.
Figure 12.4 After being charged, a defendant may be released on bail. If the person does not have enough money to post bail, he or she can make arrangements with a bail bondsman, who posts bail in exchange for a nonrefundable payment. Shown here is an advertisement for Lilly’s Bonding Service, L&L Bail Bonds, and Mary’s Bail Bonds in Longview, Texas. Image credit: Steve Snodgrass License: CC BY
Still, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg filed a court brief objecting to the settlement. As Harris County’s chief prosecutor, Ogg feels the proposed settlement was unfair to crime victims and the public. As she explained in an interview with Houston Public Media in September 2019:
“Well, in March of ’17, shortly after being elected, I stepped forward not as a party (to the bail lawsuit) but as the representative of an institution, the DA’s oﬃce and prosecutors, to support bail reform. And as a local criminal justice leader, I took a lot of political arrows for that support. I still support bail reform, but this proposed settlement is not bail reform that adequately protects the public. There’s two reasons we have bail: 1) to get the person back into court after they’ve been released, 2) to make sure the public is safe. So, I had to look at this proposal through the eyes of somebody other than the criminal defendant, and it’s an extremely slanted proposed settlement that really prioritizes their convenience over anybody else’s interest – whether it’s the victims or the community itself or the prosecutors and law enforcement who have to bring these cases against them.
I see that the system that’s been crafted as a result of this lawsuit…that misdemeanor oﬀenders are not awaiting their trial in jail because they can’t aﬀord to get out. I see everybody being released on PR [personal recognizance] bond. In fact, I see too many people being released on PR bonds…For low- level, non-violence misdemeanors, I agree, this is appropriate, and I support that…but we see judges right now letting dangerous misdemeanor oﬀenders out – domestic violence abusers, pimps, people who stalk folks, DWI oﬀenders – and we see those individuals go out and commit additional crimes, only to be taken back in front of the courts and given another PR bond. This endangers the public. So as the chief prosecutor in Harris County, I think it’s incumbent on me to make sure that any proposed settlement, especially one that’s going to be enforceable for seven years, include provisions that protect the public.”
The Harris County Criminal Justice Complex
Figure 12.5 Judge Darrell Jordan of Harris County Criminal Court 16 believes that too many courts automatically equate poverty with risk and set unattainable bonds that keep poor people in jail. Image credit: i_am_jim
In the 1980s, most people in jail were there as a punishment because they were convicted of a crime. That is no longer true. Today, three out of four inmates in Texas county jails have been arrested but not yet convicted of a crime, many because they do not have the cash to get out. That costs Texas taxpayers about a billion dollars a year and has led to lawsuits in Harris and Dallas counties.
How should Texas balance the need to protect the rights of the accused with the public’s right to law and order, and victims’ rights to see the criminals that victimized them brought to justice?
Reforming the Texas Criminal Justice System
Texas has had a significant number of people who have been wrongly convicted. Numerous recent cases in which convictions were overturned have raised questions about the criminal justice system in Texas.
Concerns about wrongful convictions are often related to the methods that police and prosecutors use to convict suspects. In Dallas County, many of the wrongfully convicted were prosecuted during the administration of District Attorney Henry Wade, whose oﬃce was known for high conviction rates. Additionally, multiple issues with the handling and processing of evidence transported to local and state crime labs have been documented, including lab analysts not trained in the latest DNA technology, incompetent supervisors, lack of lab inspections from outside agencies, lack of quality control systems. DNA evidence is often touted as definitive proof of guilt or innocence; however, forensic science procedures cannot be definitive with defective facilities, personnel, and procedures.
Texas has long led the nation in the number of people it exonerates, or clears of convictions, based on evidence of innocence. Since 2010, more than 200 people have been exonerated in Texas, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. That’s more than twice as many as any other state during the same period. Tulia Texas: Scenes from the drug war
Recent reforms that have been enacted may help reduce the number of wrongful convictions in Texas and improve the fairness of the criminal justice system. Dallas county established the first Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU) in America in 2007, and as of 2018, there are 44 units nationwide. In 2015, CIU in Harris County was responsible for 42 of the 58 conviction integrity unit exonerations in the United States that year.
In Texas, there has been an increased emphasis (albeit gradually) on community supervision and rehabilitation programs, such as drug treatment programs and electronic monitoring of oﬀenders, with less emphasis on incarceration as a first response solution to crime. Costs for probation are estimated at 10% of the cost of prison. Similarly, while incarceration is around $50 a day, parole supervision costs $4 a day.
Lawmakers entered 2019 with hopes that they could change Texas’ bail procedures, death penalty laws, and drug policies. But the 86th legislative session ended in July 2019 without major reforms in any of those issues. Thus, bipartisan lawmakers created a new Criminal Justice Reform Caucus in the Texas House.
Check Your Knowledge
Check your knowledge of this section by taking the ungraded practice quiz linked below.
Ungraded practice Quiz
Link to Learning
The National Association for Public Defense represents public defenders, lobbying for better funding for public defense and improvements in the justice system in general.
References and Further Reading
The Texas Constitution. Article 1: Bill of Rights. Section 30: Rights of Crime Victims. Accessed October 11, 2019.
Texas State Law Library. State of the Judiciary Messages. Accessed October 11, 2019.
Houston Public Media (2017, February 1). State’s Top Judge Calls For Legislature To Enact Bail Reform. Accessed October 11, 2019.
The State of the Judiciary in Texas (2017, February 1). Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht. Presented to the 85th Legislature. Austin, Texas. Accessed October 11, 2019.
Barajas, M. (2019, July 31). ‘A Watershed Moment’ for Bail Reform in Harris County. Texas Observer. Accessed October 11, 2019.
Houston Public Radio (2019, September 3). Harris County DA Kim Ogg On Bail Reform Accessed October 11, 2019.
Barajas, M. (2017, October 6). The Case to End Assembly Line Justice for Poor People in Harris County. Texas Observer. Accessed October 11, 2019.
Connelly, C (2019). 5 Criminal Justice Issues Texas Lawmakers Are Expected To Consider. KERA KUT 90.5.
McGonigle, S. (2007, January 22). Righting Wrongs. Dallas Morning News. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
The National Registry of Exonerations (2018). Exonerations in 2018 (Infographic). Accessed October 18, 2019.
Fromson, N. (2016, March 12). Conviction Integrity Units Expand Beyond Lone Star State Roots. The Texas Tribune. Accessed October 18, 2019.
American Bar Association. Texas and Mississippi: Reducing Prison Population, Saving Money, and Reducing Recidivism. ABA Criminal Justice Section Parole & Probation.
McCullough, J. (2019, July 18). After defeats in 2019, a group of Texas lawmakers is teaming up to push criminal justice reform. The Texas Tribune. Accessed October 12, 2019. Licensing and Attribution
CC LICENSED CONTENT, ORIGINAL
The Integrity of the Texas Criminal Justice System. Authored by: Andrew Teas. License: CC BY: Attribution
Civil Liberties and Criminal Justice in Texas
Learning Objectives
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
Understand the protections offered by our civil liberties in Texas, especially as concerns criminal justice
Introduction
Civil liberties are guarantees and freedoms that government commit not to abridge, either by legislation or judicial interpretation, without due process. This section explores civil liberties in Texas, especially as concerns criminal justice.
Civil Liberties
In addition to protecting the personal freedoms of individuals, the Bill of Rights protects those suspected or accused of crimes from various forms of unfair or unjust treatment. The prominence of these protections in the Bill of Rights may seem surprising. Given the colonists’ experience of what they believed to be unjust rule by British authorities, however, and the use of the legal system to punish rebels and their sympathizers for political oﬀenses, the impetus to ensure fair, just, and impartial treatment to everyone accused of a crime—no matter how unpopular—is perhaps more understandable. What is more, the revolutionaries, and the eventual framers of the Constitution, wanted to keep the best features of English law as well.
In addition to the protections outlined in the Fourth Amendment, which largely pertain to investigations conducted before someone has been charged with a crime, the next four amendments pertain to those suspected, accused, or convicted of crimes, as well as people engaged in other legal disputes. At every stage of the legal p

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