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Belinda Hill
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Belinda Hill was a judge of District 230 in Harris County, Texas. She was appointed in 1997 by Governor George W. Bush, and she resigned in December of 2012 to become an district attorney for the county.[1][2]
Education
Judge Hill earned a B.A. in communications and rhetoric from the University of Virginia, going on to receive her J.D. in 1982 from the Thurgood Marshall School of Law.[3][4]
2010 election
Hill defeated Democrat Garland McInnis in the general election, winning 57.2 percent of the vote.[5][6]
Noteworthy cases
State of Texas vs. Andrea Yates
- The trial of Andrea Yates for drowning her five children began on February 18, 2002.[7]
- For an in-depth, legal review of the Andrea Yates case, read: Deborah W. Denno, "Who is Andrea Yates? A Short Story About Insanity,"
- For a chronological listing of events in the life of Andrea Yates, read: TIME LINE OF ANDREA YATES'S LIFE AND TRIAL (dead link)
Non-legal critiques of Hill's performance in the Andrea Yates Trial
- Opinion: Andrew Cohen, CBSNews.com, February 20, 2002: If you think you are having a bad day, imagine for a few moments how bad your day would be if you were a juror in the case State of Texas v. Andrea Yates. ... There is no excuse, for example, for the trial judge in a case with sequestered jurors not to plan ahead for obvious evidentiary disputes and resolve them before those disputes waste the jury's time. Many judges around the country, in fact, run such a tight ship over the attorneys before them in a criminal trial that virtually everything that goes on before jurors has been discussed, resolved and even scripted outside of the presence of those jurors. That isn't happening here. In fact, the opposite is happening here.... No wonder citizens don't want to serve on juries. No wonder so many have lost respect for the justice system. And who said Texas justice is particularly swift?[8]
- Richard Connelly, Thou Shalt Not Pee, Houston Press, Mar 7, 2002:"State District Judge Belinda Hill has issued a set of rules for the media that severely restrict what they can do; more troubling for reporters with passes to the trial is that the court is having difficulties getting its act together to enforce them."[9]
Gilbert Amezquita spends 8 years in prison, maintained innocence
Gilbert Amezquita was charged with aggravated assault in the beating of co-worker Kathy Bingham, who ended up in a coma for ten days.[10][11] After she awoke, she said, "Gilbert did it."[12] Because Bingham fought back, the Houston Police Department was able to take pieces of material found under her fingernails, but they never tested it.[13] When Amezquita, an Army Reservist with no criminal record, came to trial, his defense lawyer asked for DNA testing of the material.[14] Judge Belinda Hill refused the request and later the DNA material was destroyed by HPD.[15] Amezquita was sentenced to 15 years.[16] Upon appeal, his lawyer learned that another man named Alonzo Gilbert Guerero, who also worked with Bingham, had a criminal record.[17] The attorney further learned that Gilbert Guerero had sold Bingham's cell phone the day after the assault.[18] Amequita was found innocent and eventually released after spending eight years in prison.[19]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Texas Death Penalty News (Yahoo! Group), "Yates judge seeks to keep tight rein on trial"
- ↑ Houston Chronicle, "Judge worries new Harris mental health court is in peril," December 11, 2012
- ↑ Alumni News & Class Notes from The Thurgood Marshall School of Law
- ↑ Judge Profile: Belinda J. Hill on Martindale.com
- ↑ The Houston Chronicle, "Harris County Election Results"
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, Republican Primary Winners (dead link)
- ↑ Jim Yardley, "Trial Opens in Case of Drowned Children," The New York Times, Feb. 19, 2002
- ↑ Andrew Cohen, "Swift Justice? Not So Fast,"
- ↑ "Thou Shalt Not Pee" Houston News, March 7, 2002
- ↑ Brian Rogers, "Free after 8 years, ex-inmate begins new life at church, Dec. 6, 2006
- ↑ Ibid.
- ↑ Ibid.
- ↑ Steve McVicker, "No retrial for man denied DNA test," Feb. 2, 2005
- ↑ Ibid.
- ↑ Ibid.
- ↑ Brian Rogers, ibid.
- ↑ Steve McVicker, ibid.
- ↑ Brian Rogers, ibid.
- ↑ Steve McVicker, "State board urges innocence pardon," May 3, 2007
Federal courts:
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas
State courts:
Texas Supreme Court • Texas Court of Appeals • Texas Court of Criminal Appeals • Texas District Courts • Texas County Courts • Texas County Courts at Law • Texas Statutory Probate Courts • Texas Justice of the Peace Courts
State resources:
Courts in Texas • Texas judicial elections • Judicial selection in Texas
