Indigent Defense Reform in the 82nd Legislature
Texas has recently seen a number of cases overturned and defendants exonerated due to re-tested DNA evidence, mishandling of cases, and other legal and procedural mistakes. The state leads the nation in the number of persons found to have been wrongfully convicted, imprisoned, and later exonerated of a crime.
Criminal justice experts believe there is a link between indigent defense and wrongful conviction. An indigent defendant is not financially able to provide for his or her own legal counsel. While the factor cannot be quantified, it is logical that without a strong legal defense, a defendant is less likely to be able to properly test the evidence in the case mounted against him. Indigent defense reform bills seek to ensure that the all accused receive fair treatment under the law—that the evidence is reliable, the innocent are freed and the truly guilty are punished appropriately.
Texas has made great strides in providing a fair defense for the impoverished, and making other inroads in protecting the innocent from wrongful conviction. The Texas Task Force of Indigent Defense was created in January 2002, and legislation passed in the 81s t Legislative Session created the Timothy Cole Advisory Panel on Wrongful Convictions in 2009. The Advisory Panel submitted a report to the Task Force on Indigent Defense detailing the results of a study regarding the causes of wrongful convictions and making recommendations to prevent future wrongful convictions.
In the 82nd Legislative Session, legislators passed several criminal justice reform laws designed to prevent wrongful convictions. The bills reflect many of the recommendations from the Timothy Cole Advisory Panel on Wrongful Convictions, related to: eyewitness identification procedures, post-conviction procedures, and the handling of biological data used in criminal convictions.
SB 122 seeks to improve the state's post-conviction DNA testing statute. This bill allows a motion for post-conviction DNA testing and re-testing if new, more accurate testing techniques are in practice. This bill would also require that any new DNA found in testing be run through FBI databases in an attempt to identify the perpetrator.
HB 215 will reform the state’s eyewitness identification methods. The bill institutes best practices for police lineups and greatly reduce the chances that witnesses will mistakenly send an innocent person to prison. Witness misidentification is the leading cause of wrongful convictions, and has been blamed for the majority of Texas’ wrongful convictions.
SB 1308 relates to the standards for attorneys representing indigent defendants in capital cases. This bill allows for a review of attorneys who are under permanent ban from supplying defense to indigent defendants. The law might affect some skilled defense lawyers have been banned from appointment due to circumstances that might not reflect their future ability to practice law.
SB 1616 establishes statewide, uniform guidelines to be used in the collection, retention, and storage of evidence that could be used in a criminal investigation. Currently, Texas does not have without uniform standards or established best practices regarding biological materials, such as DNA, that are used to prosecute and or exonerate defendants. The law requires public entities that come in contact with biological evidence to adopt policies developed through the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Here's How They Voted On Final Passage on SB 122:
HOUSE
Passed unanimously on the Local Calendar.
SENATE
Passed unanimously on thrid reading and final passage.
Here's How They Voted On Final Passage on HB 215:
HOUSE
AYES - 145
Aliseda(R); Alonzo(D); Alvarado(D); Anchia(D); Anderson, Charles(R); Aycock(R); Beck(R); Berman(R); Bohac(R); Bonnen(R); Branch(R); Brown, Fred(R); Burkett(R); Burnam(D); Button(R); Cain(R); Callegari(R); Carter(R); Castro(D); Chisum(R); Christian(R); Coleman(D); Cook(R); Craddick(R); Creighton(R); Crownover(R); Darby(R); Davis, John(R); Davis, Sarah(R); Davis, Yvonne(D); Deshotel(D); Driver(R); Dukes(D); Dutton(D); Eiland(D); Eissler(R); Elkins(R); Farias(D); Farrar(D); Fletcher(R); Flynn(R); Frullo(R); Gallego(D); Garza(R); Giddings(D); Gonzales, Larry(R); Gonzales, Veronica(D); Gonzalez, Naomi(D); Gooden(R); Guillen(D); Gutierrez(D); Hamilton(R); Hancock(R); Hardcastle(R); Harless(R); Harper-Brown(R); Hartnett(R); Hernandez Luna(D); Hilderbran(R); Hochberg(D); Hopson(R); Howard, Charlie(R); Howard, Donna(D); Huberty(R); Hughes(R); Hunter(R); Isaac(R); Jackson, Jim(R); Johnson(D); Keffer(R); King, Phil(R); King, Susan(R); King, Tracy(D); Kleinschmidt(R); Kolkhorst(R); Kuempel(R); Landtroop(R); Larson(R); Laubenberg(R); Lavender(R); Legler(R); Lewis(R); Lozano(D); Lucio III(D); Lyne(R); Madden(R); Mallory Caraway(D); Margo(R); Marquez(D); Martinez(D); Martinez Fischer(D); McClendon(D); Menendez(D); Miles(D); Miller, Doug(R); Miller, Sid(R); Morrison(R); Munoz(D); Murphy(R); Naishtat(D); Nash(R); Oliveira(D); Orr(R); Otto(R); Parker(R); Patrick, Diane(R); Paxton(R); Pena(R); Perry(R); Phillips(R); Pickett(D); Pitts(R); Price(R); Quintanilla(D); Raymond(D); Reynolds(D); Riddle(R); Ritter(R); Schwertner(R); Scott(R); Sheets(R); Sheffield(R); Shelton(R); Simpson(R); Smith, Todd(R); Smith, Wayne(R); Smithee(R); Solomons(R); Strama(D); Taylor, Larry(R); Taylor, Van(R); Thompson(D); Torres(R); Truitt(R); Turner, Sylvester(D); Veasey(D); Villarreal(D); Vo(D); Walle(D); Weber(R); White(R); Woolley(R); Workman(R); Zedler(R); Zerwas(R)
NAYS - 0
PRESENT-NOT-VOTING - 2
Geren(R); Straus(R)
ABSENT - 3
Allen(D); Anderson, Rodney(R); Rodriguez(D)
SENATE
Passed unanimously on third reading and final passage.
Here's How They Voted On Final Passage on HB 1308:
HOUSE
Passed unanimously on the Local Calendar.
SENATE
Passed unanimously on third reading and final passage.
Here's How They Voted On Final Passage on SB 1616:
HOUSE
Passed unanimously on the Local Calendar.
SENATE
Passed unanimously on thrid reading and final passage.
