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Criminal Law

StandDown Texas Project

Texas-centric examination of conditions, reform initiatives, and emerging issues related to best practices in the indigent criminal justice system with particular attention to issues involving capital punishment and the administration of the death penalty.
By StandDown Texas Project

Post Frequency: 49.3/day

Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 14:21:29

An Update on Indigent Defense in Georgia

Posted on April 20, 2009
"?Crisis? in death-penalty trial system," is Bill Rankin's report in the Sunday edition of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. They involve some of Georgia?s most heinous slayings, with death-penalty defendants accused of massacres, child killings, crimes of unthinkable depravity...

Today on 'Democracy Now'

Posted on April 20, 2009
"Gov. Richardson, Activists Honored in Rome After New Mexico Repeals Death Penalty," is the segment on Amy Goodman's show. You can watch or listen now at the link; a transcript should be available later today. New Mexico became the second...

Colorado

Posted on April 20, 2009
"Death penalty repeal bill still close call in House, King says," is Gary Harmon's report from the Friday edition of the Grand Junction Sentinel. The bill would repeal the state's death penalty and direct money save to cold cases. A...

Death Row Lawyers Get Paid While Messing Up

Posted on April 20, 2009
That's the title of a report by Lise Olsen in today's Houston Chronicle. LINK Texas lawyers have repeatedly missed deadlines for appeals on behalf of more than a dozen death row inmates in the last two years ? yet judges...

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Clemcency Recommended in Oklahoma Death Case

Posted on April 17, 2009
"Parole board recommends clemency for Oklahoma man," is the AP report via the Tulsa World. Gov. Brad Henry has not made a decision on a recommendation by the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board to grant clemency for a man scheduled...

Justice Denied: America's Continuing Neglect of our Constitutional Right to Counsel

Posted on April 16, 2009
That's the title of a new report by the Constitution Project. You can view the full report, here. Marcia Coyle writes a web-special report for National Law Journal, "Study urges overwhelmed attorneys for the indigent to reject new cases ."...

A Return to the Troy Davis Case in Georgia

Posted on April 16, 2009
This afternoon, a three judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit rejected an appeal by Troy Davis, in a controversial Georgia case. The opinion is here. Bill Rankin writes, "Federal court rejects Troy Davis' appeal,"...

Alabama Senate Supports Executions

Posted on April 16, 2009
That's the title of Kristen Bost's article in the Auburn Plainsman. LINK For the third time in five years, an Alabama Senate committee voted in favor of a three-year moratorium on executions. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted six to one...

Coverage of the Colorado Vote

Posted on April 16, 2009
"House backs death-penalty demise," is Jessica Fender's Denver Post report. Colorado's death penalty took one step toward the grave Wednesday as lawmakers in the state House gave initial approval to a bill that would end capital punishment and use the...

The Lethal Injection Debate in Arkansas

Posted on April 16, 2009
The Arkansas News Bureau reports this afternoon, "Supreme Court to hear case challenging lethal injection." It's written by Rob Moritz. The state Supreme Court scheduled oral arguments for May 28 in condemned killer Frank Williams Jr.?s lawsuit challenging the process...

Nebraska Legislation

Posted on April 16, 2009
"Lethal injection bill advances to full Legislature," is Paul Hammel's report for the Omaha World-Herald. A vote Thursday morning sets the stage for debate on one of this year?s most controversial legislative issues -- whether to switch the state?s method...

At UT Law

Posted on April 16, 2009
It was another outstanding symposium at The University of Texas School of Law, presented today by UT Law's Capital Punishment Center and co-sponsored by the William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law. Imprisoned by the Past: The Enduring Role...

The Cost of the Death Penalty

Posted on April 15, 2009
That's the title of an editorial in today's Boston Globe. LINK IT MAY BE too soon to call it a trend, but two states have abolished the death penalty in the past three years, and 10 others have legislation pending....

Colorado House to Debate Repeal Today

Posted on April 15, 2009
The Colorado House goes into session at 9:00 am, this morning, and HB 1274 is the today's House Calendar. The session will be webcast at this LINK. Today's Denver Post has commentary on the issue. First, University of Colorado at...

HB 1274 on Colorado House Floor

Posted on April 15, 2009
You can watch at this link. Earlier coverage of HB 1274 is here.

Danielle Simpson and Competency

Posted on April 15, 2009
AP's Michael Graczyk reports, "Court to examine Texas killer who wants to die," via the Houston Chronicle. A federal appeals court is sending the case of a condemned Texas inmate back to a lower court to see if the prisoner...

Texas Execution

Posted on April 15, 2009
Texas is scheduled to carry out its 13th execution of 2009, tonight in Huntsville. It would be the state's 436th execution since 1982. Texas has far and away the most active death chamber in America, accounting for more than 37%...

New Hampshire Senate Committee Debate

Posted on April 15, 2009
Yesterday, the New Hampshire Senate Judiciary Committee considered HB 556, legislation that would repeal the state's death penalty. "Senate Takes Up Death Penalty," is Dan Gorenstein's report for NHPR. The death penalty is on trial in Concord. A bill to...

Texas Execution

Posted on April 15, 2009
Texas carried out its 13th execution of 2009, tonight in Huntsville. It was the state's 436th execution since 1982. Texas has far and away the most active death chamber in America, accounting for more than 37% of the nation's executions....

HB 1274 Passes Colorado House

Posted on April 15, 2009
The legislation passed on second reading by voice vote. House Majority Leader Paul Weissmann is the sponsor of the legislation. The initial AP report is "Plan to eliminate death penalty given initial OK ," via the Loveland Reporter-Herald. The Colorado...

A Month of Killing, More on the Way?

Posted on April 14, 2009
That's the title of a post by Norm Stamper at Huffington Post. LINK He's a retired Seattle police chief and a member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. Today, if I stare off into the middle distance and let it happen,...

Judge Favors Sentence Other Than Death

Posted on April 14, 2009
That's the title of an article in today's Cleburne Times-Review by Pete Kendall. LINK Here are several excerpts from this must-read: No legal system is perfect, said Cleburne resident and senior district judge C.C. ?Kit? Cooke. That includes the one....

Alabama Editorials Support Moratorium

Posted on April 14, 2009
Today's Birmingham News carries the editorial, "A stopping point." Alabama has a lousy track record when it comes to the death penalty, and it needs to give its execution chamber a rest. That's what the state would be required to...

More Federal Judges in Texas?

Posted on April 13, 2009
"Judicial Conference Wants New Judges, Including Seven in Texas," is By John Council's report in the latest issue of Texas Lawyer. Last month, the Judicial Conference of the United States ? the federal judiciary's policymaking body ? recommended increasing the...

Ginsburg Renews Defense of Foreign Law Citations

Posted on April 13, 2009
That's the title of an article in today's edition of the Bulletin of Philadelphia. LINK It's written by Joe Murray. Here's an extended excerpt: This weekend, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg continued to defend the court?s use of international...

Prosecutorial Accountability: A Policy Review

Posted on April 13, 2009
That's the title of a new report issued by The Justice Project. The full report is here, in Adobe .pdf format. The news release, announcing the report, states: The Justice Project (TJP) released today a report detailing the causes of...

Dallas DNA

Posted on April 13, 2009
Kevin Johnson writes, "Reality show on DNA exoneration stirs ethics issues," for USA Today. For the first time, reality TV will explore the growing use of DNA evidence to exonerate the wrongly convicted, in a series that is raising ethical...

Insanity on Trial

Posted on April 13, 2009
Diane Jennings writes, "Killer who tore out own eyes fuels Texas debate on insanity defense." Her article appeared in the Sunday edition of the Dallas Morning News. Everyone agrees Andre Thomas is crazy. In 2004, he cut out the hearts...

In Alabama

Posted on April 10, 2009
"Senators vote for Ala. death penalty moratorium," is the AP report from Wednesday afternoon. For the third time in five years, a state Senate committee has voted in favor of a moratorium on executions in Alabama, but the proposal again...

Judge Selected for Keller Trial

Posted on April 10, 2009
"GOP judge from San Antonio to run Keller trial," is Chuck Lindell's report for the Austin American-Statesman Austin Legal blog. A similar edit is in today's print edition. A Republican district court judge from San Antonio will preside over the...

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