Houston Criminal Defense Attorney - Brian Foley - Board Certified in Criminal Law
One of my favorite provisions of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure is Article 1.18 which covers something called "Outlawry." It's funny to me because it is a relic from a time where sheriff's and prosecutors would tell a particular person, "Get out of my city and don't ever come back!"
It was common practice to outlaw specific people from places. Nowadays we have criminal trespass warnings for private property but "outlawry" was the whole banning of individuals from cities, counties, or even states!
Article 1.18 makes that practice illegal. "No citizen shall be outlawed, nor shall any person be transported out of the State for any offense committed within the same."
Recently Greg Abbott shipped illegal immigrants out of the State and technically this might be outlawed by Article 1.18. There would be no State Jurisdiction for a violation of federal immigration law to begin with, which could make it tricky. But nonetheless its an interesting thing to think about.
I'd like to make this a bonus section where we cover 1.19 Corruption of Blood. Corruption of blood is a relic from the common law and Texas law now provides "No conviction shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture of estate." Its the law that says you don't have to pay for your parent's mistakes. So lets say you were in England back in the day and your father stole cows form his neighbor. Well when your father died, you might be considered to have corrupt blood and be unable to inherit his land or the king might take your land for a certain period of time, or forever. Encyclopedia Britannica described it like this, "Even harsher than attainder was the doctrine of corruption of blood, by which the person attainted was disqualified from inheriting or transmitting property and his descendants were forever barred from any inheritance of his rights to title."
Art. 1.18. OUTLAWRY AND TRANSPORTATION. No citizen shall be outlawed, nor shall any person be transported out of the State for any offense committed within the same. Acts 1965, 59th Leg., vol. 2, p. 317, ch. 722.
Art. 1.19. CORRUPTION OF BLOOD, ETC. No conviction shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture of estate. Acts 1965, 59th Leg., vol. 2, p. 317, ch. 722.
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