On the Ballot: Texas Constitutional Amendments 2019

Ten proposed constitutional amendments will be on the November ballot. The Texas League of Women Voters has compiled a nice list of the amendments along with important voting deadlines. Compare the pros and cons of each proposed amendment, and prepare to cast your vote on Election Day, November 5, 2019.

Proposed Constitutional Amendments

1. Municipal Judges

2. Assistance for Water Projects in Distressed Areas

3. Tax Relief for Disaster Areas

4. Personal Income Tax

5. Sporting Goods Tax to Support State Parks

6. Cancer Prevention & Research

7. Funding Public Education

8. Flood Control

9. Tax Exemption of Precious Metals

10. Law Enforcement Animals

For additional information and resources for voting in Texas, visit VoteTexas.gov And, for a brief history lesson on why the Texas Constitution is so long, with so many amendments, read this article at the Texas Tribune. Finally, for all your Texas statutory and Constitutional law research needs, the Texas Legislative Reference Library is your best free online resource.

An Important Day in Constitutional History: Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478 (1964)

During Constitutional Law Resource Month at the Harris County Law Library, we are taking a look back at a landmark Supreme Court decision, Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478 (1964). Tomorrow marks the 55th anniversary of the decision and its role in reinforcing our Sixth Amendment rights.

Danny Escobedo was arrested without a warrant on January 20, 1960. As the prime suspect in the shooting death of his brother-in-law, he was held for questioning for more than 18 hours. Escobedo asked repeatedly for his attorney to be present, but repeatedly, his request was denied. It was only after being indicted that Escobedo was granted access to a lawyer, violating his Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights to due process and access to counsel. The Miranda v. Arizona, 384 US 436 (1966) decision just two years later implicitly overruled Escobedo, but it was, nonetheless, an important step in the process toward ensuring a constitutional right to counsel for the criminal accused.

June is Constitutional Law Resource Month

The Harris County Law Library is highlighting Constitutional Law Resources during the month of June. Currently on view in the Law Library lobby are three exhibits:

• Brown at 65: Explore the history of this important U.S. Supreme Court case which was decided 65 years ago on May 17, 1954.

• LGBT Legal Resources: Learn about significant federal legislation and landmark Supreme Court cases that have shaped the legal landscape for LGBT Americans in recent years.

• Magna Carta: View the Law Library’s 1763 copy of Magna Carta, the foundational document on which the United States Constitution is based.

Brown at 65

On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court delivered its unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954), in which the Court declared the doctrine of “separate, but equal” to be “inherently unequal” when applied to public schools. In honor of the 65th anniversary of the landmark case, the Law Library has created an exhibit that brings the precedent front and center for all to experience through an immersive presentation.

Walking through informative markers placed at the relevant reporters provides visitors with a vivid, undeniable sense of the pace at which school desegregation cases wended their way through the courts. For example, while many people know Brown began in Kansas in 1951 (the first opinion can be found at 98 F.Supp. 797 (Kan. 1951)), fewer realize the final opinion wasn’t penned until 1999 (the final opinion can be found at 56 F.Supp.2d 1212 (Kan. 1999)).

Visit the law library today to explore this special exhibit in person!

LGBT Legal Resources

Learn more about the following civil rights achievements for LGBT Americans:

• Lawrence v. Texas; 539 U.S. 558 (2003);123 S. Ct. 2472; 156 L. Ed. 2d508; 71 U.S.L.W. 4574

• Obergefell v. Hodges; 576 U.S. ___  (2015); 135 S. Ct. 2584; 192 L. Ed. 2d 609; 83 U.S.L.W. 4592

• Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010; Pub. L. 111–321, Dec. 22, 2010, 124 Stat. 3515

View selected resources from the Law Library's print collection including:

• Transgender Persons and the Law 

• Sexual Orientation and the Law

• Estate Planning for Same-Sex Couples

• The Impact of Marriage equality on Texas Law (State Bar of Texas CLE)

Additional LGBT legal resources are available via our electronic databases. In particular, the HeinOnline Law Journal Library contains a number of scholarly legal publications, including the Dukeminier Awards Journal, which recognizes the best sexual orientation and gender Identity law review articles of each year, dating back to 2001. A full archive of back issues is available on HeinOnline and on the journal's website at the University of California Los Angeles Law School.

Magna Carta

This month, we are also highlighting the history of Magna Carta. To commemorate the historic agreement made June 15, 1215, and memorialized by the iconic document, the Law Library has placed on display its 1763 copy of Magna Carta alongside American and Texas legal materials that show the connection between The Great Charter and the constitutional freedoms we enjoy today. Visit our downtown Houston location to view the colonial-era manuscript through the month of June and visit our digital exhibit for even more about Magna Carta.

Examining Brown v. Board on its 65th anniversary

On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court delivered its unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954), in which the Court declared the doctrine of “separate, but equal” to be “inherently unequal” when applied to public schools. In honor of the 65th anniversary of the landmark case, the Law Library has created an exhibit that brings the precedent front and center for all to experience through an immersive presentation.

Informative markers in our Federal section illustrate Brown’s beginning, interim, and eventual end as part of a commemorative experience located throughout the library.

Walking through informative markers placed at the relevant reporters provides visitors with a vivid, undeniable sense of the pace at which school desegregation cases wended their way through the courts. For example, while many people know Brown began in Kansas in 1951 (the first opinion can be found at 98 F.Supp. 797 (Kan. 1951)), fewer realize the final opinion wasn’t penned until 1999 (the final opinion can be found at 56 F.Supp.2d 1212 (Kan. 1999)).

Visit the law library today to explore this special exhibit in person!

Expanding a Special Collection - The Law of Coahuila and Texas

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We were pleased to welcome Dr. Jesús F. de la Teja, author, professor, and CEO of the Texas State Historical Association, and David A. Furlow, Executive Editor of the Journal of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society, at the Harris County Law Library on Friday to mark the donation of two new volumes to the law library’s special collection - The Law of Coahuila and Texas, or La Ley de Coahuila y Texas.

Photo from left: Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan, Dr. Magdalena de la Teja, Dr. Jesús F. de la Teja, David A. Furlow, Law Library Director Mariann Sears, Law Library Deputy Director Joseph D. Lawson

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Actas del Congreso Constituyente de Coahuila y Texas de 1824 a 1827

Dr. de la Teja signed the donated two-volume work entitled Actas del Congreso Constituyente de Coahuila y Texas de 1824 a 1827: Primera Constitución bilingüe, or Acts of the Constituent Congress of Coahuila and Texas, 1824–1827 : Mexico’s Only Bilingual Constitution, which he coauthored with Judge Manuel González Oropeza, former magistrate for the Federal Electoral Commission of Mexico. The work provides the text of the document and analysis of the pivotal role it played in the transition of Coahuila and Texas from joined states of Mexico to states separated by an international border. Given the content of the work, Dr. de la Teja’s inscription is apt:

For the Harris County Law Library,

With great appreciation for your efforts to preserve and promote ties with our sister republic,

/s/Jesús F. de la Teja

4/5/2019

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The Law of Coahuila and Texas, an historical resource collection

La Ley de Coahuila y Texas, una colección de recursos históricos

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 The two-volume set is now a part of the Law Library’s collection of materials focused on the legal history of Southeast Texas and Northeast Mexico from Spanish colonization to statehood. It includes historical volumes of texts containing some of the region’s earliest laws to modern analysis that provide context and finding aids for modern researchers. Marking the end of the collection’s chronological scope is a reproduction of Captain William Emory’s survey of the U.S.-Mexico border issued in 1859. The three-volume set contains firsthand accounts of surveyors and illustrations of the region’s topography, flora, and fauna.

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Digesto Constitucional Mexicano: Historia Constitucional de la Nacion - De Aguascalientes a Zacatecas: 1824-2017

On behalf of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society, Mr. Furlow also donated the scholarly treatise entitled Digesto Constitucional Mexicano: Historia Constitucional de la Nacion - De Aguascalientes a Zacatecas: 1824-2017. This work, written by Judge Manuel González Oropeza, provides extensive insight into the historical evolution of constitutional law in an area of Mexico not previously covered by the Law Library’s collection. We appreciate the donation and are thrilled to make these resources available to all at the Harris County Law Library.