The relationship between mental illness and criminal behavior has been a hotly debated topic in recent years, particularly after several mass shootings in the United States. However, researchers say people with a mental illness are more likely to be victims of a...
Selective prosecution is prohibited in Texas. The most well known form of selective prosecution is “racial profiling”. Typically a defendant must show that he or she was singled out for prosecution and that the government’s discriminatory selection of him or her for...
The Basics of the Bail Bonds System What is a bond? If you get arrested and want to get out of jail before your trial date, then you’ll need to make bail (which means to be released from jail). To make bail, you will have to make a bond with the Court. There are three...
The Basics of Crime Labs in Houston DNA is commonly used in criminal investigations and trials. DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the carrier of genetic information present in nearly every living organism. Police frequently collect DNA at crime scenes in order to...
The unfortunate history of mishaps at Houston crime labs is well documented. The local Houston Police Department Crime Lab was shut down after botched lab tests[1] and testing backlogs[2] rendered the lab unreliable. In 2014, the City of Houston created the Houston...
In Texas, entrapment is defined as when a defendant is induced to commit a crime by law enforcement using persuasion or other means likely to cause persons to commit the offense.[1] Entrapment is more than “being set up” by the cops; merely having the opportunity to...