December 14, 2023
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 | Cat DeLaura, Audience producer |
Best of the Bayou
Today we're talking about case loads in death penalty cases...
If you read one thing: The Houston-area lawyers who represent people facing the death penalty often have such unmanageable workloads that they never form a relationship with their clients or fail to call crucial witnesses. Those are some of the revelations in "Death By Design," a report released this week that calls for a "sweeping overhaul" of Harris County's system of providing legal representation to capital murder defendants.
What does the report find?
A single capital murder case can involve thousands of hours of work, experts say. Attorneys on such cases should hire specialized investigators and experts months in advance to look into the defendant's past, since many may have experienced trauma or abuse earlier in life that could help convince a jury not to sentence them to death.
That rarely happens in Harris County, according to the "Death by Design" report, which faults lawyers and judges for an "utterly broken" system.
The report found that caseloads for almost all attorneys representing people facing death sentences were far too high. According to the report, at least five people sentenced to death in Harris County were represented by attorneys who were juggling more than 250 other felony cases at the time.
How are lawyers and judges responding?
Several of the attorneys whose cases are featured in the Wren Collective report said it left out important nuances. They said they dedicated their life's work to representing clients facing death row and pointed out that people accused of capital murder can be among the most difficult and uncooperative clients.
Another attorney noted that caseloads can be misleading. He pointed to a capital murder case of his that went to trial earlier this year where the client was also facing nearly a dozen other felony charges, all of which would have been included in his caseload.
- Read Neena Satija's full story on the report here.
Stay in the Loop
Photo by: Susan Barber
📰 Need to Know
- Rice University condemns antisemitic speech after Penn fallout from congressional hearing. Rice University's president reiterated the university's position against antisemitism this week after several Ivy-plus leaders came under fire during a congressional hearing for failing to denounce on-campus speech that calls for the genocide of Jews.
- A Title IX complaint has been filed over Katy ISD's gender policy. A student activist group has filed the formal complaint. As of early December, 23 students had been reported to their parents as transgender since the policy took effect in August.
- Houston water bill relief approved by City Council as complaints skyrocket. The plan includes nine ordinance changes that will allow Houston Public Works more leeway in addressing complaints.
- Better crossings coming for four Houston Streets with $10.1M grant. Airline, Bissonnet, Jensen and Tidwell will receive upgraded crossings and refuge areas for pedestrians in bid to reduce pedestrian and cyclist crashes.
- Teen road rage shooting victim hailed as hero as HPD hunts for killer. Louise Wilson, of Whitney, was shot and killed Sunday morning by another driver as she was driving to Galveston to watch the sunrise with her boyfriend.
💼 Business
- Houston home sales rise for the first time in nearly two years. Houston's real estate market may be finally starting to show signs of a nascent recovery as home sales volume grew in November, according to the Houston Association of Realtors.
- Lubbock joins ERCOT grid in largest single transfer of customers in the company's history. Lubbock is the first major Texas city to join the ERCOT grid in nearly 25 years. ERCOT now manages the grid for 90% of Texas.
- Costco to open new Richmond location next year, real estate firm says. The world's third-largest retailer is building a 154,648-square-foot store at the Grand at Aliana in Richmond, according to NewQuest Properties.
🚗 Outside the Loop
- Magnolia ISD officials OK changes to elementary schools' boundaries. District officials approved the boundary changes in response to the opening of Audubon Elementary School. The changes will go into effect starting in August.
- Ryder Grimes named TCMA Emerging Artist of the Year. It has been an incredible year for the 19-year-old from Poetry, Texas. He is paving his way in the Texas Music Scene with a debut album.
- Texas City native Charles Brown remembered for two Christmas jingles. Brown, a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and originator of a well-known Christmas song, was originally a Texas City native.
Point of View
Photo by: John Branch
Whitmire vows to fix Houston and be nice. Oh the audacity!
John Whitmire won the mayoral race on a bread-and-butter campaign, but the city's challenges will require him to take bold action, writes the Editorial Board.
- John Whitmire's mayoral victory is well-deserved. What was troubling is the community of Houston choosing to sit on their rear ends and make excuses for not voting, writes one reader in a letter to the Editor.
Houston vs. All Y'all
Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Staff Photographer
Rockets 117, Grizzlies 104: Home streak ascends to 11th heaven.
In a game that got too close for comfort, Tari Eason led a late fourth-quarter scoring surge.
- Titans rubbing Oilers fans noses in it with jersey and Billy 'White Shoes' Johnson tribute Sunday. Yes, the Tennessee Titans own the history of the Houston Oilers, but the Titans don't honor the Oilers' legacy as much as they exploit it, writes columnist Jerome Solomon.
- Rockets won't gush over 11-9 record, but improvement at quarter mark is tangible. Road struggles have offset a 10-game home winning streak, but it all beats where the franchise languished during its rebuild.
- SEC announces 2024 football schedules for UT and Texas A&M. Notable league games before the Horns and Aggies renew their rivalry Nov. 30 at Kyle Field include visits from Georgia to Austin and LSU to College Station.
- UH basketball signee Mercy Miller has his dad, Master P, looking for a deal on a Mercedes. Mercy Miller scored 68 points in a recent high school game, but UH coach Kelvin Sampson is just as impressed with his passing and rebounding.
Get Out
Photo by: Taylor Greenwalt
Top things to do in Houston this weekend, from Santa Hustle to Otaku Anime Festival.
Our weekend top picks also include Annie Lederman, H-Town Sneaker Summit, For King & Country: Drummer Boy Christmas and more.
- Telltale derrière is key to identifying the yellow-rumped warbler. Keep an eye on the birds and look for a yellow patch on the rump, which gives away their identification as yellow-rumped warblers.
- 'Wonka,' 'Monster' top the list of films being released this week. "Christmas with the Chosen: Holy Night" and "Concrete Utopia" are also landing on our screens.
I'm excited for some cozy winter rain and curling up with a good book this weekend. Anyone else?
Puzzle of the Day: Really Bad Chess
Try to win in the lowest number of moves to score the highest amount of points. Don't let them put your king into checkmate.
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