Originally published in the San Antonio Express News.
Texas lawmakers have a chance this session to give prosecutors a new tool to revisit old cases and ensure justice is served.
Many Texans love hunting, and most will tell you that hitting a moving target is challenging, even in the best of conditions. In a way, criminal justice, at least when it comes to sentencing, can be just as tricky.
Prosecutors, judges and juries often grapple with matching an appropriate sentence to the crime, and pertinent facts can be difficult to pin down during trials or even years after a case is closed. Over time, laws and people change, and it’s impossible to predict if someone will use their time in prison to turn their life around.
Texas lawmakers have a chance this session to give prosecutors a new tool to revisit old cases and ensure justice is served.
Prosecutor-initiated resentencing, known as PIR, in HB3166 and HJR148 by Rep. David Cook, R-Mansfield, would allow prosecutors to reconsider cases when the original sentence no longer fits the crime. It would account for new knowledge, correct disparities and recognize changes in individuals who have served long sentences and shown rehabilitation to become contributing members to their communities.
The decision to pursue PIR is based on strict criteria: The sentence must be disproportionate to current laws and practices, and the individual must no longer pose a threat to public safety. Victims, rightly, are notified, ensuring their voices remain central to the justice system. Ultimately, a judge makes the final call on whether resentencing is appropriate.
This tool would responsibly focus on cases and individuals who truly deserve a second look and no longer pose a threat to public safety, such as those sentenced under outdated laws, elderly inmates or survivors of human trafficking. PIR ensures sentences reflect our current understanding of justice, not just a moment in history.
In states with PIR, only 1% of cases are reopened, and in those few instances, taxpayer dollars are used responsibly to ensure justice and better utilize resources to keep dangerous individuals behind bars.
While Texas’ parole process is robust, it is not designed to unearth and consider new evidence, which is typically in the hands of prosecutors. Texas’ Board of Pardons and Parole focuses on reviewing prison records to assess behavior and evidence of rehabilitation after 25% of a sentence is served, and only if the individual is sentenced with a possibility of parole.
Additionally, this proposal comes amid growing support for targeted reconsideration of sentences that exceed 10 years. The nonpartisan Council on Criminal Justice Task Force on Long Sentences, a group of 14 prosecutors, public defenders, crime survivors and other experts from across the political spectrum, examined data on long sentences and recommended limited second-look opportunities.
Their justification included statistical modeling showing that the vast majority of people who have served a decade or more in prison could have been released earlier without compromising public safety.
PIR isn’t just about righting past wrongs; it’s about shaping a better future. Incarcerated individuals who know there is a prospect for reconsideration may be more likely to engage in rehabilitative programs, avoid disciplinary violations and prepare for a successful reentry into society.
By introducing PIR, lawmakers can continue Texas’ leadership in aligning the justice system with the values of fairness, accountability and fiscal responsibility that Texans hold dear. Given the volume of cases and the need to deliver closure for victims, the justice system rightly prioritizes finality.
However, just like Texas hunters, on occasion our justice system needs more than one shot to find the target. With PIR, Texas prosecutors can reload when needed and hit the bulls-eye.