Mark White

72 East Broad Oaks DriveHouston, TX 77056March 29, 2011Hon. Pete P. GallegoChair, Criminal Jurisprudence CommitteeTexas House of RepresentativesRoom CAP 4N.9, CapitolP.O. Box 2910Austin, TX 78768Hon. Will HartnettVice-Chair, Criminal Jurisprudence CommitteeTexas House of RepresentativesRoom CAP 4N.10, CapitolP.O. Box 2910Austin, TX 78768Dear Representative Gallego and Representative Hartnett:I write to express my support of H.B. 1641, which would establish a Texas Capital PunishmentCommission. As former Governor of Texas, I oversaw 19 executions. Before each execution, Ipainstakingly reviewed each individual’s case to be as certain as humanly possible that he hadreceived a fair trial and was guilty of the crime for which he was sentenced to death.However, there are more safeguards beyond careful gubernatorial review that the State of Texasshould put in place to decrease the likelihood of executing an innocent individual and to increasefundamental fairness in our capital punishment system. The Texas Capital Punishment Commissionwould study and analyze what new safeguards are needed, particularly safeguards related to thelegal representation of capital defendants, the availability of appellate review and access toexculpatory evidence.One need not support the abolition of the death penalty to support the establishment of thisCommission and the examination of such safeguards. Accuracy and fairness in the justice system areideals upon which we all can agree, regardless of our diverging viewpoints on the death penalty itself.Last year, I joined The Constitution Project’s Death Penalty Committee because of grave concerns Ihad about the possibility of our justice system executing an innocent individual. While thisCommittee comprises supporters of the death penalty as well as abolitionists, regardless of our viewson the death penalty itself, we all have profound concerns that the administration of capitalpunishment is deeply flawed and believe that all persons facing the death penalty are entitled to thefundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution.As our report

Mandatory Justice: The Death Penalty Revisited

explains, there are certainrecommendations that can make the system more fair and more accurate, including ensuringcompetent and adequately compensated counsel at all stages of capital litigation, providing post-conviction review in cases of credible claims of innocence, and the preservation of potentiallyexculpatory evidence.