Texas Seeks To Improve Image In Death Penalty Cases

[WSJ_law_blog]

Texas, the death penalty capital of the country, seems to be looking to change its ways.

The state has passed legislation creating a capital defense office next year, which will handle appeals for death row inmates, according to this article from the Houston Chronicle.

The appellate office will have a staff of nine and a budget of about $1 million.

Texas has gotten roundly criticized over the years for its handling of capital murder cases. There have been strange capital murder tales coming out of the Lone Star state in recent years, including a capital murder defendant represented by a sleeping lawyer; a defendant sentenced to death by a judge who allegedly was having a secret affair with the prosecutor in the case; and a defendant who was executed after he was barred from filing an appeal after the 5:00 pm closing time of the state’s highest criminal appellate court. That later case prompted a move to impeach Sharon Keller, a judge on the state’s court of criminal appeals.

The Chron reports that the legislation creating the capital defense office was inspired by stories of Texas inmates who lost appeals because their lawyers missed deadlines or filed “skeletal” writs, which contained only scant information often copied from other cases.

“The status quo has been an international embarrassment,” state senator Rodney Ellis, who sponsored the legislation, told the Chron.