Texas
Does my state have the death penalty?
Yes, Texas has executed a total of 357 people since 1976.
What is my governor's position on the death penalty?
Texas Governor Rick Perry (R) strongly favors the death penalty. Perry executed Mexican prisoner Javier Suarez Medina in 2002 despite pleas from Mexican President Fox asking for a reprieve.
How many people are on Death Row in my state?
Of the 413 Death Row prisoners, 170 are black, 127 are white, 112 are Latino and 4 are Asian. Of the 413 Death Row prisoners, 10 of them are women.
Is there anything like the Center on Wrongful Convictions in my state?
University of Houston Innocence Network
100 Law Center
Houston, Texas 77204
David Dow
(713) 743-7552
Was anyone on Death Row ever found innocent in my state?
Eight innocent people were exonerated on Death Row in Texas. Vernon McManus was released in 1987 after serving ten years, Randall Dale Adams was released in 1989 after serving twelve years, Clarence Brandley was released in 1990 after serving nine years, John C. Skelton was released in 1990 after serving seven years, Federico M. Macias was released in 1993 after serving nine years, Muneer Deeb was released in 1993 after serving eight years, Ricardo Aldape Guerral was released in 1997 after serving five years, and Ernest Ray Willis was released in 2004 after serving 17 years.
Are there any opportunities for volunteering in my state?
Stand Down Texas
Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
Additional Resources
Texas State Info at DPIC
Texas State Info at Equal Justice USA
* Information updated annually. Last updated January 2006. For more information, go to the Death Penalty Information Center.
News
Texas Republicans Aim to Kill Federal Criminal Appeals Law
August 11, 2005
Watch out for Texas! If a contingent of congressional Republicans have their way, federal law...
Death Penalty Trends From DPIC
July 08, 2005
I found this information on Death Penalty Information Center's website about state's use of the...
Testing Texas
June 16, 2005
There have been a slew of recent articles and OpEds about the Supreme Courts reversal...
Supreme Court reverses death penalty conviction
June 13, 2005
An interesting article on CNN.com: The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the conviction of a black...
Texas Court Rules That Half of the Defense Team Can Be Asleep
May 24, 2005
This story posted on the Death Penalty Information Center website is an example of what...
Supreme Court Dismisses Death Row Rights Appeal
May 24, 2005
Read this article in yesterday's New York Times: WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court turned...
New Pope Likely To Uphold Anti-Death Penalty Stance
April 20, 2005
The Houston Chronicle featured this article yesterday about the new Pope's death penalty views and...
Bush, The Pope and The Death Penalty
April 15, 2005
This article from Reuters portraits President Bush and the late Pope John Paul's differing death...
No Death Penalty for Truck Driver in Smuggling Case
March 24, 2005
The upstate New York truck driver at the center of the nation's deadliest smuggling attempt...
Bring on the Bishops
March 20, 2005
U.S. Roman Catholic bishops are preparing to begin what they call a major campaign to...
Medellin v. Dretke
March 18, 2005
The Death Penalty Information Center is exactly that: great information on the death penalty. They...
Mexico, President Bush and the Death Penalty
March 14, 2005
Is Bush trying to mend the relations with Mexico? Not sure, but what's interesting to...
Trial for Texas Man in Human Smuggling Case Begins
March 11, 2005
Last December there was a Deadline post about Tyrone Williams and the smuggling case in...
Texas Reacts to 5-4 Ruling
March 06, 2005
Not surprisingly, Rosenthal, (Harris County District Attorney) whose office steadily feeds death row, said he...
Hard Numbers
March 05, 2005
Here's the latest death row data: Numbers of Death Row Inmates: Jan. 1, 2003 -...
US 'Whittling Away at Death Penalty'
March 03, 2005
From the BBC: Legal experts say that the US Supreme Court's decision to prevent youths...
Democracy Now Segment About The Death Penalty
March 02, 2005
Today you can see a segment of Democracy Now with Amy Goodman about the landmark...
Supreme Court Bars Death Penalty for Juvenile Killers
March 01, 2005
In a huge move, The Supreme Court forbid the execution of minors (under 17) at...
Texas Set to Execute...
February 25, 2005
Melendez’s case is alarming because he has a strong innocence claim. His case is surrounded...
Study Finds Innocence Issue Leads to Lower Death Penalty Support
February 22, 2005
Makes sense to me. Three-quarters of Americans believe that an innocent person has been executed...
Bush Calls for Death Penalty Lawyer Training
February 04, 2005
I realize this is a slow response to the State of the Union, (two days...
Court TV Runs 'The Exonerated'
January 23, 2005
Airing: 9 p.m. Thursday, Court TV "At the end of the play, we would sometimes...
Responses to Yates Retrial
January 08, 2005
Betsy Schwartz, Executive Director of the Mental Health Association of Greater Houston, responds to the...
New Trial for a Mother Who Drowned 5 Children
January 07, 2005
The new trial will open up the national debate about mental illness, postpartum depression and...
Federal Judge to Tell Jurors that Prosecutors Ignored Order
December 31, 2004
Prosecutors ignored Judge Gilmore's order to show why they are seeking the death penalty for...
The National Weekend of Faith in Action
December 29, 2004
The 2004 National Weekend of Faith in Action on the Death Penalty (NWFA), coordinated by...
Explanation for Death Penalty Sought in Fatal Smuggling Case
December 26, 2004
This article is from the LA Times...to read it you must suscribe first. It only...
Texas man executed on disproved forensics
December 09, 2004
This article was written by two incredible journalists who are featured in Deadline, Steve Mills...
Rulings in Texas Capital Cases Try Supreme Court's Patience
December 05, 2004
The New York Times has run a lengthy article on Texas's handlings of the Death...
The Unexpected Happened
December 01, 2004
When I came home tonight, I knew I would find out the Governor's decision regarding...
Parole Board Gives Hope to Francis Newton
November 30, 2004
Wow. this news is encouraging... Now Francis Newton's death sentence is in the hands of...
Frances Newton Clemency Petition
November 23, 2004
I read Frances Newton's Clemency Petition. It's disturbing all around. How can death penalty cases...
Texas & the Death Penalty
November 13, 2004
An article in yesterday's Houston Chronicle reports on a recent death penalty poll. Texas residents...
Death Penalty in the News
October 18, 2004
Several news items in the papers. I'll post them all at once…it shows that the...
Death Row Inmate Walks Free
October 08, 2004
Seventeen years after being sentenced to death for capital murder, Ernest Ray Willis was finally...
17 Years on Death Row--A Mistake
October 06, 2004
Prosecutors dropped murder charges Tuesday against a Texas man who spent 17 years on death...
Two More September Deadline Screenings
September 18, 2004
Swathmore, PA September 28 - Swathmore College, Screening and Q and A, location TBA San...
Houston's Latest Problem
August 31, 2004
We’ve heard about the scandal with Houston’s crime lab and Police Department in Harris County,...
A Question of Rehabilitation
August 23, 2004
In three days, James Allridge (in Texes) is scheduled to be executed. Jordan Smith writes...
Finally Freed
August 20, 2004
Robert Coney's story has been in the news in the last couple of weeks. Today's...
Take Action Texas Residents
August 18, 2004
The ACLU has a call to Take Action to prevent the state of Texas from...
Texas: We Have A Problem
August 08, 2004
The Houston Chronicle and The New York Times have been following the scandal in...
