Balance the Scales of Justice in Texas

by: Todd Hill

Tue Dec 30, 2008 at 07:00 AM CST

Watkins benefited from the Dallas County Democratic sweep by landing in the Dallas County D.A.'s office in 2006.  He has proceeded to transcend a new way of viewing and practicing justice in Texas.  And, along the way, has opened the door for the wrongly convicted to have their due justice as well.  In a state drunk on capital punishment, Watkins progressive tonic is a much needed refreshing dose of 21st century justice.  The DMN adds:

He [Watkins] is actively pursuing a range of reforms that would protect the wrongly accused and appropriately punish the guilty. Not only does he want to clear the innocent, but he also hopes to extend the statute of limitations in DNA cases to ensure that the right person does the time.

He has reinvented his office by creating a conviction integrity unit, an operation that has freed prisoners who were wrongly locked up for murder, robbery and rape. Not content to just notch wins in the courtroom, Mr. Watkins deserves credit for vigilantly pursuing justice - a distinction with an important difference.

Dallas County leads the country in DNA exonerations (19 and counting), and Mr. Watkins has seized upon the attendant acclaim, taking his fight for social justice to statewide and national stages. In his sudden fame, he sees an opportunity to change the way district attorneys do business.