Capital Punishment Clinic
The Capital Punishment Clinic is offered as a one semester graded course during the Spring semester. Participants earn four credit hours. Participants are limited to third year law students and a maximum of 4 students are selected for this clinic.
The Capital Punishment Clinic provides a community service by giving the student the opportunity to assist in the representation of defendants charged with capital murder. Upon application, four students will be invited to participate to work with the West Texas Public Defenders Office for Capital Cases located in Lubbock. This is the first Public Defenders Office of its type in Texas and is the prototype for representation of those accused of capital crimes. The students will work with the attorneys, mitigators, investigators and other professionals in helping to represent those facing the death penalty using cutting edge techniques and applying their legal education to a wide variety of activities including investigation, interviewing clients and witnesses, legal research, legal writing, restorative justice, criminal procedure and substantive criminal law.
Students are closely supervised at all stages of their cases by Associate Professor Patrick S. Metze and the Chief Public Defender for Capital Cases, Adjunct Professor Jack Stoffregen. The classroom component will continue the student’s study of capital punishment jurisprudence focusing on skills development, ethics, and case strategy in real on-going capital cases. This clinic requires a significant commitment of time which will return a unique, experiential opportunity for third year students as they approach the end of their legal education.
Prerequisites
- The Capital Punishment Clinic is open to third year law students only
- Required Classes: Capital Punishment Seminar offered in the Fall semester each year
- Recommended prerequisites: Evidence, Criminal Procedure, Professional Responsibility, Texas Criminal Procedure, Trial Advocacy, and/or moot court or mock trial experience
- Students cannot be on scholastic probation
- Accepted students cannot be previously or concurrently enrolled in another clinic, cannot be concurrently enrolled in an externship, may not have outside employment (although exceptions can be made), and may not sit for the February bar exam
- Enrollment is by application and invitation only