Texas Senators Approve Constitutional Amendment to Deny Bail for Violent Offenders
Previous attempts to amend the state constitution sailed through the Senate but failed in the House.
In a bipartisan vote, Texas senators have overwhelmingly approved placing an amendment to the state constitution on the ballot in hopes that despite previous failures, this year’s House members will finish the job.
Sen. Joan Huffman’s (R-Houston) Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 5, would give judges and magistrates the discretion to deny bail to defendants charged with 1st degree felony sexual offenses in which a weapon was involved or where serious bodily injury, violent offenses, or continuous trafficking of persons occurred. Judges or magistrates who deny bail would be required to issue a written order with findings of fact explaining why the defendant must be detained.
Huffman noted that previous versions of SJR 5 had passed the Senate in 2021 and 2023 but failed in the House.
“Since January 2021, the first time the Senate passed a version of this resolution … there have been at least 162 homicide cases filed in Harris County, Texas for defendants released on one or more bonds at the time of a new murder offense,” said Huffman.
Co-sponsor Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa (D-McAllen) clarified that judges must find “clear, convincing evidence” that a person is a danger to the community, victims, or police before denying bond under SJR 5.
Huffman noted that she had received support from former senator and current Houston Mayor John Whitmire and at least two district attorneys in large urban counties: John Creuzot of Dallas County and Brian Middleton of Fort Bend County, both Democrats.
In response to confusion about support from newly elected Harris County District Attorney (DA) Sean Teare, Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston) told the Senate chamber that Teare had visited him, Huffman, and other state lawmakers of both parties on opening day of the 89th Legislative Session to voice support for proposed bail reforms.
“I believe DA Teare was all for this bill on opening day,” said Bettencourt, noting that Teare’s office had then sent an email or text to Huffman withdrawing support last week.
“That’s a pretty big disappointment,” said Bettencourt. “That’s a sad, sad reversal especially when you look at [district attorneys] from Dallas County, Fort Bend County. This is a bipartisan bill.”
Teare did not respond to The Texan’s request for comment.
Bettencourt cited the murder of Texas woman Caitlynne Guajardo and her unborn child in 2019. Guajardo had filed charges against her husband after he hit her in the face and submerged her cat in a bag of bleach, but he was released on personal recognizance bonds at the time of the murder.
Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) echoed Bettencourt’s comments and said as a former prosecutor he was proud to be a co-sponsor, urging his fellow Democrats to support SJR 5.
“This bill should pass 30 to nothing. This is not a Republican bill, not a Democratic bill,” said West. “We must protect victims.”
SJR 5 passed 28 to 2 with only Sens. Molly Cook (D-Houston) and Sarah Eckhardt (D-Austin) voting nay, while Sen. Boris Miles (D-Houston) was absent again.
Both Cook and Eckhardt provided statements on their objections for the record. Cook argued that SJR 5 “fails to expand the right to counsel, too broadly applies ‘violent offense,’ and directs bail officers to consider likelihood to appear rather than willful failure to appear.” Eckhardt said there were already too many pretrial detentions in the state and that judges could set very high bail instead.
Despite her opposition to Huffman’s bail reform proposals, Eckhardt lambasted Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza, a fellow Democrat, in comments to the Austin American-Statesman Thursday after learning that a suspect charged in a 2024 murder was released last week on a $100 bond although his bail had been set at $800,000.
Earlier this week, the Senate gave bipartisan support to other bail and criminal justice billsincluding SJR 1, another constitutional amendment that would require judges to detain without bail illegal aliens charged with felony crimes. The latter, Jocelyn’s Law, is named for a 12-year-old Houston girl who was sexually assaulted and strangled last year. The two men charged are Venezuelan nationals who entered the country illegally in the spring of 2024.
Both SJR 1 and SJR 5 must receive the support of two thirds of the House, meaning Republicans will need at least some Democratic members’ votes.
Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu (D-Houston) has signaled some willingness to discuss the issue but has also voiced concerns over the constitutionality of the proposed amendments.
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