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The latest criminal justice news from The Texas Tribune.

  • The Price of Innocence

    By Erin Mulvaney

    Let's say you served time for a crime you didn't commit: How much is each year you lost really worth? A new law increases the state's payout to exonerees, but the process of getting compensated is its own form of punishment. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Jacob Villanueva

  • Defenseless

    By Brandi Grissom

    Before adopting the Fair Defense Act in 2001, Texas was considered abysmal in legal circles when it came to providing representation for the poor. Proponents and critics of the current system agree the situation has improved since lawmakers started requiring counties to implement minimum representation standards. But has it improved enough? Full Story 

    State Share of Indigent Defense Costs 2001-2009
    Credit: Graphic by Task Force on Indigent Defense

  • On the Records: Paycheck U.

    By Kosaku Narioka

    Today we're adding another 17 agencies to our government salaries database, an extra 67,000 workers who collectively earn $2.9 billion in public payroll. The database now has records on more than 550,000 employees working at 62 of the largest state agencies, cities, universities, counties and mass-transit authorities. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller, Jacob Villanueva

  • The War at Home

    By Bobby Cervantes

    For many of the more than 150,000 Texans who have returned from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, the struggle to cope with the horrors they've seen can result in drug addiction and violent outbursts. To deal with those harsh realities, 10 counties are working to establish "veterans courts" that would emphasize treatment or counseling over punishment. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller, iStockphoto

  • TribBlog: O'Neill Signs Off

    By Ross Ramsey

    Texas Supreme Court Justice Harriet O'Neill, who isn't seeking reelection to the court, also isn't finishing her term. She told Gov. Rick Perry and the other members of the court today that she will step down from the bench on June 20. Full Story 

    Texas Supreme Court Justice Harriet O'Neill
    Credit: Texas Supreme Court

  • David Oshinsky: The TT Interview

    By Brandi Grissom

    The Pulitzer Prize-winning author and University of Texas professor, whose latest book is a modern history of capital punishment in America, says he doesn't oppose the death penalty — but he believes it's scandalously implemented in Texas. Full Story 

    David Oshinsky's book, Capital Punishment on Trial

  • The Case of the Missing Prosecutors

    By Morgan Smith

    Texas has more unfilled U.S. attorney positions than any other state — and that isn’t going to change soon. Currently, none of the four Texas districts have "presidentially confirmed" federal prosecutors, who are responsible for enforcing federal laws. Last week, John B. Stevens, a state district judge in Beaumont who was Barack Obama's only nominee in Texas, withdrew his name from consideration, citing the protracted confirmation process. And that means we risk being left out of the administration’s inner circle on criminal and civil justice issues. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Jacob Villanueva, Matt Stiles

  • Data App: Let's Go to Prison

    By Matt Stiles and Niran Babalola

    Our latest interactive database has records on each of the more than 160,000 inmates in Texas prisons, including their names, crimes, hometowns, height, weight and gender, the counties in which they were convicted and their sentencing dates. Explore them all. Full Story 

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    Credit: Bob Daemmrich