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Texas Prisoners Not Entitled To Records Request Under 2004 Act

Texas State prisoner Michael Cox appealed a 2006 Lubbock, Texas, court order denying his request for records concerning his 1992 conviction. The court interpreted his request as an attempt to appeal his case over a decade late and affirmed denial.

Cox filed a motion for transcripts at no cost to him in an attempt to allegedly enforce plea bargain violations. The court determined that he was not attempting to appeal his conviction but to collaterally attack it and hence had no right to the requested documents under Tex. Gov't. Code Ann. § 552.028 (2004). The court held that the Code granted the courts discretion under the circumstances to determine disclosure to individuals confined in a correctional facility. Cox appealed.

The Seventh District Court of Appeals of Texas at Amarillo held that a direct appeal expired over a decade prior to his request and that prisoners had no right to explore records in an attempt to effectuate any future relief from their conviction. Oral argument was waived and the denial for production was affirmed. See: Cox v. The State of Texas, 202 S. W. 3d 454 (Tex. App. 2006).

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Related legal case

Cox v. The State of Texas