I received the following email from an investigator. I took out the negative statements regarding his opinions on the law and the legislature. Under the law, do videotaped oral consents statisfy the requirements?

Or, is this an in-writing-only new law?

The email is as follows:

SB 1195 was passed and will become law 09/01/05. (http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/cgi-bin/db2www/tlo/billhist/actions.d2w/report?LEG=79&SESS=R&CHAMBER=S&BILLTYPE=B&BILLSUFFIX=01195 )

Basically, this new law states that if a peace officer stops an individual for �any violation of a law or ordinance regulating traffic� that the peace officer can not ask for consent unless it is in writing. This is just another attempt to deteriorate the authority and integrity of the law enforcement profession. By making a law such as this, the Texas legislature has basically said that they do not believe the law enforcement professional when the officer gets on the witness stand and, under oath, states that he had verbal consent.

[This message was edited by Philip D Ray on 05-25-05 at .]

As I read it, the House has added a provision for recorded oral consent. http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/cgi-bin/tlo/textframe.cmd?LEG=79&SESS=R&CHAMBER=S&BILLTYPE=B&BILLSUFFIX=01195&VERSION=4&TYPE=B

See also http://www.texaslegislatureobserved.com/2005/05/house-to-cops-get-it-in-writing.html

It has to go back to the Senate to see if they will agree to this change. http://gritsforbreakfast.blogspot.com/

Thanks.

The Texas Legislature has continually shown that a majority of its members do not believe the word alone of our peace officers. Look at the written/recorded requirements of CCP Art. 38.22 as just one example. Oral confessions are good enough for the federal government and most of the other states in this country... but not in the Lone Star State. As long as a majority of the people of Texas put up with it, it will continue to be so.

Mike,

I like the way you think!!! This legislative session has really caused this prosecutor to get riled. I work with some great, honest as the day is long police officers in Grimes County. They are some of my closest friends. It aggravates me to see the legislature having such a low opinion of officers. To be fair, I am probably biased because, I'm married to a police officer, and my grandfather & great-grandfather were police officers.

I echo the post of another prosecutor (don't remember name or particular post), has the Republican party in Texas abandoned its tough on crime beliefs or are they kowtowing (not sure spelled correctly) to the Democrats in the legislature. If so why is that exactly since TX is such a heavily Republican state? Perhaps, they have bought into the liberal media crap reported on a regular basis in the national news media.

Oh well, we'll just keep plodding along. Maybe the public will get riled up when 49,000 ex-probationers hit the streets free & clear of any supervision to commit new offenses.