Executing non-killers, imagining life without plea bargaining, no oversight for forensic hypnosis, and other stories

Here's a brief, browser-tab clearing roundup of items about which I haven't had time to blog, but of which Grits readers should be aware:

Forensic commission can't address 'forensic hypnosis'
First, updating an earlier Grits report, I communicated with Lynn Garcia, General Counsel for the Texas Forensic Science Commission, who informs me that forensic hypnosis does not fall under their jurisdiction, even as a general area they're authorized to study, because it does not involve "physical evidence," which is defined in the statute as something tangible. She said they've received complaints about the practice in the past, including one recently, and agrees it's problematic, but doesn't believe it falls within their jurisdiction. While I understand her legal interpretation, that leads to an unfortunate situation where government-sanctioned junk science (the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement gives out certifications in forensic hypnosis) cannot be evaluated by the state Forensic Science Commission. That should change in 2019.

Maybe they'll listen if they Rangers tell 'em
Governor Abbott has asked the Texas Rangers to investigate sexual abuse at the Gainesville State School. But we've had an Ombudsman complaining about these problems and recommending solutions for years, and for the most part those recommendations have been ignored. Most of the details in the disturbing press reports out of Gainesville came from Debbie Unruh, the TJJD independent ombudsman, and had been included in her prior reports. Why would we imagine state leaders will listen to the Texas Rangers when they haven't implemented the recommendations from Unruh who's been sounding the alarm all this time? The state already knows the solutions here, they just haven't heretofore been willing to pay for them.

Did TDCJ understaffing allow rape of prison teacher?
A teacher at a TDCJ prison blames chronic understaffing for the circumstances that led to her rape. Grits readers know this is a longstanding problem. The solution here is to reduce incarceration levels and close understaffed units. There just aren't enough people in some of these rural areas to consistently staff the prison units there. And the problem will be much-exacerbated at certain South and West Texas units if and when oil prices go back up.

Coverup at TDCJ?
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice allegedly shredded documents they were obligated to turn over as discovery in a federal lawsuit alleging the summer heat in un-air conditioned prisons constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. The warden who approved the shredding allegedly already knew about the litigation. Hard to interpret it otherwise: This smacks of a coverup.

Executing non-killers
Something about executing a person for a murder they didn't themselves commit feels inherently unjust. Even the prosecutor from Jeff Wood's capital conviction, who had 13 months experience as an attorney at the time she was designated shot-caller in the case, has asked the Governor to commute his sentence. Wood's example reinforces Grits' belief that the law-of-parties doctrine is ripe for revision: the concept stems from British common law, but Parliament abolished it in 1957, followed soon thereafter by all of Europe, India, and in 1990, Canada. This is a holdover from a less evolved time.

Paying for public defenders would reduce incarceration costs

Long-time Grits readers are aware that defendants represented by public defenders have better outcomes than those with appointed attorneys. We've seen this both in national data and Texas examples. But a new national analysis suggests that public defenders do such a better job that using them reduces incarceration costs: Using "public defenders reduce[s] the probability of any prison sentence by 22%, as well as the length of prison by 10%."

When your 'tiny house' means a tiny privacy footprint
Here's an unintended consequence to the "tiny house" movement: If your tiny house is on a trailer, your Fourth Amendment rights are likely diminished and the automobile exception will apply to searches of your residence, according to academic from Texas State.

Life without plea bargaining?
For the reading pile: India's court system doesn't do plea bargains. They've tried to implement them in the last decade and it's been a flop. I want to read this new academic article to learn more about the situation.