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Criminal Law

Texas Death Penalty Blog

Death penalty cases and legislation in Texas and elsewhere.
By "Persian Cowboy"

Post Frequency: 3.3/day

Last Entry: July 21, 2016 at 22:00:00

Nebraska Supreme Court says electrocution unconstitutional

Posted on February 08, 2008
Omaha World Herald is reporting that the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled the electric chair, the only method of execution in Nebraska unconstitutional. This means that there will be a moratorium on executions in Nebraska, until the state adopts another procedure to execute inmates...

DA candidate Rick Reed opposes the death penalty

Posted on February 05, 2008
I was at a panel last night sponsored by TMN and ACLU-TX with the four DA candidates. Only Rick Reed has said that he will oppose the death penalty as the DA in Travis County. Austin American-Statesman has a very good article about the four candidates position on the death penalty...

A letter from Howard Guidry

Posted on February 02, 2008
This is a letter from Howard Guidry that was read today at the Rodney Reed protest in Austin. Rodney Reed is a friend. Rodney Reed is a friend of mine. He is a solid brother who has weathered a decade of racially profiled prosecution...

Karl Chamberlain still has Texas execution date Feb. 21, 2008

Posted on January 29, 2008
Dave Maass, who used to work for the San Antonio Current and now is at the Santa Fe Reporter, has an article on Karl Chamberlain in this week's edition of the SFR. Chamberlain is the only person in Texas who currently has a scheduled execution date. All the other scheduled executions in Texas have been stayed pending a decision in the Baze case...

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Texas Moratorium Network & ACLU-TX Central TX Chapter

Posted on January 25, 2008
Texas Moratorium Network & ACLU-TX Central TX Chapter invite all interested members of the community to a PUBLIC FORUM with CANDIDATES for TRAVIS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEYMonday, February 4th, 6pmat Gene's Po Boys1209 E. 11th St. (at the Rosewood "Y")(parking behind building) There are four candidates* -all in the Democrat primary- running to replace Ronnie Earle, generally a well-received prosecutor, even a hero to some, especially for the Public Integrity Unit's indictment of Tom Delay...

Five Minutes for Rodney Reed!

Posted on January 25, 2008
Its been a while since we sent out a "five minutes for Rodney" action alert, but we hope to make alerts much more frequent.We have a march for Rodney coming up in Austin on February 2nd. Rodney needs us to promote this march far and wide- we need a big crowd to send a powerful message to the Court of Criminal Appeals that we want a new trial now! Keep in mind, more publicity not only means a bigger march -- it means that more people get exposed to Rodney and the facts of his case...

Eddie Saenz the progressive choice?

Posted on January 24, 2008
Rep. Aaron Pena who single handedly killed the Innocence Commission bill in the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee last year is being challenged by Eddie Saenz. Saenz was defeated by Pena in the 2004 Democratic Primary, with Pena winning 64% to Saenz's 35% of the vote...

The Texas Jail Project Blanket Drive, January 2008

Posted on January 23, 2008
Cold cells, no blankets. Despite state law, that's the reality for many inmates in Texas county jails, like the seven below. Illness and depression are the results. Help us buy a fellow human being a blanket and send a message: keeping people cold is cruel...

THE MLK HOLIDAY: A DIFFICULT DAY FOR CIVIL RIGHTS?

Posted on January 20, 2008
By James C. HarringtonDirector, Texas Civil Rights ProjectAs a civil rights advocate and lawyer, I always find the annual celebration of the Dr. Martin Luther King holiday both a good event and a disconcerting one. It is good that the nation has given official recognition to a person of color who lived and gave his life for the cause of justice and equality, seeking to undue centuries of racial oppression...

Travis County DA candidates and the death penalty

Posted on January 17, 2008
Last night several different Austin Democratic clubs participated in a combined candidate forum. All four DA candidates were present for questions. Three of the candidates were asked a question related to the death penalty, with exception of Rosemary Lehmberg...

Student Abolition's Dec 07 Podcast - Interview with Gov. George Ryan

Posted on January 16, 2008
Stop Executions Podcast is a production of Students Against the Death Penalty, with special thanks to our affiliate, Depaul Students Against the Death Penalty and Elliot Slosar.Part 1Part 2

Mother of Murder Victim Urging Travis County DA Candidates to Support a Moratorium

Posted on January 15, 2008
Jeanette became intimately familiar with the many flaws of the Texas criminal justice system after two innocent men, Chris Ochoa and Richard Danziger, were wrongfully convicted of her daughter's murder and spent 12 years in prison. They were exonerated and released in 2001...

This Week: State vs. Reed Film Screening and Fundraiser Party!

Posted on January 14, 2008
As we began 2008, all executions in the U.S are on hold. New Jersey recently abolished the death penalty. Here in Texas, were able to win the commutation of Texas death row prisoner Kenneth Foster, Jr. In recent weeks, there has been a lot of media around the case of Texas death row prisoner Rodney Reed Rodney's defense has long posited that another suspect in the initial investigation is responsible...

The Death Penalty - Does it Really Deter?

Posted on January 11, 2008
One of the most referred-to arguments by proponents of the death penalty is that of deterrence, the idea that when people are executed by the death penalty, other are discouraged from committing crimes that warrant death as a punishment...

Jimmy Fennell to resign after being briefly reinstated

Posted on January 10, 2008
Austin American-Statesman is reporting that Jimmy Fennell who was fired by the George Town Police Department, and then reinstated because of the technical error is planning to resign from the police force.Bob Phillips, Fennell's criminal defense attorney, said Fennell plans to send a letter of resignation to the department today...

STATE VS. REED: A SCREENING OF THE AWARD WINNING DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE CASE OF TEXAS DEATH ROW PRISONER RODNEY REED.

Posted on January 10, 2008
Directed by Ryan Polomski and Frank Bustoz.This 60 minute film documents the questionable murder conviction of Bastropresident Rodney Reed. Rodney was convicted of killing Stacey Stites on asingle piece of DNA evidence, which was explained by the romanticrelationship the two had...

John G Spirko's death sentence commuted to LWOP

Posted on January 09, 2008
Today Tennessee Gov. Ted Strickland commuted death sentence of John G. Spirko to LWOP, short of the clemency request filed by his attorneys. TCASK will probably have some more updates soon. In a statement, the governor said, John Spirko was convicted, by a jury, of a heinous murder...

Huckabee highlights pro-life hypocrisy

Posted on January 04, 2008
Mike Huckabee surprised everyone by winning the Republican primary in Iowa. Los Angeles Times has published an op-ed by one of our board members titled, "Huckabee highlights pro-life hypocrisy."Huckabee highlights pro-life hypocrisyThe Times should have highlighted the inconsistencies in the presidential candidate's positions...

Another Texas man freed after 26 years in prison

Posted on January 03, 2008
Associates Press is reporting that Charles Chatman has been freed after spending 26 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.Charles Chatman, 47, was released on his recognizance as several of his eight siblings cheered. He was freed on the basis of new DNA testing that lawyers say proves his innocence and adds to Dallas County's nationally unmatched number of wrongfully convicted inmates...

Holiday Greeting from kenneth Foster aka Haramia KiNassor

Posted on December 30, 2007
I just wanted to send out a Universal Greeting to all of you and let you know that I?m thinking of you all and wishing you all a VERY Blessed Holiday Season. I?m as well as can be and am thankful to have this day to share with all of you and keep on pushing in the struggle...

Executing Democracy- A Year After Saddam's Execution

Posted on December 29, 2007
Cross posted from DSADP blog.A tragedy occurred in Pakistan yesterday. Benazir Bhutto, the fearless ex-prime minister of Pakistan was assassinated by individuals who have since been linked to Al-Queda. Sadly, this occurred two days prior to the anniversary of yet another assassination...

Dennis Kucinich's position on the Death Penalty

Posted on December 28, 2007
Students Against the Death Penalty contacted all of the presidential candidates (Democrats and Republicans) asking for their position on the death penalty. So far only the Dennis Kucinich campaign has responded to our call. Here is the letter we received from him:Like most Americans, I arrived at my position on the death penalty through a process that involved the application of morality and moral principles (derived from my religious and spiritual convictions), personal reflection, and a rational examination of facts and statistics...

Lufkin Daily News calls for abolition of the death penalty

Posted on December 28, 2007
Lufkin Daily News has joined the growing list of Texas publications calling for abolition of the death penalty....Not only has the death penalty proven ineffective as a deterrent, it has also proven to be extremely expensive. It costs much less to keep a murderer in prison for life than it does to defend a death penalty throughout an exhaustive appeals process...

8th Annual March to Stop Executions in Houston, Texas

Posted on December 27, 2007
Saturday, October 27th, 2007Houston, TexasThe March to Stop Executions has been held each October since 2000 in cooperation with several Texas and national anti-death penalty organizations, including Texas Moratorium Network, the Austin chapter of the Campaign to End the Death Penalty, the Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement, Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty and Texas Students Against the Death Penalty...

Follow New Jersey, repeal death penalty

Posted on December 27, 2007
Thats the title of an op-ed in Houston Chronicle by NCADP's Diann Rust-Tierney and TCADP's Rick Halperin.What do law enforcement officers, prosecutors, crime victims' advocates and both Democratic and Republican state legislators have in common? Recently, all of these groups came together in New Jersey to support legislation to repeal that state's death penalty...

Documentary: Step by Step A Journey of Hope

Posted on December 25, 2007
Click play to watch "Step By Step A Journey of Hope" (58 minutes) produced by Micki Dickoff. Journey of Hope...from Violence to Healing is an organization led by murder victim family members joined by death row family members, family members of the executed, the exonerated, and others with stories to tell, that conducts public education speaking tours and addresses alternatives to the death penalty.

A Typical Day on Texas Death Row

Posted on December 23, 2007
December 12, 2007by Rob WillSomeone suggested that I chronicle a typical day for me on Texas death row so I figured I?d go ahead and do that today. Perhaps, through detailing the events of an entire day, I can give people a better insight into this environment?...

NY Times: A Pause From Death

Posted on December 23, 2007
Thats the title of New York Times recent editorial about the death penalty.The United Nations General Assembly voted on Tuesday for a global moratorium on the death penalty. The resolution was nonbinding; its symbolic weight made barely a ripple in the news ocean of the United States, where governments? right to kill a killer is enshrined in law and custom...

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