New today: A prisoner watches as guards use Tasers on a naked, mentally-ill woman in a shower, and reflects on their increasing use inside #Texas prison walls..
https://www.texasobserver.org/an-inside-look-at-taser-use-in-texas-prison/
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Death penalty update: On March 11, the Court of Criminal Appeals stayed David Wood’s execution. The court has not yet announced whether it will send the case back to the trial court to review the evidence of Wood’s innocence.
https://www.texasobserver.org/david-wood-execution-desert-killer/
The Texas Observer · David Wood, Set for Execution, Says He Was Never the 'Desert Killer'Wood’s attorneys have requested that more than 100 additional pieces of evidence be tested for DNA, but the state has opposed the request for over a decade.
Competent to Die: State’s Arbitrary IQ Rule Defies Scientific Recommendation https://oklahomawatch.org/2025/03/12/competent-to-die-states-arbitrary-iq-rule-defies-scientific-recommendation/ #PardonandParoleBoard #CapitalPunishment #CriminalJustice #WendellGrissom #BrendaMcCray #DeathPenalty #Corrections #Competency #JohnCoyle
Oklahoma Watch · Competent to Die: State’s Arbitrary IQ Rule Defies Scientific Recommendation
Our top story: “One thing that is abundantly clear is that #border enforcement, and in particular the construction of detention facilities ... is big business. It’s a huge business. It’s incredibly lucrative for a very small number of people who have every incentive to make this system as big and as bloated as possible.” https://www.texasobserver.org/abbott-operation-lone-star-contractors-bonanza/
The Texas Observer · Abbott’s Border Disaster Has Created a No-Bid Bonanza for Private ContractorsThere is now a powerful, well-heeled constituency that has built up around Operation Lone Star.
“Somehow this little town, Los Fresnos—it’s become a part of this huge conversation that I don’t think anyone really expected. Maybe this is a chance for people to really look at what’s happening.”
Earlier: In Cameron County where 8.5 percent of the population is undocumented, controversial raids at this popular eatery have rocked an already divided community. https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-raids-abbys-bakery-valley-los-fresnos/
The Texas Observer · ICE Raids on Beloved Bakery Reverberate Through Rio Grande ValleyHomeland Security Investigations arrests at Abby's Bakery shake up a small town in politically shifting Cameron County.
He Was Convicted Based on Allegedly Fabricated Bite Mark Analysis. Louisiana Wants to Execute Him Anyway.
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Nine prisoners have walked free after evidence presented by members of a forensics team turned out to be wrong — yet one man still awaits execution based on their testimony.
https://www.propublica.org/article/louisiana-jimmie-duncan-bite-mark-analysis-death-row-junk-science?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=mastodon-post
ProPublicaHe Was Convicted Based on Allegedly Fabricated Bite Mark Analysis. Louisiana Wants to Execute Him Anyway.
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“They were accusing me of every unsolved crime on the planet.”
Despite numerous oversights and concerns with his case highlighted by his attorneys, David Wood is scheduled to be executed on Thursday. https://www.texasobserver.org/david-wood-execution-desert-killer/
#DeathPenalty #CriminalJustice #politics #USpol #news #Texas #prison #HumanRights
The Texas Observer · David Wood, Set for Execution, Says He Was Never the 'Desert Killer'Wood’s attorneys have requested that more than 100 additional pieces of evidence be tested for DNA, but the state has opposed the request for over a decade.
#CriminalJustice #SCOTUS #SupremeCourtEthics #SCOTUSCodeofConduct #SCOTUSTermLimits #StopCorruption #Petition YOUR SIGNATURE PENDING: Judicial-Ethics-Anti-Corruption-Act | Sign Your Name to Demand Congress pass the Judicial Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act! | Congressional Black Caucus PAC
https://act.cbcpac.org/survey/Judicial-Ethics-Anti-Corruption-Act-jeffries
Congressional Black Caucus PACYOUR SIGNATURE PENDING: Judicial-Ethics-Anti-Corruption-Act50,000 CITIZEN CO-SPONSORS NEEDED: Sign Your Name to Demand Congress pass the Judicial Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act!
Featured story: “The evidence linking James Rodden to the online accounts in question is strong, with significant biographical consistencies spanning over a decade. … The depth of the investigation leaves little room for doubt.” https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-prosecutor-dallas-white-supremacist-x-account/
Jailhouse snitch testimony is considered a red flag by many legal experts. According to the National Registry of Exonerations, 256 people who have been exonerated of felonies in the United States since 1989 were convicted in a case using jailhouse informant testimony. Sixteen were from #Texas. https://www.texasobserver.org/david-wood-execution-desert-killer/
The Texas Observer · David Wood, Set for Execution, Says He Was Never the 'Desert Killer'Wood’s attorneys have requested that more than 100 additional pieces of evidence be tested for DNA, but the state has opposed the request for over a decade.
“What we are witnessing is the deliberate abduction of individuals as they are being uprooted from their lives. #Trump’s deportation machine knows no bounds, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.” https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-raids-abbys-bakery-valley-los-fresnos/
The Texas Observer · ICE Raids on Beloved Bakery Reverberate Through Rio Grande ValleyHomeland Security Investigations arrests at Abby's Bakery shake up a small town in politically shifting Cameron County.
“It changes your life when you get arrested and you see everything that you ever had about to go away because you were trying to provide a living. A lot of these people provide work for people because nobody else wants to do the job.” https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-raids-abbys-bakery-valley-los-fresnos/
Court filings reveal a bombshell: A former cellmate of one of the informants said he knows that the story the state used to convict Wood—the purported jailhouse confession—was made up with the help of El Paso police.
https://www.texasobserver.org/david-wood-execution-desert-killer/
The Texas Observer · David Wood, Set for Execution, Says He Was Never the 'Desert Killer'Wood’s attorneys have requested that more than 100 additional pieces of evidence be tested for DNA, but the state has opposed the request for over a decade.
The State Expanded Medical Parole Four Years Ago, but the Number of Medical Paroles Has Plummeted https://oklahomawatch.org/2025/03/06/the-state-expanded-medical-parole-four-years-ago-but-the-number-of-medical-paroles-has-plummeted/ #OklahomaDepartmentofCorrections #PardonandParoleBoard #CriminalJustice #JessicaGarvin #medicalparole #Corrections #AaronEaston #JamesHavens #Parole
Oklahoma Watch · The State Expanded Medical Parole Four Years Ago, but the Number of Medical Paroles Has Plummeted
“I’ve been trying for 30 years to tell people I didn’t do this.”
New from Michelle Pitcher: For over a decade, the state has rebuffed attempts by David Wood's attorneys to have additional evidence tested for DNA. His execution is set for March 13. https://www.texasobserver.org/david-wood-execution-desert-killer/
When exercising this newfound authority as part of Trump's taskforce, local officers must seek guidance from an #ICE supervisor—but are allowed to do so “as soon as is practicable” ... after exercising the authority.
https://www.texasobserver.org/local-state-police-ice-287g-task-force/
The Texas Observer · Local and State Police Are Joining Trump's 'Deportation Force'Texas law enforcement agencies and others around the nation are reviving a long-dead "task force" program that led to racial profiling in the past.
“Because of Rodden’s explicit bigotry and racism, he cannot be trusted to properly exercise his discretion.”
#ICYMI, three U.S. House members demanded an investigation after the Texas Observer revealed a top ICE lawyer also runs an explicitly white supremacist X account. https://www.texasobserver.org/investigation-ice-prosecutor-racist-x-account/
The Texas Observer · Congressmen Demand Investigation of ICE Prosecutor Running Racist X AccountFollowing the Observer’s reporting, three U.S. House members have demanded accountability, while James Rodden still appeared on an ICE court schedule this week.
“Prosecuting people for migration is big business.”
Our top story: Over the past four years, the Texas Legislature has allocated more than $11 billion to fund the sprawling tentacles of the Operation Lone Star. https://www.texasobserver.org/abbott-operation-lone-star-contractors-bonanza/
The Texas Observer · Abbott’s Border Disaster Has Created a No-Bid Bonanza for Private ContractorsThere is now a powerful, well-heeled constituency that has built up around Operation Lone Star.
Following an executive order signed by President Donald Trump rolling back diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at the federal level, some law enforcement experts say those initiatives still have a place in police departments.
Houston Public Media · As Trump administration targets diversity initiatives, policing experts worry about recruitment
Bill to Boost Rural Mental Health and Diversion Programs Advances https://oklahomawatch.org/2025/03/04/bill-to-boost-rural-mental-health-and-diversion-programs-advances/ #CriminalJustice #ToddGollihare #Government #SQ780SQ781 #SB251
Oklahoma Watch · Bill to Boost Rural Mental Health and Diversion Programs Advances