Category: Criminal Defense
Police reform bills were introduced across the country after the shocking death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year. Texas was no exception. At the end of last month, the Texas House approved three reform measures that form part of a larger raft of legislation relating to police conduct. A jury convicted Derek Chauvin, a…
A defendant’s mental illness makes him or her less morally culpable of a crime and should be taken into consideration as a reason to avoid the death penalty, according to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. However, states can and do execute defendants who suffer from mental illnesses. Texas is no exception. The Death Penalty Information Center lists…
Hate crimes again made headlines in recent weeks when a gunman killed eight people, including six Asian women, in Atlanta. The Biden administration faces pressure to bring hate crime charges against shooter Robert Aaron Long, 21, over the killings. However, the incident demonstrated flaws in the federal legislation, according to the Washington Post. The hate…
The system of cash bail for defendants is controversial. Opponents say those who cannot afford to pay languish in jails even if they have been charged with minor crimes. However, the system is being overhauled nationwide after Illinois became the first state to abolish it, and a large Texas jurisdiction is allowing people to be…
The stalled criminal justice system in Texas due to the COVID-19 pandemic has had an unforeseen effect on incarceration rates, leaving county jails facing an overcrowding crisis at a time when they are hotbeds of infection. The pandemic has disrupted life in Texas at all levels and criminal justice is no exception. State prisons stopped…
Texas criminal defense lawyers explain how to get your TX criminal case dismissed. When you’re facing a criminal prosecution in Texas, it’s natural to be curious if there’s a possibility of prosecutors dropping the charges against you. Most people charged with a crime have a lot of questions. Is there a difference between a dropped…
Increasing numbers of prisoners are spending long periods locked up alone in the United States. Experts say solitary confinement is putting severe psychological pressure on inmates and was likely linked to the death of a prisoner in Texas. Russell Johnson took his life after living in solitary confinement for over two-and-a-half years, the Texas Observer…
Harassment in a term that’s used to describe actions that are intended to humiliate, embarrass or demean a person. However, the term is also one that contains a lot of gray areas in its definition – especially in the digital age we live in. Texas has a specific statute on its books that prohibits electronic…
It may sound like something out of a science fiction movie, but cities across the country are already using artificial intelligence (AI) to assess whether someone accused of a crime should be released on bond prior to their trial. The problem with using AI for this purpose, according to computer experts, is that algorithms sometimes…
Texas’ controversial cash bail system has been undermined by a series of recent court rulings. This month, Galveston was ordered to change its rules when a federal judge said defense lawyers should be at bail hearings for poor defendants. A federal district judge issued a temporary injunction in the latest phase of a 2018 lawsuit….