Reciprocal Discovery Bill Becomes Less Reciprocal

I reported earlier about proposed legislation that would require both prosecutors and defense lawyers to provide discovery in advance of trial in criminal cases. Well, now the bill is going in a surprising direction and the changes have even more surprising origins:

At the hearing before the Texas House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee on Tuesday of this week, Rep. Moody laid out a version of the discovery bill that wouldn’t require the defense to make any disclosures. Shannon Edwards of TDCAA (the prosecutors’ association), in a comment on the Grits coverage of this saga confirmed that the prosecutors’ association was behind this change. Hard to imagine, but I guess we’ll see.

More Bad Bills at the Lege

It continues to shock me when the legislature churns out truly stupid, short-sighted legislation. HB's 23 & 133 are great examples. See my website for more.

Evisceratimg the Rules of Evidence

Wow, this is a dumb bill being kicked around the Lege this year. Check it out.

Reciprocal Discovery Bill at the Lege

Check out the post I've got up on a bill being discussed at the Lege this year that would have a huge impact on the criminal justice system.

Truth Serum Fantasy

I've started blogging on my website, www.MikeHowardLaw.com. I've got a post up about a ridiculous story about the theater shooter in Aurora, Colorado back in 2012. Check it out!