Bill Renews Debate on Merging Highest Two Courts
A proposal for the upcoming legislative session is resuscitating a debate that goes back to the writing of the Texas Constitution in 1876.
The bill, authored by state Rep. Richard Peña Raymond, D-Laredo, would abolish the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state’s highest court for all criminal matters, and bring all criminal cases under the Texas Supreme Court, which now hears only civil and juvenile cases.
Texas and Oklahoma are the only two states with their highest courts divided between civil and criminal jurisdictions, though others have considered it as a means to deal with large case ...
Comments (5)
Ron Pogue
It's a red herring - a way to avoid dealing with the real issue, which is the death penalty. A wiser solution would be to abolish the death penalty and replace it with life without parole. Anyone who examines the two options from a cost perspective alone will see that there would be huge savings because the number of appeals would drop dramatically, reducing the load on the existing court system. Unfortunately, it's not a "no-brainer" solution. It will take brains to figure and work this one out.
Ron Pogue via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Rep. Raymond's proposition is a red herring, put forward to avoid dealing with the real problem - the death penalty. A wiser solution would be to abolish the death penalty and replace it with life without parole. Anyone who compares the two options from a cost perspective will see that the result would be enormous savings because it would dramatically reduce the number of appeals in capital cases. Unfortunately, this approach would not be a "no-brainer." It would actually require brains and courage to accomplish.
Carolyn Moon via Texas Tribune on Facebook
More concentrated corruption
Matt Taylor
This article has been linked on thejavelina.com
Michael Hull
This is a really bad idea. Savings would be minimal if anything, but large caseloads and loss of specialization would be disastrous.
Maybe we should look into creating a "charter" court to handle these cases--privatize the whole thing and see if the some corporation can make a few bucks off this--it's working for education, right? (Sarcasm)