A high-stakes legal fight in Austin is about to put Texas’ new no-bail rules under the microscope. Prosecutors have asked a judge to deny bail for 38-year-old Thomas Vences, the man charged in the Jan. 4 shooting death of Caldwell County deputy constable Aaron Armstrong. Vences is currently held on more than $2 million in bond, with a critical hearing on whether he will be denied bail outright set for April 7. If the judge signs off, it would mark the first local use of the new constitutional bail provisions voters approved last year.
What Proposition 3 changes
Proposition 3 amends the Texas Constitution to allow judges to deny bail for a list of serious violent and sexual felonies when prosecutors show detention is necessary to protect public safety…..