The Houston Chronicle’s Editorial staff has brought home the incredibly sad condition of the state schools that take care of the mentally disabled. There is not much to criticize in the opinion given and it is quite informative about a topic that is way too under the radar.
The editorial reads a lot like a news article by presenting its case with facts and quotes from legislators rather than unsubstantiated personal opinion; with only the last paragraph as a plea for quick comprehensive action.
A good job is done of giving a lot of background information including giving details from a Department of Justice report for 2007. The statistics are alarming, “450 confirmed cases of abuse and neglect, and at least 53 deaths.” It is more shocking that these statistics are not abnormal for a particular year, but more of an ongoing problem that has been persisting for a while.
The editorial mentions how Gov. Perry has asked the legislature to act to improve the conditions and that state Sen. Jane Nelson and state Rep. Patrick Rose have introduced legislation during this session. Nelson’s bill focuses on stricter oversight for current and prospective employees and more surveillance to monitor abuse.
The battle seems to be in how to make the improvement. $125,000 per resident is ridiculously expensive especially for the dismal service rendered. State Sen. Rodney Ellis appears to support creating independent living conditions within the community along side home care assistance. At the same time minimize the role of the state schools to bring down the cost.
The editorial does not judge which way may bring better results but says that transferring the recipients to monitored community services can only be more beneficial than the current insufferable situation of doing nothing.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
Texas Chief Justice Wants Reform
Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court Wallace Jefferson is the latest chief justice to ask for an end to partisan judicial elections. The article gives details about the chief justice’s “passionate plea for reform.” He also asked for a commission to be created to investigate the systematic problem of wrongful convictions, and how to prevent them from happening in the future.
He gave the statistic that four out of five people think a judge’s decision is influenced when a contributor is before the court. He advocated a merit selection system that allows a governor to appoint judges, but once the first term expires the voters decide whether to keep the judge in a “retention election.” In the election, the judge would not have opposition or give party identification.
In an effort to keep the choice of judges as void of politics as possible, the pool of candidates the governor would choose from would be selected by a diverse nominating committee. I am pleasantly surprised at the chief justice and hope the Legislature does move to find a more impartial way of electing judges. The idea of having a nominating committee to select competent candidates sounds great but the only way that will work is if they do not know the party affiliation of the judges either.
The notion of a judge being from a certain party is a breeding ground for corruption. The chief justice thanked Sen. Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock, who filed legislation to create nonpartisan retention elections. The bad news is that the legislation faces an uphill battle since the State has not been eager to alter the process.
He gave the statistic that four out of five people think a judge’s decision is influenced when a contributor is before the court. He advocated a merit selection system that allows a governor to appoint judges, but once the first term expires the voters decide whether to keep the judge in a “retention election.” In the election, the judge would not have opposition or give party identification.
In an effort to keep the choice of judges as void of politics as possible, the pool of candidates the governor would choose from would be selected by a diverse nominating committee. I am pleasantly surprised at the chief justice and hope the Legislature does move to find a more impartial way of electing judges. The idea of having a nominating committee to select competent candidates sounds great but the only way that will work is if they do not know the party affiliation of the judges either.
The notion of a judge being from a certain party is a breeding ground for corruption. The chief justice thanked Sen. Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock, who filed legislation to create nonpartisan retention elections. The bad news is that the legislation faces an uphill battle since the State has not been eager to alter the process.
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