tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post7412425959605074892..comments2024-03-25T20:06:39.794-05:00Comments on Grits for Breakfast: One in three murder charges in TX a capital caseGritsforbreakfasthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-21412845234768489052018-05-03T15:55:48.490-05:002018-05-03T15:55:48.490-05:00Y'all are probably right. Though the statute (...Y'all are probably right. Though the statute (CCP 26.052) refers to appointing counsel in cases "in which the death penalty is sought." It doesn't make much sense (to me, anywau) to jump the gun and appoint death qualified attorneys in all capital cases (before any decision is made to seek death) - especially as so few cases end up as death ones anyway.James S.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-44618887779163681712018-05-02T15:19:33.681-05:002018-05-02T15:19:33.681-05:00@James S, 2:05's understanding reflects my own...@James S, 2:05's understanding reflects my own.Gritsforbreakfasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-8777376947987947132018-05-02T14:15:40.243-05:002018-05-02T14:15:40.243-05:00In my opinion tow of the factors driving the numbe...In my opinion tow of the factors driving the number of Capital Murder charges are: 1. The ability to threaten the defendant with a death sentence and getting him to plea to a LWOP sentence, and , 2. The counties that have bought into the "murder insurance" program offered through the Regional Public Defenders Office for Capital Offenses no longer have to bear the full cost of the defense. It has become more affordable to seek death!Frank A.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05736575980257760355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-75399527266949329652018-05-02T14:05:11.701-05:002018-05-02T14:05:11.701-05:00In theory, courts are required to appoint death-qu...In theory, courts are required to appoint death-qualified lawyers to capital murder cases until the state declines to seek death. So, the sheer volume of capital murder cases should be driving the scarcity of qualified counsel. But you're right, in practice, many jurisdictions deviate from this requirement. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-77565512613380846872018-05-02T10:59:07.483-05:002018-05-02T10:59:07.483-05:00A couple of questions:
First, isn't the capita...A couple of questions:<br />First, isn't the capital-appointment list you're referring to just for death penalty cases? At least in my jurisdiction, attorneys defending in capital-life cases are required to have no more qualifications than any other first-degree felony attorney (which makes sense as there are no punishment issues).<br />Second (and similarly), isn't the "worst of the worst" moniker reserved for cases where the State seeks death? It seems to me that the problem isn't really overcharging (though I'm sure that happens), but that the Legislature keeps expanding the list of capital-punishment level offenses.<br />(With regard to overcharging, that may be what many of those 84 dismissals are -- dismissals of capitals and refiling as vanilla murders. You're right it would be nice to confirm what those are for).James S.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-27459014197412958382018-05-02T09:50:40.522-05:002018-05-02T09:50:40.522-05:00Great catch, Lane, thanks! Man, are we going to mi...Great catch, Lane, thanks! Man, are we going to miss Elsa Alcala. In many ways these last five years she's been the Conscience of the State, and certainly the Texas GOP, on criminal-justice topics.Gritsforbreakfasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-7680999620772673452018-05-02T09:28:43.497-05:002018-05-02T09:28:43.497-05:00As far as capital murder being reserved for the &q...As far as capital murder being reserved for the "worst of the worst" in Texas, soon-to-be-retired Judge Alcala said it better than I ever could in Ex parte Murphy, 495 S.W.3d 282, 283 (Tex.Crim.App 2016) (Alcala, J., dissenting):<br /> <br /> The capital-murder statute provides for around one hundred different ways that a person can be convicted of capital murder. The <br /> list of ways in which a person may commit capital murder is twice as long when one considers that a defendant may be convicted <br /> not only as a principal actor, but also as a party by, for example, aiding or attempting to aid another person to commit the <br /> offense. And the list is thrice as long when one considers that a defendant may be convicted of capital murder even if he lacked <br /> any intent to commit that offense but was part of a conspiracy to commit a felony under certain circumstances. (citations <br /> omitted).Lane Thibodeauxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17433243091582026689noreply@blogger.com