For undergraduate courses in Texas Criminal Law Criminal Law in the Lone Star State Texas Criminal Law: Principles and Practices provides an in-depth review of Texas criminal law while highlighting how Texas legal sanctions differ from other states. Its state-specific focus on terminology and laws makes this an ideal text for readers planning to serve in the Texas criminal justice system. The Second Edition uses historical references and inter-state comparisons to examine the Texas criminal law system in varied contexts. The book uses real world examples of the day-to-day application of laws by law enforcement to connect major concepts to their practical application in the field. A scholarly presentation is balanced by an informal tone, making Texas Criminal Law interesting and easily digestible for readers.

The Texas criminal justice system has come a long way since the early 1990s, when a vicious crime spree by paroled murderer Kenneth McDuff convinced lawmakers and citizens that the system had broken down. In this book, District Attorney Ken Anderson describes major reforms that followed the McDuff case as he provides a complete overview of the criminal justice system in Texas. Using simple language that any citizen can understand, Anderson describes all aspects of the system--officials (police, prosecutors, judges), criminal procedure, criminal law, criminal punishments, victims' rights, and the juvenile system. He illustrates his points with real-life stories of crime and punishment. Throughout the book, Anderson emphasizes two facts--that crime prevention programs, stricter law enforcement, and increased prison space have dramatically lowered the crime rate in Texas and that citizen activism is very effective in bringing reform to the criminal justice system. This book will be essential reading for everyone--public and professional--concerned with criminal justice in Texas.

To order a paperback version of this casebook, please click here. Designed for use in a 1L Criminal Law course, this new casebook covers the traditional criminal law topics; because Texas is a Model Penal Code jurisdiction, it focuses primarily on Texas cases and statutes. Student self-assessment features include comprehension questions to test understanding of the basic concepts, as well as discussion questions that test students' ability to apply the basic concepts beyond the facts of the presented case. Practice multiple-choice and essay questions at the end of most chapters give students additional opportunities to assess their knowledge.

Case cites, practice tips, and charts based on years of questions from Texas prosecutors follow the statutes in this soft-bound book. This publication reflects all 2023 legislative changes and includes the Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure, Controlled Substances Act, juvenile and protective order portions of the Family Code, and Rules of Evidence.