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The Bail Post Episode No. 52: The Legacy of Daves v. Dallas County

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The United States Supreme Court denied the petition for cert. filed by the plaintiffs in Daves v. Dallas County in January.  In February, the United States Supreme Court filed another petition for cert. filed in Little v. Doguet from Louisiana on a similar issue.  Therefore, the Daves v. Dallas County case has finally been concluded.  On this episode of The Bail Post we discuss the legacy of this case and the other important case called ODonnell v. Harris County.  Audio Podcast-   Also available on: Apple Podcasts-            CLICK HERE Spotify-                        CLICK HERE Google Podcasts-        CLICK HERE Podcast Index-            CLICK HERE Amazon Music-          CLICK HERE Stitcher-                      CLICK HERE iHeart-                        CLICK HERE TuneIn + Alexa          CLICK HERE Podcast Addict-          CLICK HERE Podchaser-                  CLICK HERE Pocket Casts-              CLICK HERE Deezer-                       CLICK HERE   Listen Notes-             CLICK H

Manipulating Crime Numbers, Houston Edition- Investigation of 264,000 Cases Suspended for a "Lack of Personnel"

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  Houston Police Chief Troy Finner has released some new information regarding criminal cases that were suspended.  Last week, Finner identified 4,017 cases of alleged sexual assault administratively suspended for "lack of personnel" - investigations essentially kicked to the curb back to 2016. "Am I proud about this? No, I'm angry, okay, because I know we are better, and we are going to make it right, and we will make it right. We are still short of staff and some people say 2,000 officers, so we do the best that we can do, but that's not good enough when we are not investigating sexual assaults," said Finner. On Monday afternoon, Houston police released a new statement saying, "Our review of adult sex crime cases suspended with a code of "lack of personnel" has expanded to include all other divisions in the department found to be using that same code. We have determined that department-wide approximately 264,000 such incident reports since 2

The Bail Post Episode No. 51: Meet Hidalgo County Sheriff J.E. "Eddie" Guerra

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J.E. "Eddie" Guerra is the Sheriff of Hidalgo servicing around 1 million people.  Sheriff Guerra was appointed to office after his predecessor resigned as a result of scandal.  Sheriff Guerra rebuilt trust with the public and was reelected multiple times by the voters.  Sheriff Guerra talks about the steps he took to rebuild trust with the public. Hidalgo County is a border county with Mexico.  As a result, Sheriff Guerra deals with all the things that a sheriff has to deal with and then on top of that he deals with border issues as well. Sheriff Guerra has won many awards.  He is known for sharing data with many different agencies and says that he does not care who gets credit for getting the arrest.  By all metrics, crime in Hidalgo County has gone down in Hidalgo County. Join us for this episode of The Bail Post as we talk to Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra. Audio Podcast- Also available on: Apple Podcasts-            CLICK HERE Spotify-                        CLICK HE

Attorney at Law Magazine- Daves v. Dallas County Ends Federal Micromanagement of Ongoing State Criminal Cases

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U.S. Supreme Court Denied Cert. Allowing Fifth Circuit to End Federal Micromanagement of Ongoing State Criminal Cases by Ken W. Good In the labyrinth of legal battles waged in the expansive landscape of Texas, the saga of Daves v. Dallas County unfolded with deceptive simplicity. Initially framed as a straightforward confrontation between plaintiffs and the legal machinery of Dallas County, this saga eventually evolved into a convoluted odyssey involving constitutional interpretations, initial rulings that were later reversed and other judicial intricacies. What was supposed to be simple turned out to be anything but. To understand this litigation, a review must go all the way back to 2016. A group of plaintiffs brought suit against misdemeanor judges, the Harris County sheriff and Harris County in ODonnell v. Harris County, alleging violations of due process and equal protection. By 2017, Judge Lee Rosenthal of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas issued a prelim

San Francisco Doom Loop Quickly Spiraling Out of Control

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San Francisco’s doom loop just got worse. On the heals of the Hilton Hotel in downtown defaulting on their loan, another major player is packing up and heading out. KPMG, a prominent consulting and accounting firm, has decided to vacate its prestigious, namesake $400 million office tower. * * * * The root causes of this mass exodus are multifaceted, with businesses and residents citing escalating crime rates, an uncontrolled homelessness crisis, and the rise of remote work as primary factors driving them away from downtown San Francisco. * * * * Other highlights from the article- Nearly 100 retailers have shut their doors since the pandemics onset. In the first five months of 2023 alone, San Francisco witnessed 346 overdose deaths, marking an over 40 percent increase compared to the same period in 2022. The city’s high theft rates exacerbate this situation, with incidents like Walgreens in the city center being forced to chain their freezers to deter shoplifters. In Union Square of the

The Bail Post Episode No. 50: What Does PBT Do for Texas Bondsmen with Guest New PBT President Irma Montemayor

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On this episode of The Bail Post, we reach several milestones.  First, this is episode number 50.  Second this is the start of Season 3 of the Bail Post. On Season 1, the first episode focused on what bondsmen do.  On Season 2, the first episode highlighted why the private industry was so much more successful than any other release mechanism. For Season 3, the first episode focuses on what it is that PBT does for the bondsmen of Texas.  Our guest is the new president of PBT, Irma Montemayor.  She talks about what it takes to run one of the best and most effective bail associations in the United States.  She also highlights the work that PBT engages in at the Texas Legislature. There is also a discussion regarding how PBT raises funds to be able to be active at the legislature.  Ms. Montemayor highlights the importance of PBT's continuing education class. Also, there was a discussion regarding the partnerships that PBT enters into with surety companies to provide additional funds to

The Bail Post Podcast No. 49- Russell v. Harris County- A Case Study

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  On this episode of The Bail Post we discuss Russell v. Harris County .  This case was filed to extend the ruling in ODonnell regarding misdemeanor judges issued by the Honorable Lee Rosenthal to the felony judges. When the case was originally filed, the plaintiffs did not even sue the district court judges.  Suit was filed against Harris County and the Harris County Sheriff.  Next, the case was "stayed" or put on hold to allow the parties to attempt to work out a settlement.  The case did not proceed as expected by the plaintiffs.  They were expecting a quick settlement where the county gave them everything they wanted like they did in ODonnell .   What the plaintiffs received in the end was a big fat dismissal.  Find out how this happened on this episode of The Bail Post. This podcast references that the United States Supreme Court would be ruling on a petition for cert. in Daves v. Dallas County in a few days.   On January 8, 2023, the Court denied the petition.  To lea

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