A contentious proposal to amend the Texas state Constitution to automatically deny bail for certain repeat offenders met its demise in the Texas House earlier this week. Senate Joint Resolution 87 needed 100 votes to set a constitutional amendment in motion but fell short, securing the support of all present Republicans and only nine Democrats, as detailed by Click2Houston. The final tally came to 93 in favor, 32 against, with 19 Democrats either marking themselves “present” or not participating in the vote at all.
The proposal's failure came despite being part of a larger initiative to reform the state’s bail system – one of Governor Greg Abbott's top concerns. According to Click2Houston, SJR 87 would have targeted individuals accused of specific felonies, particularly those with a past felony conviction or already out on bond at the time of their current alleged offense. The resolution required that a judge find "probable cause", a standard that some argued was too low a bar for denying an individual's liberty pretrial.
"We're talking about an effective class of people that amounts to 0.0084% of our population," said Rep. Mitch Little, R-Lewisville, and the House sponsor for the resolution, emphasizing the measure’s focus on a small demographic deemed highly dangerous. However, critics have raised concerns about due process and judicial discretion. Rep. Joe Moody of El Paso, the leading Democratic negotiator on bail issues, objected to the proposal, saying, "You have a prior conviction and someone accuses you of something new — straight to jail," according to Texas Tribune. Moody emphasized this would be the case without any considerations for the accused's potential danger to the community or risk of flight.
While the broader bail reform package, with the centerpiece being Senate Joint Resolution 5, was adopted last week, the specific measure named "Jocelyn's Law," in memory of a 12-year-old Houstonian whose alleged killers were on federal custody, not bail, faced unity in opposition from Democrats. Rep. Harold Dutton Jr., D-Houston, voiced a familiar sentiment among his colleagues, conveying a sense of defending the chamber's honor against what they saw as a rushed and ill-conceived policy from the Senate. "If they won't respect us, they need to expect us," Dutton was reported to have echoed during discussions on the House floor, as stated by Texas Tribune.
The rejection of SJR 87 shows the ongoing debate in Texas about how to balance public safety with the rights of people accused of crimes. The House's decision highlights how complex and controversial bail reform is in the state. While both sides agree on the need to keep communities safe and protect everyone's legal rights, they disagree on how to do it.
