I've never liked the notion of allowing prison sentences to run concurrently rather than consecutively, but I understand it as a practical matter designed to avoid prison crowding due to multiple convictions. However, I don't have the same view on fines. Criminals should pay every penny of them.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals disagreed in a new ruling.

Criminals in Texas will get a break on their fines under a Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruling that courts must assess fines concurrently, rather than adding them together.

Wednesday's 5-4 ruling changes the 35-year-old practice under which Texas courts issued separate fines for separate criminal counts, with each to be paid consecutively.

Defendants will now pay the largest fine assessed by the court, and then every other fine is considered paid in full. The new practice brings fines in line with the way many prison terms are served — at the same time rather than consecutively.

The basic holding of the ruling is that the statute, drafted and adopted by Democrats back during their thirteen decade strangle-hold on political power here in Texas, requires that all aspects of sentences following multiple count trials be concurrent, not just prison terms. And as the law is written, I'd have to argue that they are correct.

The solution? New legislation, because it is not the place of the courts to repair or renovate shoddy statutory language. After all, there is no good public policy purpose in giving folks a break on their fines.

Here's hoping that Texas legislators make fixing the ill-considered statute early in the 2009 session.

Posted by: Greg at 10:54 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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