cheka.
3rd June 2017, 09:24 PM
http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Abbott-signs-Jenny-s-law-to-protect-rape-11192746.php
A new Texas law named after a Harris County rape victim known as "Jenny" will guarantee that victims and witnesses held in custody to ensure their testimony will be given access to attorneys at public hearings.
Signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday, Senate Bill 291 requires that potential witnesses be provided court-appointed attorneys at public hearings before they could be ordered held in custody at the behest of prosecutors to ensure their testimony, as Jenny was.
The law, which state lawmakers and public officials called a key step forward in safeguarding crime victims' rights, also requires that a witness be able to request a hearing after 24 hours of being confined, and another rehearing after 15 days. It will go into effect on Sept. 1.
The legislation was dubbed "Jenny's Law" after the 25-year-old rape victim's travails in the Harris County criminal justice system. She was jailed for more than a month in late 2015 and early 2016 by Harris County prosecutors who wanted to ensure her testimony at the trial of Keith Edward Hendricks, a serial rapist who was ultimately convicted of sexually assaulting her.
"This law corrects a horrible abuse of power," said state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, author of the bill. "This is not a defendant in a case. This is an innocent citizen that is being confined and denied their liberty because of the importance of a case, but you can't deny them their rights."
Jenny's mother said she was grateful to hear that the bill named after her daughter had become law. She said she is thankful that legislators followed through on their promise to fix what they saw as a flaw in the system.
"It doesn't change what happened to Jenny, but at least it's an acknowledgement that it should not happen to anyone else again," she said.
Jenny, as she is identified publicly by her attorneys and family, agreed to testify at Hendricks' 2015 trial but experienced a psychological breakdown on the witness stand while describing her 2013 attack. She was then taken to a hospital for treatment.
Upon her release, she was jailed for 27 days so that she would testify against Hendricks at his trial in January 2016
In July 2016, Jenny filed a federal lawsuit against prosecutors and Harris County, claiming that her constitutional rights had been violated and that her jailing amounted to being "re-raped." Jenny and her attorneys further claimed that the court order - called a "writ of attachment" - used to jail her was illegally obtained.
The new law is specifically designed to protect witnesses being held under writs of attachment, a legal process Whitmire said is not often used.
In passing the legislation, lawmakers had difficulty determining how common the practice was across the state.
Another part of the law will now require that county court officials report the use of a writ of attachment to the Texas Judicial Council no later than 30 days after one was issued.
"The secrecy around it was alarming," Whitmire said of Jenny's case. "And we wanted them to start reporting it because you can't fix things you don't know about."
Jenny's case touched off a national scandal and became a dominant issue in the Harris County District Attorney's race.
A Houston Chronicle investigation published in April revealed that law enforcement authorities in Houston and Harris County missed multiple opportunities to convict Hendrick for allegedly raping numerous homeless women in Houston. He committed Jenny's rape weeks after a prosecutor dismissed a prior rape charge as part of a plea deal.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg has endorsed the legislation, as have other prosecutors and justice-advocacy groups. In November's election, Ogg, a Democrat, defeated incumbent Republican Devon Anderson, who said jailing Jenny was unfortunate but necessary to make sure Hendricks was finally convicted.
"Victims of sexual assault and other crimes will never again be jailed, and their traumas exacerbated, solely by prosecutors willing to sacrifice them for a conviction," Ogg said in a prepared statement Friday. "Recognizing that victims have due process rights, including the right to counsel when their liberty is at stake, is a historic milestone in the national victims' rights movement."
A new Texas law named after a Harris County rape victim known as "Jenny" will guarantee that victims and witnesses held in custody to ensure their testimony will be given access to attorneys at public hearings.
Signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday, Senate Bill 291 requires that potential witnesses be provided court-appointed attorneys at public hearings before they could be ordered held in custody at the behest of prosecutors to ensure their testimony, as Jenny was.
The law, which state lawmakers and public officials called a key step forward in safeguarding crime victims' rights, also requires that a witness be able to request a hearing after 24 hours of being confined, and another rehearing after 15 days. It will go into effect on Sept. 1.
The legislation was dubbed "Jenny's Law" after the 25-year-old rape victim's travails in the Harris County criminal justice system. She was jailed for more than a month in late 2015 and early 2016 by Harris County prosecutors who wanted to ensure her testimony at the trial of Keith Edward Hendricks, a serial rapist who was ultimately convicted of sexually assaulting her.
"This law corrects a horrible abuse of power," said state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, author of the bill. "This is not a defendant in a case. This is an innocent citizen that is being confined and denied their liberty because of the importance of a case, but you can't deny them their rights."
Jenny's mother said she was grateful to hear that the bill named after her daughter had become law. She said she is thankful that legislators followed through on their promise to fix what they saw as a flaw in the system.
"It doesn't change what happened to Jenny, but at least it's an acknowledgement that it should not happen to anyone else again," she said.
Jenny, as she is identified publicly by her attorneys and family, agreed to testify at Hendricks' 2015 trial but experienced a psychological breakdown on the witness stand while describing her 2013 attack. She was then taken to a hospital for treatment.
Upon her release, she was jailed for 27 days so that she would testify against Hendricks at his trial in January 2016
In July 2016, Jenny filed a federal lawsuit against prosecutors and Harris County, claiming that her constitutional rights had been violated and that her jailing amounted to being "re-raped." Jenny and her attorneys further claimed that the court order - called a "writ of attachment" - used to jail her was illegally obtained.
The new law is specifically designed to protect witnesses being held under writs of attachment, a legal process Whitmire said is not often used.
In passing the legislation, lawmakers had difficulty determining how common the practice was across the state.
Another part of the law will now require that county court officials report the use of a writ of attachment to the Texas Judicial Council no later than 30 days after one was issued.
"The secrecy around it was alarming," Whitmire said of Jenny's case. "And we wanted them to start reporting it because you can't fix things you don't know about."
Jenny's case touched off a national scandal and became a dominant issue in the Harris County District Attorney's race.
A Houston Chronicle investigation published in April revealed that law enforcement authorities in Houston and Harris County missed multiple opportunities to convict Hendrick for allegedly raping numerous homeless women in Houston. He committed Jenny's rape weeks after a prosecutor dismissed a prior rape charge as part of a plea deal.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg has endorsed the legislation, as have other prosecutors and justice-advocacy groups. In November's election, Ogg, a Democrat, defeated incumbent Republican Devon Anderson, who said jailing Jenny was unfortunate but necessary to make sure Hendricks was finally convicted.
"Victims of sexual assault and other crimes will never again be jailed, and their traumas exacerbated, solely by prosecutors willing to sacrifice them for a conviction," Ogg said in a prepared statement Friday. "Recognizing that victims have due process rights, including the right to counsel when their liberty is at stake, is a historic milestone in the national victims' rights movement."