Good morning!

Here is the Texas Minute for Wednesday, March 29, 2023.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

House Could Effectively 'Abolish' Death Penalty Today

• Members of the Texas House are slated to debate and vote today on legislation effectively abolishing the death penalty in the Lone Star State. Brandon Waltens has the details.
       
• House Bill 727 by State Rep. Toni Rose (D-Dallas) would exempt criminals found to have had a “severe mental illness” from capital punishment. According to the proposal, this is defined as a person who has schizophrenia, a schizoaffective disorder, or a bipolar disorder.
        
• According to data from the Treatment Advocacy Center, 10 percent of all homicides in the United States are committed by individuals with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. For mass killings, the percentage is approximately 33 percent.
      
• The legislation was unanimously approved by the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, which is chaired by Democrat State Rep. Joe Moody of El Paso. Moody himself is a staunch opponent of the death penalty.
     

• Representatives from the Texas Municipal Police Association, the Houston Police Officers Union, and Tarrant County District Attorney Phil Sorrells’ office are all opposed to Rose's proposal.

      
• Despite today being the 79th day of the 140-day legislative session, it is one of the first bills to be considered by the House so far. None of the priorities of the Republican Party of Texas have been considered.

Senate Moves Against Perpetual Emergency Orders

• Texas has been in a state of emergency over COVID for more than three years. Yesterday, the Texas Senate approved legislation cracking down on perpetual emergency orders and disaster declarations.
        
• Legislation by State Sen. Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury) would prevent a governor from issuing an emergency declaration for more than 30 days without calling a special session of the state Legislature to approve the effort. As a constitutional amendment, Birdwell's proposal will require adoption by voters before it can take effect.
      

• Identical legislation in the House has been referred to the State Affairs Committee, but has so far not been scheduled for a hearing.
     

• Of course.

Texas Medical Board Suspends Doctor's License Over Mask Mandate

• A doctor's medical license has been indefinitely suspended after he refused to abide the Gov. Greg Abbott’s COVID-era mask mandate in 2020.
     

• Dr. Eric Hensen is an ear, nose, and throat doctor in East Texas. He has been fighting the TMB for years over the policy. In 2021, the TMB first sent him a letter stating he violated Abbott’s mask order in 2020 after a patient turned him in.

      
• “This arbitrary ridiculous order by the Texas Medical Board required him to put masks on all his ears, nose and throat patients, who already have difficulty breathing,” explained Hensen’s lawyer, Paul Davis. “So, bottom line, the Texas Medical Board is taking a doctor’s license in the state of Texas, shutting down his practice, because he refused to do harm to his patients.”
       

• Hensen says he will be immediately filing a lawsuit against the TMB for pulling his medical license.
      

• It should be noted that the Texas Medical Board consists of 12 physician members and seven public members, all appointed for a six-year term by the governor and confirmed by the Senate.

Democrat Lawmaker Condemns Explicit Books in School Libraries

• A Democrat state representative is raising eyebrows for agreeing with a Republican activist trying to get lawmakers to remove sexually explicit books from public school libraries. Darrell Frost has the details.
          
• State Rep. Shawn Thierry (D-Houston) strongly condemned the content of "Gender Queer" – one of many sexually explicit "graphic novels" (comic books) found in libraries around the state.
      
• Thierry suggested the book was intended to “encourage kids to try extreme sex acts” and minimizes the risks associated with underage sex and pornography. She challenged her colleagues to read the book aloud in the Texas House, insinuating it is inappropriate for public consumption.
           
• Legislation dealing with the issue, by giving parents more tools to challenge sexually explicit materials, has been dismissed by many Democrats.

The Texas Deep State

• This week, Texas Scorecard's Robert Montoya is reporting on a months-long investigation of Child Protective Services – the scandals and the reforms.

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