Are 444,000* Texans being wrongly labeled criminals?

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Amy E. Mitchell, (888) 282-0293 ext. 703

Are 444,000* Texans being wrongly labeled criminals?


Fear that a convicted criminal will cause us or our loved ones harm is real for many Texans. We want public knowledge of these individuals so that we can protect our friends and families. Convicted criminals are subject to notice requirements and public knowledge of their acts to protect society.

Yet, imagine that you have been wrongly labeled a criminal and public knowledge of this lie is disseminated. Imagine the nightmare of being labeled a criminal and being punished when you have committed no crime. Imagine not being able to rent an apartment or secure a new job because you are labeled a criminal. This is not an identity theft situation or a tale of someone in a faraway dictatorship. This nightmare is a reality for hundreds of thousands of Texans.

These Texans have never been convicted of a crime and any criminal proceedings against them were dismissed by the Court, yet they are often labeled the same as a convicted criminal. These individuals were accused of a single criminal act (perhaps decades ago). The charges were dismissed under a deferred adjudication proceeding. However, they now walk with the stigma and punishment of a criminal label that is FALSE. This label stops them from fair access to shelter (i.e.- renting apartments) and the ability to earn a living (job applications and hiring).

The legislature did the right thing for these Texans in the last session. They passed SB1477 which is now the in the Texas Government Code 411.081(d)-(h), granting these Texans who have never been convicted of a crime the relief they deserve. This law provides that those individuals accused of a criminal act (felony or misdemeanor) that was dismissed via a deferred adjudication proceeding can have their records sealed. This will allow them to stop public disclosure of the dismissed criminal charges. They also can truthfully answer on a job or rental application that they have never been convicted of a crime without the fear that someone would receive public information of the dismissed charges and improperly interpret that they were convicted. The legislature needed to protect the Texas public from actual convicted criminals that could be a danger, so they excluded from the law those who were placed on deferred adjudication more than once. They also excluded any deferred adjudication charges for the most dangerous offenses including murder, kidnapping, sexual assault, family violence and numerous other serious offenses.

Many Texans still fear the acts of criminals, yet they no longer have to fear being wrongly labeled a criminal. Those who had a single incident of being accused of crime are now legally entitled to be free of the stain of a malicious and incorrect criminal label. Yet, are they aware of this life-altering freedom from false accusations? How few Texans know that they have this law to protect them? How few Texans have actually taken the necessary steps under the law to reclaim their lives and reputations? That is the concern of attorney, author, speaker and advocate Courtney Elizabeth Anderson. Ms. Anderson, JD, MBA, is a business consultant, motivational speaker and corporate trainer who has traveled over 1000 days in the past four years working with Fortune 500 clients and government agencies in the US, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Japan, and Europe as the “workplace relationship expert”. She is an expert that the global media can rely on, most recently appearing as a guest on national cable channel show FOX News Live on February 14, 2005. Interviews with Ms. Courtney Anderson, JD, MBA can be scheduled via Amy E. Mitchell at (888) 282-0293 ext. 703 or email service@CourtneyAnderson.com.

*Source: Office of Court Administration (OCA), Texas Judicial System Annual Report, 1988-2002 (Number represents total felony deferred adjudications from 1988-2002)

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