Texas Democratic Party: Moving Texas Forward

When Rick Perry abruptly replaced the members of the Texas Forensic Science Commission in late September 2009, he forced the Commission to delay an essential review of the Texas criminal justice system. As Texas Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie recently argued in an Austin American-Statesman op-ed, Perry’s conspiracy of silence threatened the ability of our criminal justice system to use the best forensic science to protect, preserve and defend the laws of Texas. (Source: Austin American-Statesman)

Now, Rick Perry’s hand-picked appointee to take over the Commission, John Bradley, is arguing that the commission should be able to meet entirely in private and that the public should only be informed of the results at the conclusion of the commission’s work. (Source: Texas Lawyer)

Bradley went so far as to say that the public should not trust media reports, expert testimony, or concerns from elected officials about the Commission’s work – mimicking Rick Perry’s heavy-handed control and cover-up of the Commission’s work. (Source: Houston Chronicle)

Today, November 10, the Senate Criminal Justice Committee will hear from Bradley directly and learn whether or not Bradley actually intends to continue Perry’s history of delaying, stalling, and covering up the work of the Texas Forensic Science Commission:

• The Commission was created in September 2005, but Rick Perry and the Republican-controlled Legislature didn’t allocate the agency any money to start its work for two years. (Source: Houston Chronicle)

• Perry’s office told the former Chairman of the Texas Forensic Science Commission that the Governor thought the agency’s investigation was a “waste of state money” and that they should stop such investigations entirely. (Source: Houston Chronicle via Brains and Eggs)

• Perry has refused to release documents relating to the Commission’s investigation, prompting the Houston Chronicle to sue Perry for what they believe should be publicly disclosed documents. (Source: Houston Chronicle)

The Texas Forensic Science Commission does important work to ensure the best forensic science evidence is used in Texas’ criminal justice system. Rick Perry’s attempts to delay, stall, and cover-up the Commission’s work has become a scandalous conspiracy of silence involving a state agency that should be free of politics.

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