Senators passed Senate Bill 1611, also known as the “Michael Morton Act,” which would require prosecutors to turn over evidence to defense lawyers in criminal cases. The chamber erupted in applause following the vote.
Brandi Grissom
Brandi Grissom worked at the Tribune from its launch in 2009 until 2014, rising to the rank of managing editor. In addition to editing duties, Grissom led the Tribune's coverage of criminal justice issues. During her tenure at the Tribune, she was chosen as a 2012 City University of New York Center on Media, Crime and Justice/H.F. Guggenheim Journalism Fellow and was a fellow at the 2012 Journalist Law School at Loyola Law School, Los Angeles. Grissom, along with Tribune multimedia producer Justin Dehn, received a 2012 regional Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting for work on the case of Megan Winfrey, who was acquitted of murder in February 2013 after the Trib’s coverage brought statewide attention the case. Grissom joined the Tribune after four years at the El Paso Times, where she acted as a one-woman Capitol bureau. Grissom won the Associated Press Managing Editors First-Place Award in 2007 for using the Freedom of Information Act to report stories on a variety of government programs and entities, and the ACLU of Texas named her legislative reporter of the year in 2007 for her immigration reporting. She previously served as managing editor at The Daily Texan and has worked for the Alliance Times-Herald, the Taylor Daily Press, the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung and The Associated Press. A native of Alliance, Neb., she has a degree in history from the University of Texas.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Agreement Reached on Michael Morton Act
“It looks as if we have a deal,” Michael Morton said after Wednesday afternoon negotiations with senators and lawyers on a measure that would require prosecutors to turn over evidence to defendants in criminal cases.
Posted in
Higher Education
Senate Passes Bill to Keep UT’s Top 10 Percent Cap
The Texas Senate approved a bill on Tuesday that would allow the University of Texas at Austin to maintain its cap on automatic admissions no matter the outcome of Fisher v. University of Texas.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Proposal: Allow Private Firms to Provide Mental Health Services in Jails
Private mental health care providers would be allowed into select jails to attempt to restore inmates to competency under a proposed pilot program. The restored inmates would then be able to stand for trial.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Fight Over Information Security Could Jeopardize “Michael Morton Act”
A fight over what defense lawyers could do with information about their clients in criminal cases after prosecutors turn it over to them is threatening to stymie the “Michael Morton Act.”
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Slideshow: A Trial 26 Years Later
A jury in March found Mark Alan Norwood guilty of the 1986 murder of Christine Morton, and he was sentenced to life in prison. This photo slideshow provides an overview of the timeline and characters in the tragic case.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
After Decades, DNA Testing and a Conviction
The prosecutor who secured Mark Norwood’s murder conviction says that if Michael Morton had not fought from prison to prove his innocence in his wife’s murder, the DNA testing that led to Norwood’s conviction might not have been done.
Posted inCourts, Criminal Justice
Slideshow: A Trial 26 Years Later
A jury in March found Mark Alan Norwood guilty of the 1986 murder of Christine Morton, and he was sentenced to life in prison. This photo slideshow provides an overview of the timeline and characters in the tragic case.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Prosecutors, Defense Lawyers Agree to More DNA Testing in Skinner Case
Prosecutors in the Texas attorney general’s office and lawyers for death row inmate Hank Skinner have signed an agreement this week to allow more DNA testing in the 1993 triple murder for which he was sentenced to death.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Tears and Relief After Norwood Found Guilty
Family members of Christine Morton and Debra Baker filled a Tom Green County courtroom with tearful hugs and relieved smiles on Wednesday after a jury found Mark Alan Norwood guilty of murder.
