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Crime and Corrections Policy

Chapter 13
Crime and
Corrections
Policy in Texas
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Why Corrections Policy Categorizing Crime in Texas:

Matters Felonies

• The importance of the fair operation of the
criminal justice system to all residents of the
state of Texas is illustrated by the story of
Michael Morton
– Morton was convicted in the murder of his wife
– The prosecutor in the case had opposed requests for
DNA testing
– DNA later proved another man had committed the
crime, and Morton was released, he had served 25
years in prison for the crime he did not commit
• In the Texas criminal justice system, crimes are
classified as felonies or misdemeanors
• Felonies
– A felony is a serious criminal offense that subjects a
person fine or imprisonment
– The most serious felony is capital murder
– The next most serious is a first degree felony
• These include “aggravated” crimes
– Others are classified as second degree, third degree,
or state jail felonies

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Categorizing Crime in Texas: Table 13.1: Classification of

Misdemeanors Crimes

• Misdemeanors
– A misdemeanor is a minor criminal offense usually
punishable by a small fine or short jail sentence
– Class A: burglary of a vehicle, a second DWI,
lewdness, small amounts of marijuana (2-4 ounces)
– Class B: prostitution, terrorist threats, a first DWI
charge, criminal trespass
– Class C: public intoxication, disorderly conduct,
minor’s possession of alcohol

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Categorizing Crime in Texas:
Punishment
• Punishing Crime
– Probation is a suspension of the prison sentence and
community supervision; the defendant must meet
requirements imposed by the court
• Usually requires reporting to a probation officer on
a regular basis
• Probation violations can result in being sent to jail
– Parole is release after serving some prison time,
under specified rules and under the supervision of a
parole officer
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The Criminal Justice Process
• Arraignment and Posting Bail
– After being arrested for a felony or misdemeanor and
jailed, a person is arraigned before a judge
• Charges are explained and due process rights are
reviewed
• Bail will generally be set;
and the defendant may
be released on bail
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The Criminal Justice Process:
Pretrial Hearings
• Pretrial Hearings
– After indictment for a felony, there will likely be a
number of pretrial hearings in which the accused will
formally plead guilty or not guilty
– The trial is scheduled, and motions may be
presented, such as a motion to exclude evidence
– The prosecution and the defense will often discuss a
punishment in exchange for a guilty plea (plea
bargain) and reach an agreement before the trial
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Categorizing Crime in Texas:
Punishment Continued
• Punishing Crime continued
– Parole decisions are made by the Board of Pardons
and Paroles
• Capital crimes are not eligible for parole
– Sentencing enhancements based on previous
convictions can increase sentences or the
classification of crimes
– A “three strikes” provision allows persons
convicted of three felonies to be sentenced to life
imprisonment
The Criminal Justice Process:
Grand Jury
• Grand Jury Indictment
– Generally after arraignment a felony case is
presented to a grand jury
• 12 persons who will hear the case to determine if
there is sufficient evidence to hold trial
– Grand juries do not determine guilt or innocence;
they vote ”true bill” if they find probable cause, or “no
bill” if do not find probable cause
The Criminal Justice Process:
Trial and Sentencing
• Trial and Sentencing
– If the case goes to trial, the defendant may waive the
right to a jury trial and have the determination of guilt
made by a judge
– Felony juries have 12 jurors; misdemeanor juries, 6
– The decision of a criminal jury must be unanimous;
the standard of proof is “beyond a reasonable doubt”
– A guilty finding may be appealed, meaning the
defendant asks a higher court to reconsider the
decision
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The Criminal Justice Process:
Effect on Criminality
• Does The Criminal Justice System Create
Criminals?
– One common crime is possession of less than two
ounces of marijuana
– Travis County treats this crime as a ticketing offense;
but in other counties, offenders go to jail
– The costs of the court process and of the penalty
structure may deter future crimes; but it can also
encourage failure and further criminality
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The Criminal Justice Process:
Lack of Sympathy and Plea
Bargaining
• Crime and Texas District Attorneys continued
– The political pressures, coupled with the experiences,
do not incline prosecutors to be sympathetic with
defendants
– One way conviction rates can be maintained is
through the use of the plea bargain
– Plea bargaining is also crucial to managing the limited
resources of the prosecutor’s office and the courts
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The Criminal Justice Process:
Crime and Criminal Defense
• Crime and Criminal Defense
– Persons accused of crime may represent themselves
or may retain a criminal defense lawyer.
• Assigned counsel: private lawyers appointed by
judges to provide legal representation for
indigents, paid by the county
• Public defender: salaried lawyer, funded by the
government or grants, who represent indigents
– There are issues with the quality of representation
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The Criminal Justice Process:
Texas District Attorneys
• Crime and Texas District Attorneys
– The most important actors in the Texas criminal
justice system are probably the prosecuting attorneys
• County attorney: an elected official in some
counties who prosecutes misdemeanor cases
• District attorney: a public official who prosecutes
the more serious criminal cases in district court
– District attorneys campaign on being “tough on crime”
and must maintain high conviction rates to keep their
positions
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The Criminal Justice Process:
Prosecutors
• Crime and Texas District Attorneys continued
– District attorneys have prosecutorial discretion,
including the power to charge or not charge a person
with a crime
– A prosecutor also has great discretion in choosing to
go before a grand jury and in deciding to accept or
not accept the decision
– Prosecutors are powerful enough to go after judges
– Wrongdoing by district attorneys and judges in Texas
in not frequent but not unheard of
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Table 13.2: Indigent Defense
in Texas, 2013
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Crime, Corrections, and the

Crime, Corrections, and the
Texas Prison System: David
Texas Prison System
Ruiz

• History of the Prison System

– After Texas joined the Union, construction was
authorized for a penitentiary in Huntsville
• The 225-cell facility opened in 1849
– 1870 to 1883: the prison system was run by private
contractors
– After 1883, convicts were leased out as labor; but
scandals and abuses led this to end in 1910
– Abuses continued: cruel treatment, bad management,
and inadequate care

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Crime, Corrections, and the Crime, Corrections, and the

Texas Prison System: Ruiz v. Texas Prison System: Costs
Estelle and Alternatives

• History of the Prison System continued • The Prison System Today

– The federal court case Ruiz v. Estelle focused on
issues of crowding, security and supervision, health
care, discipline, and access to the courts
• 1980: the court concluded that inmates’
constitutional rights had been violated
• After Ruiz, the state encouraged the early release
of prisoners to reduce crowding, etc.; and some
committed more crimes
• Ruiz helped make the criminal justice system a
major policy issue in Texas
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– The Texas prison system is operated by Department
of Criminal Justice
• Nine-member board appointed by the governor
– The costs of prison construction and maintenance
have been increasing dramatically
– In 2007, the Texas legislature began to seriously
address prison alternatives, such as drug treatment
and halfway houses
• First prison closure in 2011: Sugarland
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Crime, Corrections, and the Crime, Corrections, and the

Texas Prison System: Texas Prison System: Low Levels
Prisoners of Employment and Education

• The Prison System Today continued • The Prison System Today continued
– The most prison-prone group is males, age 20–29 – Difficulty in finding employment makes it more likely
• Demographic change has an affect on that former prisoners will commit further crimes
incarceration numbers – 44 percent of inmates have not completed high
– 92.5 percent of Texas prisoners are male school
– In 2011, neither the national government nor any
other state had more inmates in its prison system
than Texas
– One in five prisoners is imprisoned for drugs

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Figure 13.1:
Percentage of Prison Figure 13.2: Texas Inmate
Sentence Served by
Texas Inmates
Population, 1980–2012

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Crime, Corrections, and the

Figure 13.3: Prison
Texas Prison System: Death
Population by Offense, 2010
Penalty

• The Death Penalty

– Texas judges are elected, and polls show strong
public support in Texas for the death penalty
– Texas has led the nation in the number of executions
– Since 1977, lethal injection has been the means for
execution
– The average time spent on death row is 10.6 years

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Crime, Corrections, and the

Table 13.3: U.S. Counties with
Texas Prison System: Death
the Most Execution, 1976–2012
Penalty Continued

• The Death Penalty continued

– Are all offenders treated the same?
• Minorities are disproportionately represented on
death row; they may also be disproportionately
subject to the death penalty
– The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles votes on
clemency for death-row inmates
– The number of death penalties imposed in the state
has dropped, for several reasons

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The Integrity of the Texas

The Integrity of the Texas
Criminal Justice System:
Criminal Justice System
Willingham case

• How Fair is the Criminal Justice System?
– Texas continues to execute people, even as DNA
evidence proves many wrongful convictions
– Concerns about wrongful convictions are often related
to the methods police and prosecutors use
• A pattern of convictions based on eyewitness
identification with little forensic evidence
• DA Craig Watkins, Dallas County, created a
Conviction Integrity Unit to investigate claims of
innocence
• How Fair is the Criminal Justice System?
continued
– The Willingham case:
• Willingham’s three girls were killed in a fire
• Willingham was convicted of starting the fire
• Willingham was executed in 2004
• Conflicting expert testimony was ignored

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The Integrity of the Texas The Integrity of the Texas

Criminal Justice System: Criminal Justice System:
Tulia Drug Arrests Reforms

• How Fair is the Criminal Justice System?

continued
– The Tulia Drug arrests:
• 47 persons (38 black) were arrested in Tulia by an
undercover officer, charged with possessing small
amounts of cocaine, and zealously prosecuted
• Defendants, including those with no prior records,
received long sentences
• It eventually became clear that the drug busts were
a massive miscarriage of justice

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Thinking Critically about

Reforms
Criminal Justice in Texas

• Improvements in the Texas criminal justice
system have occurred
– Texas no longer relies solely on incarceration
– Drug treatment programs have increased, and there
is more emphasis on community supervision
– Efforts are being made to compensate those
wrongfully convicted of crime
– Police are modifying their procedures
– A new Texas law makes it easier for an inmate to
challenge a conviction based on bad science
• Is the criminal justice system working as well as
it should?
– Fairness of the process
– Cost of imprisoning offenders
– Alternatives to prison
– Decline in the death penalty
– Reducing penalties for some crimes, such as
possession of small amounts of marijuana

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