Tag: texas appeal practice
Texas’ highest criminal court has not often been receptive to the arguments of criminal defense attorneys that their clients should be spared the death penalty in the past. But six reprieves handed down by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in recent weeks have led commentators to ask if the court is taking a new…
Texas has an unenviable reputation as the execution capital of the United States. Although the number of executions carried out in Texas has fallen in recent years, it remains ground zero for capital punishment. In some cases the state has pursued the ultimate sanction even when alarming questions linger over the original convictions. A case…
In 2011, Texas enacted a program to certify specialists in criminal appellate law. There has long been board certification in criminal law, so why is there a need for certification in Dallas criminal appellate law? Criminal Defense is Not a Criminal Appeals Many people hiring a lawyer to handle a criminal appeal do not realize…
On December 10, 2008, the Court of Criminal Appeals (the Texas Supreme Court for Criminal Cases), in a case that I argued, handed down a decision reversing the lower court. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is arguably the most unfriendly appellate court for criminal defendants in the country, so anytime a defendant wins in…