Standdown Texas Project

The Project identifies and advocates best practices in the indigent criminal justice system. The blog pays particular attention to issues involving capital punishment and the administration of the death penalty.

Author: Project director Steve Hall was chief of staff to the attorney general of Texas from 1983-1991; he was an administrator of the Texas Resource Center from 1993-1995. He has worked for the U.S. Congress and several Texas legislators. Hall is a former journalist.

Blawg Related Categories: Criminal Justice • Death Penalty • Public Defenders • Sentencing/Post Conviction • States • Texas

Recent Posts from StandDown Texas Project

Art in London
"Face-to-face with death row inmates at London show," is the title of Julie Mollins' Reuters report. Death row inmates depicted in oil paintings by British artist Claire Phillips, on view in London's South Bank gallery@oxo,…
The Death Penalty in New Mexico
Albuquerque Journal writer Leslie Linthicum writes "Closing the N.M. Death Penalty Door." The death penalty has been repealed, but two capital trials may yet take place for crimes committed before the new law took effect.…
California Counties Diverge on Death Penalty
That's the title of Phillip Reece's article in today's Sacramento Bee. LINK Murderers are more likely to be sentenced to death in conservative California counties, particularly in the southern part of the state, according to…
Colb on Melendez-Diaz
At FindLaw.com, regular columnist Sherry Colb writes, "The Right of Confrontation: A Supreme Court Decision Reveals Strong Schisms." Here's the beginning of a must-read for those who want to dig deep into the ruling. Last…
Sacramento Bee Examines Geographic Disparity of California Death Sentences
The SacBee is previewing an article that will be in tomorrow's print edition. It contains an interactive map examining the geographic disparity of death sentences in the state, at this LINK. Several factors can affect…
Cultural Background Gains Traction as a Legal Defense
That's the title of an article in today's Wall Street Journal written by Amir Efrati. LINK The old saw among law enforcement is that ignorance of the law is no defense. But some think it…
Sixth Circuit Reinstates Tennessee's Lethal Injection Procedure - UPDATED
AP reports, "Breaking News: TN's death penalty." It's written by Michael Silence, via the Knoxville News Sentinel. A federal appeals court has vacated a lower court's ruling that Tennessee's lethal injection process is unconstitutional. In…
Arizona Lethal Injection Procedure Ruled Constitutional
"Execution method of lethal injection approved," is Michael Keifer's report in today's Arizona Republic. A federal judge Wednesday removed a major obstacle to executions in Arizona, ruling that the state's lethal-injection procedure is similar to…
CCA Again Rejects Rodney Reed's Appeal
The Court of Criminal Appeals order is here. "Reed's death sentence again upheld," is the title of Chuck Lindell's report in today's Austin American-Statesman. The state's highest criminal court has again rejected death row inmate…
North Carolina Racial Justice Act Continues to Advance
"Bill on death-penalty disparities advances," is James Romoser's report in today's Winston-Salem Journal. Here's an extended excerpt: A bill aimed at reducing racial disparities in the imposition of the death penalty advanced another step in…