One year ago today, I wrote “Just Because You Can, Doesn’t Mean You Should” to discuss the discretion of prosecutors. Prosecutors can and do choose which offenses and people they will prosecute. It’s a matter of resources. It’s a matter of proof. It’s a matter of discretion. Every case that is prosecuted requires some portion … Read more
Sure, a prosecutor can choose to prosecute a case, but that doesn’t always mean he or she should. Trace Cocaine Cases Years ago, then Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos made the choice to decline prosecution of trace amounts of cocaine. This didn’t mean she approved or condoned cocaine possession. It didn’t mean cocaine cases … Read more
Texas leads the nation in convicting innocent people. Appalling! This is not a lead to be proud of. According to the National Registry of Exonerations, Texas led 2013 in convicting innocent people, and over the years, Texas has always remained in the top four states for convicting innocent people. Convictions of innocent people can be … Read more
Maybe you have been following the David Temple case. Maybe you haven’t. In short, David Temple was convicted of killing his wife in a totally circumstantial cold case prosecuted by Kelly Siegler, former Harris County Assistant District Attorney turned semi-celebrity on TNT’s Cold Justice. In case you hadn’t followed the events here is what you … Read more
Chronicle Editorial Hits Nail on the Head: Hollywood ending, A potentially innocent man sat behind bars so that a prosecutor could get on television. “an awful lot of razzle dazzle for the serious business that goes down in criminal courtrooms” Some prosecutors forget. Some never know it to begin with. But, criminal courtrooms are serious … Read more
nolle prosequi (no-lay pro-say-kwee) n. Latin for “we shall no longer prosecute,” which is a declaration made to the judge by a prosecutor in a criminal case either before or during trial, meaning the case against the defendant is being dropped. The statement is an admission that the charges cannot be proved, that evidence has … Read more
In the Harris County Public Defender’s Office CLE today and Judge Belinda Hill spoke on behalf of the District Attorney’s Office. The look of surprise on her face was priceless as she heard some of the “policies” we hear from assistant district attorneys in court. She will follow up on some of these but, essentially, … Read more