Subject:

Texas Department of Criminal Justice

  • Blogs

    October 6, 2011

    Craig Watkins On Why Man Found Guilty of Murder, For Third Time, Won't Get Death

    ​Earlier today, Jennifer Emily noted that Jonathan Bruce Reed was found guilty of the 1978 murder of Braniff Airlines flight attendant Wanda Jean Wadle -- the third time he's been convicted of raping and strangling her in her Northeast Dallas apartment. (Prior convictions -- based upon the testimo ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 20, 2011

    In About an Hour, Mark Stroman Will More Than Likely Be Put to Death

    ​Rais Bhuiyan's attempts to spare the life of Mark Stroman, the white supremacist who shot him in the face and killed two other men he believed to be Muslim in the days following September 11, 2001, have failed: A federal judge down in Austin denied the Dallas man's petition for clemency that woul ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 19, 2011

    With One Day Left to Save Attacker, Bhuiyan's Case Goes to the Media ... and Federal Court

    Behind the counter at the Pleasant Grove convenience store following the September 2001 shooting of Rais Bhuiyan by Mark Stroman​Tomorrow, the steady stream of stories about Rais Bhuiyan's attempt to save Mark Stroman -- the man who shot Bhuiyan in the face and killed two other men in the days fo ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 18, 2011

    Two Days Before He's to Die, Stroman Talks to CBS News About Victim's Fight to Save Him

    Courtesy CBS NewsMark Stroman, who is scheduled to die Wednesday, talks to Don Teague about his jailhouse conversion.​As you're no doubt well aware by now, Mark Stroman is scheduled to die down in Huntsville on Wednesday for killing Waqar Hasan, a Pakistani father of four who was gunned down on Se ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 16, 2010

    The City Would Love to Get Its Hands On the Dawson State Jail. It'll Have to Keep Waiting.

    ​This morning, a reader wondered: Has the state decided if it's going to renew its contract with Corrections Corporation of America regarding operations of the Jesse R. Dawson State Jail on the Trinity River? When last we looked at the issue, the contract was set to expire January 15,  only ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 20, 2010

    DA Craig Watkins: Punishment or Treatment For DWI Offenders is a "False Choice"

    ​No doubt you caught at least some of The Dallas Morning News's recently wrapped three-part series on Texas's trouble with properly punishing drunken drivers. Probation instead of prison; back behind the wheel instead of behind bars. Says Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins in a missive ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 1, 2010

    So, How Hard Is City Pulling for State Not to Renew Contract for Jail on Trinity?

    ​A couple of weeks back, Nicole Porter at Texas Prison Bid'ness took note of the state's impending budget shortfall and concluded that, more than likely, it'll result in the closing of some private prisons and jails. Sure, but which ones? Well, writes our old pal Scott Henson today over at Grits f ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 21, 2009

    Dallas DA, DPD Reopen 1997 Murder Case, and Discover They Convicted the Wrong Men

    Dallas County District AttorneyClaude Simmons is one of two men being exonerated for a 1997 murder he did not commit.​Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins's office sends word this morning that two men convicted of murder in October 1997 -- 54-year-old Claude Alvin Simmons Jr. and 39-year- ... More >>

  • Blogs

    June 10, 2009

    In Deep Doo-Doo: A Texas Prisoner's "Vulgar Pen" Is Not Protected From Penalty

    Four years ago, a Texas Department of Criminal Justice guest by the name of George Morgan filed for a habeas corpus proceeding, which the state asked the court to dismiss. Morgan didn't take kindly to that, and in response to the state of Texas's request, Morgan sent to Assistant Attorney General Su ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 6, 2009

    Mayor Tom and Texas's Other Big-City Mayors Ask Governor for Help Handling Homeless

    Gabriel Metsu's Man Writing a LetterNever had time to make it to the Texas Big Cities Mayors shindig at City Hall today. But no matter: Meranda Cohn at Dallas City Hall this evening forwards along a copy of the mayors' letter to Governor Rick Perry, in which Tom Leppert, Bill White (Houston), Mike M ... More >>

  • Blogs

    December 31, 2008

    Since When Did the Trinity River Project Come to Mean "Ferris Wheel"?

    I actually love the way news pops up in The Dallas Morning News. I pick up the paper every single morning and feel as though I'm visiting a foreign city for the first time. Every story, even the most mundane, is a forehead-slapper, because I have no idea what they're talking about.Today, for exampl ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 12, 2008

    From Texas Death Row, a Blog

    I actually love the way news pops up in The Dallas Morning News. I pick up the paper every single morning and feel as though I'm visiting a foreign city for the first time. Every story, even the most mundane, is a forehead-slapper, because I have no idea what they're talking about.Today, for exampl ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 11, 2008

    Tomorrow, One of Dallas's "Meanest Criminals" Is Set to Die

    I actually love the way news pops up in The Dallas Morning News. I pick up the paper every single morning and feel as though I'm visiting a foreign city for the first time. Every story, even the most mundane, is a forehead-slapper, because I have no idea what they're talking about.Today, for exampl ... More >>

  • News

    January 31, 2008

    Still an Aryan Blood Brother

    Two murders and two life sentences won't alter one convict's allegiance to the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas

  • Blogs

    January 23, 2008

    Waiting for Death

    Two murders and two life sentences won't alter one convict's allegiance to the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas

  • Blogs

    December 7, 2007

    Happy Birthday, Lethal Injection!

    Two murders and two life sentences won't alter one convict's allegiance to the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas

  • News

    November 8, 2007

    Former Warden Reconsiders Executions

    Jim Willett oversaw 89 executions. Now, amidst dozens of DNA exonerations, he wonders whether it was right.

  • Blogs

    October 5, 2007

    Being a Jailer Sounds Like a Bad Gig

    Jim Willett oversaw 89 executions. Now, amidst dozens of DNA exonerations, he wonders whether it was right.

  • News

    May 3, 2007

    Hard Time With Jesus| No Tears for Quincy

    Jim Willett oversaw 89 executions. Now, amidst dozens of DNA exonerations, he wonders whether it was right.

  • Blogs

    May 1, 2007

    Prisoner, Save Thy Self?

    Jim Willett oversaw 89 executions. Now, amidst dozens of DNA exonerations, he wonders whether it was right.

  • Blogs

    February 6, 2007

    Prison Gang Members Heading Back to Prison

    Jim Willett oversaw 89 executions. Now, amidst dozens of DNA exonerations, he wonders whether it was right.

  • Blogs

    July 24, 2006

    Going Down in Downtown

    Jim Willett oversaw 89 executions. Now, amidst dozens of DNA exonerations, he wonders whether it was right.

  • Blogs

    April 26, 2006

    Losing Faith in Faith-Based Prison

    Jim Willett oversaw 89 executions. Now, amidst dozens of DNA exonerations, he wonders whether it was right.

  • News

    December 16, 2004

    Life After Death

    Andre Lewis was eight hours from being executed, until the courts realized they had made a big mistake

  • News

    January 8, 2004

    Writer's Block

    Texas prisons start barring book authors from inmate interviews

  • News

    December 18, 2003

    Cell-bloc Voting

    A new effort tries to unlock former felons' votes

  • News

    December 11, 2003

    Last Call

    The career of Dallas sportswriter Jim Dent was skyrocketing, then booze and bad behavior caused a hard landing

  • News

    October 23, 2003

    Bellies of the Beast

    Food cuts have inmates and guards grumbling

  • News

    August 1, 2002

    The Ex-Con Game

    How do we deal with the staggering number of prisoners re-entering society? Ned Rollo thinks he knows. He should. He's been there.

  • News

    March 28, 2002

    Prison, Sweet Prison

    Bill Everett thanks Jesus he's behind bars, for real.

  • News

    March 28, 2002

    12-year-old Killer

    The story of Edwin Debrow Jr., one of the youngest Texans ever convicted of murder, in his own words

  • News

    November 1, 2001

    Pay for Play

    Seventy-three DMNers get sent packing

  • News

    September 13, 2001

    The Superpredator

    Think it's brutal to send a 14-year-old boy to prison for decades? Meet Billy Ray Dennis, and think again.

  • News

    September 13, 2001

    Make 'em Pay

    Spurred by a horrifying wave of teen violence in the '90s, Texas today spends more money than ever to lock up young criminals. Are we getting our money's worth?

  • News

    June 14, 2001

    Pass the Plate

    God and Texas taxpayers answer the prayers of a prison-based ministry

  • News

    November 30, 2000

    Prisoners of Love

    The InnerChange Freedom Initiative says it can rehabilitate Texas prison inmates through God--a conservative evangelical Christian God, to be more precise

  • News

    November 16, 2000

    Bad Girls

    Looking for love in the wrong places? Try Meet-An-Inmate.com.

  • News

    September 14, 2000

    Death Angel

    For 15 years, the Rev. Carroll Pickett granted the last wishes of men about to die in Texas' execution chamber. For the first time, he tells his story.

  • News

    July 6, 2000

    Software and hard time

    Texas prisons take a byte out of crime with a computer rehab program

  • News

    June 29, 2000

    Killing machine

    It is 6:07 p.m. John Albert Burks salutes the Oakland Raiders and says goodbye to his friends. Minutes later, he is a dead man. This year's 21st execution.

  • News

    February 10, 2000

    Buzz

    Image is everything; Death watch; Miracle cure

  • News

    September 30, 1999

    Huntsville Houdini

    Federal prosecutors get tough with an escape artist

  • News

    July 15, 1999

    Closing death's door

    Will proposed media rules stifle coverage of convicts facing execution?

  • News

    July 8, 1999

    Cruel and Unusual

    Mentally ill Texans used to go to hospitals. Now, increasing numbers of them go to prison instead.

  • Calendar

    May 20, 1999

    Draper's prison blues

    Mentally ill Texans used to go to hospitals. Now, increasing numbers of them go to prison instead.

  • Music

    March 25, 1999

    Put up a fight

    With bands like these, who needs Austin anyway?

  • News

    January 21, 1999

    Walter Waldhauserwired

    A convicted killer gets placed on an electric leash

  • News

    November 26, 1998

    Arresting development

    A convicted killer gets placed on an electric leash

  • News

    May 14, 1998

    Fly away, little jailbird

    Reports of Steven Russell's death were greatly exaggerated, but they were enough to spring him from a Texas prison

  • News

    April 4, 1996

    Mouse

    Paul "Mouse" Millender is in hiding after being stabbed 24 times. He says his old skinhead running buddies did it. But he swears he's not a rat.

  • More >>
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