The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals no longer accepts writs and motions smeared or containing "corrosive or dangerous chemicals, blood, food, feces, urine or other bodily fluids."
CCA: Keep it clean Yes, what you think happened, happened. This was not inspired by a peanut butter incident. In the fall, the court clerk received a writ covered with excrement. It came from a TDCJ inmate, not surprisingly. And it was not the first time.
Judge Cathy Cochran said today that the clerk didn't know quite what to do and asked a federal clerk what they do there. The feds already had a rule about such offensively messy filings and the members of Texas' highest criminal court adopted similar wording last month.
The order, mentioned first on Texas Lawyer's blog, says people can't deliver papers that could be a health hazard and the clerk shall dispose of any such papers that arrive. The order further states the clerk will keep a log of items disposed of under the rule. And the rule says the clerk will notify the sender and, if applicable, any supervisor jail or prison personnel that sanctions maybe imposed.
"It was a writ. They can just file another writ. This time we'd like it with no attachments please," said Judge Cochran.
