| 1 | 1 | | 88R15588 CJM-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Smith H.R. No. 568 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 6 | 6 | | WHEREAS, March 18, 2023, marks the 60th anniversary of the |
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| 7 | 7 | | landmark Supreme Court ruling in Gideon v. Wainwright, which found |
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| 8 | 8 | | that under the United States Constitution, state courts must |
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| 9 | 9 | | provide attorneys to indigent defendants in all felony cases; and |
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| 10 | 10 | | WHEREAS, In Gideon v. Wainwright, the United States Supreme |
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| 11 | 11 | | Court reaffirmed the right of defendants to a fair trial and |
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| 12 | 12 | | recognized that our adversarial system of criminal justice depends |
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| 13 | 13 | | upon a fair contest between the prosecution and the defense; |
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| 14 | 14 | | moreover, it acknowledged that this system is an effective means of |
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| 15 | 15 | | arriving at just results only when both the prosecution and the |
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| 16 | 16 | | defense are adequately prepared and equipped to present their case |
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| 17 | 17 | | effectively under the law; and |
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| 18 | 18 | | WHEREAS, Justice Hugo Black, who wrote the unanimous |
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| 19 | 19 | | decision, noted: "The right of one charged with crime to counsel may |
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| 20 | 20 | | not be deemed fundamental and essential to fair trials in some |
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| 21 | 21 | | countries, but it is in ours"; the Supreme Court has expanded on its |
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| 22 | 22 | | rationale in Gideon v. Wainwright to ensure the right to counsel for |
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| 23 | 23 | | indigent defendants in juvenile cases and in all cases that carry |
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| 24 | 24 | | the possibility of incarceration for defendants; and |
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| 25 | 25 | | WHEREAS, Because the assistance of counsel is essential to |
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| 26 | 26 | | effectuate a meaningful defense when faced with prosecution by the |
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| 27 | 27 | | state, Texas passed the Fair Defense Act of 2001 to better ensure |
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| 28 | 28 | | that the constitutional rights of all Texans would be more reliably |
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| 29 | 29 | | safeguarded; implementation of the Act has enabled many more people |
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| 30 | 30 | | to receive public defense services and earlier access to counsel, |
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| 31 | 31 | | and it has improved the quality of legal assistance provided; and |
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| 32 | 32 | | WHEREAS, The Fair Defense Act created the Task Force on |
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| 33 | 33 | | Indigent Defense, now known as the Texas Indigent Defense |
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| 34 | 34 | | Commission, to provide technical support to counties to develop and |
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| 35 | 35 | | maintain quality, cost-effective public defense systems, as well as |
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| 36 | 36 | | to offer financial assistance to meet the new requirements and to |
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| 37 | 37 | | foster innovation in the way public defense services are provided; |
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| 38 | 38 | | state grant funds administered by the commission have led to the |
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| 39 | 39 | | creation of several new public defender offices and managed |
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| 40 | 40 | | assigned counsel programs to provide public defense services in |
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| 41 | 41 | | more than 70 counties; and |
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| 42 | 42 | | WHEREAS, Affirming essential principles of fairness and |
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| 43 | 43 | | justice, Gideon v. Wainwright marked a turning point in American |
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| 44 | 44 | | jurisprudence, and it is indeed fitting to recognize the vital role |
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| 45 | 45 | | this decision has played over the past half century in guaranteeing |
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| 46 | 46 | | access to counsel for all; now, therefore, be it |
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| 47 | 47 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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| 48 | 48 | | Legislature hereby commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Supreme |
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| 49 | 49 | | Court's decision in Gideon v. Wainwright. |
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