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a dissent in Texas on future dangerousness

By Karl R. Keys, Esq.

Texas has fairly unique sentencing scheme with future dangerousness being one of the most controversial aspects of the its death penalty scheme.   On several occasions factually innocent men have been found by experts and juries, beyond a reasonable doubt, to pose a future danger.  Today in State v. Noah Espada, Judge Womack in dissent  notes the lack of research supporting expert testimony on future dangerousness: The Court holds (ante, at 15) that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in allowing the psychiatrist to offer an expert opinion on the probability that the defendant will commit future acts of dangerousness that will constitute a danger to society. The Court’s opinion says that the fact that the psychiatrist “did not know his rate of error is not dispositive...continue to full post

Full post as published by Capital Defense Weekly on November 06, 2008 (boomark / email).