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SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 500
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WHEREAS, The year 2019 marks the 10th anniversary of the |
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passage of the Tim Cole Act by the 81st Texas Legislature, and |
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this milestone provides a fitting opportunity to honor the memory |
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of those esteemed Texans who dedicated their lives to improving |
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the state's criminal justice system; and |
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WHEREAS, Signed into law by Governor Rick Perry in 2009, |
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the Tim Cole Act increased financial compensation for the wrongly |
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imprisoned; the legislation is named in honor of Timothy Cole, |
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the first person in the country to be exonerated posthumously |
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through DNA testing; a veteran of the United States Army and |
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former Texas Tech student, Mr. Cole died in prison in 1999; his |
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family and the Innocence Project of Texas worked together to |
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clear his name, and he received the state's first posthumous |
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pardon in 2010; five years later, his alma mater presented his |
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family with an honorary degree in law and social justice to |
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recognize Mr. Cole's sacrifice and contribution to reforms in the |
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state's criminal justice system; the City of Lubbock has also |
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dedicated a statue in his memory; and |
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WHEREAS, The Innocence Project of Texas was founded in 2006 |
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by attorneys Mike Ware and Jeff Blackburn to provide pro bono |
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investigative and legal services to indigent Texans convicted of |
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crimes they did not commit; since its inception, the organization |
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has won the freedom of 26 men and women; among those cleared were |
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four men, now deceased, who devoted themselves to helping others |
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still wrongfully incarcerated; and |
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WHEREAS, James Lee Woodard of Dallas County was exonerated |
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in 2009 after 27 years in prison, and while working in behalf of |
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criminal justice reform, he donated $100,000 to study the causes |
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of faulty eyewitness identification; he passed away in October |
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2012; and |
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WHEREAS, Billy James Smith of Dallas County, exonerated in |
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2006 after two decades in prison, accepted speaking engagements |
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across the country to address prison reform; in addition, he |
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testified before the United States Congress and the Texas |
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Legislature on numerous pieces of legislation; he passed away in |
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March 2017; and |
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WHEREAS, Johnnie Lindsey of Dallas County, imprisoned for |
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26 years before his exoneration in 2008, became a private |
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investigator and process server while working to free the |
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innocent; he died in February 2018; and |
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WHEREAS, Ronald Gene Taylor of Harris County served 13 |
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years in prison until 2008, when he was exonerated; he dedicated |
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himself to criminal justice reform at the state and national |
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level until his death in September 2018; and |
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WHEREAS, These brave and resolute Texans set an inspiring |
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example through their tremendous commitment to criminal justice |
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reform, and their legacy will long endure; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 86th |
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Legislature, hereby commemorate the 10th anniversary of the |
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Tim Cole Act and pay tribute to the lives of Timothy Cole, James |
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Lee Woodard, Johnnie Lindsey, Billy James Smith, and Ronald |
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Gene Taylor. |
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West |
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________________________________ |
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President of the Senate |
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I hereby certify that the |
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above Resolution was adopted by |
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the Senate on March 26, 2019. |
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________________________________ |
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Secretary of the Senate |
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________________________________ |
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Member, Texas Senate |