The latest Texas Department Of Criminal Justice news from The Texas Tribune.
Death row inmate Randall Mays' case will return to a Henderson County courtroom to determine whether he is competent enough to be executed after the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals continued his stay of execution Wednesday. Full Story
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Texas juries imposed new death sentences only twice in 2015 — the fewest since the death penalty was reinstated nationwide almost 40 years ago. Full Story
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Every day, teacher Jody Addy walks through a metal detector, waits for a pat down, shows her ID and passes through locked gates before walking to her classroom in the middle of a maximum security prison in west central Texas. Full Story
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The Supreme Court on Monday denied Texas death row inmate Robert Roberson III's petition to add another attorney to his team. Roberson has one more shot at delaying his execution with a petition arguing his rights were violated. Full Story
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Two sets of attorneys who believe their client doesn't belong on death row are fighting not only the state of Texas but also each other as his case arrives at the U.S. Supreme Court. Full Story
Holding up San Antonio as an example, a report released Tuesday by the Vera Institute of Justice recommends law enforcement agencies change their practices regarding mental illness, sex workers and addiction. Full Story
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More than two years after the heat of anger over Trayvon Martin's shooting in Florida fused into Black Lives Matter, an Austin chapter is trying to mold its energy into an agenda to influence state lawmakers. Full Story
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In the wake of the hanging death of Sandra Bland and other recent suicides, the state agency that oversees jails is issuing a new inmate intake form so jailers will ask more specific, direct questions when booking people. Full Story
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Veterans sentenced to death in Texas murder cases — and nationwide — might have escaped the punishment if juries had been told about their military service and any ensuing mental health problems, says a report released Tuesday. Full Story
The committee will review and make recommendations on substance abuse, care for veterans, identifying illnesses early and improving delivery of mental health care. Full Story
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The Texas Tribune's Prison Inmates database, containing more than 144,000 offenders, is now updated with the latest data available from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. It is now current as of September 2015. Full Story
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The Justice track at the 2015 Texas Tribune Festival featured panel discussions on criminal justice reform, the Legislature, open carry, and gay rights and states' rights. There was also a conversation with several Texas Court of Criminal Appeals judges. Full Story
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The Timothy Cole Exoneration Review Commission Thursday paid tribute to its namesake – who was wrongfully convicted in a 1985 rape case – and began setting a vision for its role in prevent further wrongful convictions in Texas. Full Story
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Convicted murderer Bernie Tiede's new sentencing trial will be moved from Carthage — where he killed 81-year-old Marjorie Nugent nearly two decades ago — to Henderson, in a neighboring East Texas county. Full Story
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As the 19th anniversary of Marjorie Nugent's murder looms, her killer, Bernhardt "Bernie" Tiede II, returns to an East Texas courtroom Tuesday as attorneys spar in advance of a new sentencing hearing. Full Story
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Texas is on track to see fewer death sentences handed down in 2015 than in any other year since the state’s death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Full Story
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East Texas inmate Julius Murphy's execution is off the November calendar – for now. The Texas Criminal Court of Appeals on Monday stayed the 36-year-old's execution, after his legal team presented claims of prosecutorial misconduct in his 1998 capital murder trial. Full Story
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In Austin on Monday, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn promoted federal legislation that would require mental health checks before denying anyone the ability to purchase firearms. Full Story
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Attorneys for East Texas inmate Julius Jerome Murphy, scheduled for execution in early November for killing a stranded motorist, claimed in court papers filed Friday that prosecutors threatened and coerced witnesses to unjustly convict him. Full Story
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice on Friday shot down allegations that it is manufacturing its own hard-to-find execution drugs after federal defense attorneys in an Oklahoma death row case accused the Texas prison system of doing exactly that. Full Story
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