PBT- Testifying Before The Texas House Interim Committee Regarding the Implementation of SB6
Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps
On October 12, 2022, the Texas House Interim Study Committee on Criminal Justice Reform conducted a hearing on the implementation of SB6. The hearing was for invited testimony only.
Bronson Tucker who is the Curriculum Director for the Justice Training Center identified two issues that might need to be tweaked in SB6. First, dealt with the issue of warrants regarding when is a bond amount placed on a warrant mandatory vs discretionary. Second, he identified an issue regarding article 27.02 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure which applies to the situation where a defendant has a current felony case pending and then is arrested on a new felony case and is supposed to go back to the original judge to be magistrated when the two cases are pending in the same county.
Testimony of Ken W. Good on behalf of the Professional Bondsmen of Texas.
Our Resources:
Find the failure to appear rate for any misdemeanor court in Harris County for any date over the last two years at "HarrisCountyCourt Watch.com". (Year to date for 2022, the average is over 80% of the people set on the docket fail to appear for court and are not being held accountable.
In 2020, 2021, Harris County misdemeanor courts dismissed approximately 72% of all misdemeanor cases disposed according to data reported from Harris County to the State of Texas (according to the Houston Police Officers Union). See report by CLICKING HERE.
In August 2022, according to the report released from on the Harris County District Clerk's website, over 90% of the misdemeanor cases disposed were dismissed.
Are these actions a sign that the Criminal Justice System is in collapse or is it a sign that Harris County's elected officials are intentionally de-criminalizing misdemeanor crime? Neither conclusion is good. Harris County remains ground zero for Criminal Justice Reform. Wasn't decriminalization tried in California and was the result to say it lightly "bad." Why would any Texan think this was a good idea in Texas?
Other Testimony-
Testimony of Sheriff Hawthorne from Chambers County- CLICK HERE. Sheriff Hawthorne begins by agreeing with comments by PBT representative Ken W. Good.
Excerpt of testimony of Kevin Lawrence, Executive Director, Texas Municipal Police Association explaining the ramifications of decriminalizing misdemeanor crime- CLICK HERE.
Related:
Reformers continue to tout Harris County as the model for bail reform that should be implemented across the country. Yes you read that right. This is not a joke. Reforms want to do to the rest of the country what they did to Harris County.
On this episode of The Bail Post we discuss the 2025 Texas Legislative Session to highlight the major bail bills and proposed constitutional amendments that were considered. We highlight important changes to 17.19 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. Also, we highlight, SJR 5, SB 9 and SB 40 that were passed this session. Our guest are the PBT Legislative Committee Chair Cory Lee and former PBT Legislative Committee Chair Scott Walstad. Relevant Bills- SB 9 by Sen. Huffman- CLICK HERE SB 40 by Sen. Huffman- CLICK HERE SJR 5 by Sen. Huffman- CLICK HERE HB 2697 by Rep. Anchia- CLICK HERE Audio Podcast- Also available on- Apple Podcasts- CLICK HERE Spotify- CLICK HERE Google Podcasts- CLICK HERE Podcast Index- ...
In 2022, Mosby’s last year in office, Baltimore saw 334 homicides across the city. The next year, under Bates’s watch, that number dropped to 262. In 2024, it dropped further to 202 homicides. And during the first half of 2025, Baltimore saw just 68 homicides, a 62 percent drop from the same timeframe in 2022. Auto thefts are also down 34 percent, robberies are down 22 percent, and arson is down 10 percent in Baltimore so far in 2025 compared to the same timeframe last year. “The numbers don’t lie,” Maryland Public Policy Institute fellow Sean Kennedy told the Washington Free Beacon. “Ivan Bates’s model of targeting the most violent or violence-prone offenders (gun carrying criminals) is the primary driver of Baltimore’s miraculous success.” “Homicides only started dropping when Bates came in and signaled that carrying guns meant prison,” Kennedy said. To see more CLICK HERE .
Ricky Lane Wade, born April 16, 1953, in Shelbyville, Kentucky, passed away peacefully on July 8, 2025, in Dallas, Texas. He was 72. Ricky was the son of Vernon Wade and Mary Tipton (Harper), and a proud graduate of Shelbyville High School. He built a long and respected career in the bail bonds industry, working to establish both A Way-Out Bail Bonds and Just Bail Bonds. His commitment to his profession led him to become an active member of the Professional Bondsmen of Texas, where he was known for his unwavering honesty and bold personality—Ricky never had a filter and never backed down from speaking the truth. He is survived by his devoted wife, Jeanie Wade; two beloved stepdaughters, Crystal Padgett and Jennifer Beck; grandchildren Brett Estrada and wife Layla, Jezzica Polk and husband Brendan, Evan Beck, and Parker Beck; and one cherished great-granddaughter, Aurora Estrada; and nephew Kyle Tipton and wife Carolyn. Ricky also leaves behind his brothers Greg Tipton and Ve...
A new ballot measure proposal, which, if approved by voters, would dramatically change the criminal justice system in the state of Oregon. The goal of the measure is to put an end to what many describe as Oregon’s “catch and release” system, where suspected criminals are immediately released before trial and then never show up. The sponsors are confident that Oregon voters will support it if given the chance. It is just the latest example of a criminal justice system that many say has grown increasingly dysfunctional. An accused hit-and-run driver on Highway 26, was later arrested for attempted murder, only to be released pretrial by a judge, over the strong objections of the prosecution and the victim’s family. They said he’d never honor his promise to appear. And they were right. He is now at large, and Oregon lawmaker Kevin Mannix says cases like these have to stop. To see more CLICK HERE .
Introduction: Accessing Progressive Criminal Justice Policies- Gun Buybacks: Politicians in big cities believe that gun-buyback programs will reduce the violent crime that is spiking in America’s urban centers. But comprehensive research shows no evidence that such programs work. Philadelphia just completed a three-year gun-buyback program that yielded over 1,000 firearms. Not a single recovered firearm was linked to violent crime and, during the course of the program, Philadelphia set new all-time records for homicides. “Violence Interrupters”: Violence interrupters are former gang members and convicts who mediate disputes on the streets. Cities led by “reform” prosecutors, such as Baltimore, Indianapolis, and Philadelphia have staked a lot on this idea. The results have not been encouraging. Multiple violence interrupters have been murdered in Baltimore. In Indianapolis, the former convict in charge of training violence interrupters was arrested for thre...
Comments
Post a Comment