I for one have not noticed a groundswell of oposition to the life without parole option, if that means the available sentences are death or an ironclad, 100% guaranteed life sentence with not even the faintest hope of parole.

From the Austin American-Statesman, read what our friend and colleague believes passes for a sober and measured analysis of our position. By the way, don't you just love the way the author's byline identifies him as a "local contributor?" Only one who is able to keep his gorge from rising and read to the the very bitter end are enlightened as to his true identity.


OTHER TAKES
Hurley: Why don't Texas prosecutors trust juries?
Daniel W. Hurley, LOCAL CONTRIBUTOR

Wednesday, April 13, 2005

Most Texans have an abiding faith in our jury system. Even when we disagree with a jury's verdict, we respect the difficult work jurors do. We trust them. Unfortunately, a handful of elected district attorneys do not.

Last week, at the behest of certain prosecutors, a small group of senators blocked floor consideration of Senate Bill 60, which would allow juries to hand out a sentence of life without parole in capital murder trials. The bill is sponsored by Sen. Eddie Lucio, D-Brownsville. Unlike most other states, Texas doesn't give juries the option of imposing life without parole. And if these prosecutors have their way, Texas never will.

Capital murder prosecutions are grueling ordeals for everyone involved, but jurors have the toughest role. They must decide two things: (1) whether a person should live or die, and (2), if the person should live, whether he or she would be a future danger.

If jurors decide to spare a person from execution, under current law, they can only sentence him to 40 years in prison, with the possibility that he will be paroled after that. But what if a jury is horrified that a killer might ever be released on parole? Under current law, the jury is forced to give him parole. That is wrong.

Juries need the additional option of sentencing a person to life in prison without any hope of release. And juries should keep the option of imposing life with parole. This way, they can punish dangerous offenders more harshly than those who are not. Death, life without parole and 40 years � these are the three options that Texas death-penalty juries should have.
But this simple reform � giving juries one additional choice in death penalty cases � remains stymied. Prosecutors are telling Texas juries, "We don't trust you with these choices." Why?

As has been made clear over the last week, it is only because certain prosecutors believe they won't be able to get the death penalty from a Texas jury empowered with all three choices. These prosecutors are frightened of their own community and their own juries � frightened that a future jury might reject a death penalty verdict.

This attitude is not what Texas expects or deserves from its district attorneys. If you do not have confidence that a Texas jury will sentence a killer to death in the appropriate cases, then you should retire as district attorney and let prosecutors will greater talent and confidence take over.

District attorneys shaking in their boots at the prospect of a Texas jury having greater powers in death penalty cases is one of the most embarrassing spectacles in our death penalty state. And it's a poor reason to vote against giving Texas juries another option. But it's apparently all it takes.

Hurley is president of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association

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Isn't Hurley from the D/FW area? I knew Austin was growing, but I didn't know we had looped up I-35 and annexed the metroplex already.

But that would explain our traffic woes ...

At least that "contributor" doesn't know the facts. -- it makes his bad argument easier not to stomach.

I would direct attention to the fact that on April 13, 2005 -- not long ago as of today, clerks at the mailroom at the prison unit where death row is located, the Polunsky Unit, discovered several suspicious envelopes being sent to a convict. Inside were mercury, wax, copper wires, live .357 rounds and other items that could be put together to cause some pretty bad damage to bodily members of innocent people.

So, it makes me wonder if perhaps convicted felons, capital murderers for example, can actually be prevented from harming potential victims in the future by simply being put in prison. Why doesn't Mr. Hurley address such issues -- reckon he doesn't even know about them?

Mr.Hurley is from Lubbock.

Actually Danny is the former partner of my former Boss Lubbock CDA Bill Sowder. Talk about Ying and Yang, they couldn't be more different. Hurley would rather set himself on fire than utter a civil word to a trial opponant.
He is trying a case against Rod Hobson, a fearless defense lawyer appointed special counsel, involving the intoxicated manslaughter of a great guy that used to work for Sowder in Lubbock. The trial has erupted in numerous confrontations.
If it makes you feel any better Lisa Tanner laid him out once or twice.

It would be fun to watch Danny and Rod go mano-a-mano. Clay is right about Danny's penchant for bombast.

P.S. For those who don't get it, the subject line above is the title of a superb album by artist/singer/songwriter Terry Allen (who wrote, among other great songs, "Amarillo Highway"), which is probably foreign to anyone who isn't from Lubbock.

But, Terry was primarily a keyboard player (and vocalist) who penned at least one number for Bobby Bare, and everybody knows about piano players ....

I was always partial to the Mac Davis ditty: Lubbock in My Rearview Mirror. After my undistinguished three semesters there, the dean of student affairs at Tech agreed it was a tune I should learn.

Lubbock's favorite son whose name isn't Buddy also penned an anthem suitable for pontificators such as the one who is the genesis of this thread: "Lord, It's Hard to be Humble."

I thought Joe Ely was Lubbock's favorite son. Or at least the Flatlander brothers? Or maybe Lloyd Maines and the Maines Brothers Band.

Come to think of it, why do so many great Texas musicos come from Lubbock?

By the way AP, Terry Allen's son Bukka is a keyboard player and an avate garde artist as well.

By the way A.P. and Scott, I once saw a stunning sculpture made from a disfigured Mastertone Banjo at the long defunct Austin art gallery/recording studio known as "Lubbock or Leave it" owned in the 90's by another of Lubbock's favorite sons, Butch Hancock.

Actually, the ever-so-cool Mr. Ely is a native of Amarillo. In all fairness, he did spend his formative years in Lubbock.

If anyone would know how to disfigure a banjo, it would be Butch Hancock. If he'd had a rabbit, he would've used it, too.

I am not sure if he is a native son of the Hub City but I must mention Jimmy Dale Gilmore to round out The Flatlanders. After Bill Monroe and Jimmy Rodgers (The Singing Brakeman), Gilmore epitomized that "high lonesome sound" so necessary to good country music.

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This thread has taken an interesting turn. Makes one wonder if there is a subliminal connection between life in Lubbock and life without parole ... (gotta be a song in there somewhere ...)

What is wrong with Lubbock? It has everything a person could want:

1) That distinctive aroma that the cattlemen claim is the smell of money
2) That delightful fragrance that the oilmen claim is the smell of money
3) The ability to see across town because it is so flat
4) The ability to see the setting sun without having the view blocked by any trees
5) The chance of a lifetime to see it actually rain mud (I personally observed this)
6) The greatest aerial attack in college football
7) The ability to win college football games with absolutely no defense
8) The capability to drive the green on a 400 yard golf hole with the wind at your back
9) The pleasure of using a driver on a 150 yard golf hole because the wind is in your face
10) Bobby Knight (enough said there)

I am sure that I have left out some very important aspects of Lubbock. I have to admit that I was only there for 2 1/2 years so I might have missed out on somethings. All in all, the Hub City was not that bad but I did feel like I was being released from prison when I left. Maybe it was because I had just finished the bar exam. Who knows?

May I add one more?

11. The ever popular sport of "drenching." "Drenching" is the act of cutting a streetcorner close after a heavy rain. The flat topography of Lubbock makes for poor drainage; after a frog drowner, the water stands quite deep in the gutters. A skillfully driven vehicle will spray the standing water in a rooster tail as high as seven or eight feet. Many is the time I have seen unsuspecting frosh standing too near the corner only to be engulfed in a tsunami of dirty water. Often they looked like surfers "running the pipe" on Oahu's North Shore. Afterward, the description "drowned rat" usually came to mind.

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First, I am so proud that the names of all three of the members of the Flatlanders are known to my profession as that truly shows good taste.

Second, you haven't lived until, as I did when I was in Lubbock the first and only time in 1995 for my best friend's wedding, and using the borrowed big boy Mercedes of his parents, was going to do some tie shopping since I had forgotten to pack one for the rehearsal dinner suit I had brought.

I was driving on THE FREEWAY and cars around me began pulling off to the side of the road in wild abandon, when I saw some sort of huge pile of dirt headed directly my way, not dissimilar to a tornado. I later discovered this was called a dust devil or dirt devil or something like that. I spent the next 10-15 minutes trapped in the car parked on the side of the road, not knowing if I was in a tornado or what, and then spent major money having the car hand washed as I was afraid it had been sandblasted. Thankfully, there was no permanent damage to the paint. As all that was happening, and I kid you not about this, the song "LA FREEWAY" by Jerry Jeff was playing on the radio.

As I recounted the story at the rehearsal dinner that night at the Lubbock Petroleum Club, the locals seemed to find great amusement in the tale of this Gulf Coast native.

It is also the only place where I have ever seen tumbleweeds on THE FREEWAY.

I do, however, think Midland is actually flatter than Lubbock.

While mostly flat, Midland does have the occasional naturally occurring bump. We are also subject to random tumbleweed attacks. Much nicer winters than frozen Lubbock, however, though it's only 100 miles to the North.

I believe those few bumps are called armadillas.

While Midland enjoys many of the same "benefits" as Lubbock, at least WE do not have to deal with Dan Hurley.

You really know how to hurt a Lubbockite, don't you, Laura?