Stop the Law of Parties
Justice Should Be Based on What You Did,
Not What Someone Else Did.
What is the Law of Parties?
The Law of Parties can be found in the penal code under 7.01 and 7.02. In simple terms, it is a method of conviction that allows a person to be responsible for and convicted based on the actions of another before, during, or after the fact. It is used in many types of cases, but the most concerning is its use in murder charges.
The death penalty was abolished when this law was created in the early 1970s. In 1976, the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty, creating the possibility that a person convicted of murder under the Law of Parties could be executed. In the US, there have been 11 people executed who did not kill another. In every state where this occurred outside of Texas. it only happened once. Texas has executed 6 people who have not killed and who were convicted under the Law of Parties. Today, at least 6 more people are on death row under the Law of Parties. Each day these people live in fear, and their families suffer with them. This must STOP. This is not the way Texas wishes to be #1.
Those on death row are not the only ones affected by the Law of Parties. From the stories we have received so far, we find convictions that include murder, robbery, and kidnapping. In each story, a common theme is that the principal party or the primary defendant regularly receives a lesser sentence than those convicted as co-defendants. The reason is plea deals. Those truly guilty take a plea deal, and those who are innocent of the charge, exercise their constitutional rights to a trial by their peers and are punitively punished for defending their innocence. This must STOP as well!
To bring about change we will need to raise an army of loud voices. Join us as we work to educate the public, our lawmakers, and other affected families about this law. We MUST all step together to end this injustice and create a remedy for those who have already been unconstitutionally convicted.
Click on the photo to the right to read the stories of those convicted, and then share them with your friends and families. Be part of positive change.
Why it matters
The Law of Parties affects far more than death penalty cases.
People have been convicted under this statute in cases involving homicide, robbery, kidnapping, and other serious offenses.
Through the stories shared with TPCA, one troubling pattern appears repeatedly:
Individuals who accept plea agreements often receive lesser sentences than co-defendants who maintain their innocence and exercise their constitutional right to a trial.
Families are separated for decades. Parents miss their children's lives. Elderly parents wait for loved ones to come home. Entire communities continue to carry the consequences of convictions that many believe deserve closer scrutiny.
Justice should never depend on fear of exercising constitutional rights.
A Law That Deserves Greater Transparency
One of the greatest challenges surrounding the Law of Parties is the lack of publicly available data.
Currently, there is no comprehensive system tracking:
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How often the Law of Parties is used
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Which offenses rely upon it
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Sentencing outcomes
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Demerging demographic trends
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Long-term impacts on families and communities
Without reliable data, meaningful oversight becomes difficult.
TPCA is working to change that.
By collecting stories and survey responses from directly impacted individuals and families, we hope to build one of the most comprehensive community-driven records of the Law of Parties in Texas.
Every story helps illuminate a larger picture.
#StopLoP ⚖️ #WhatIfItWasYourLovedOne ⚖️ #NotAKiller ⚖️
Learn More About the Law of Parties
For more information about the Law of Parties, please read the following:
Inviting Common Sense Into the Texas Law of Parties Doctrine
Rally Questions Death Penalty for Texas Man Who Didn't Pull Trigger
For Our Lawmakers
The full scope of convictions under Texas's Law of Parties remains unknown because the state does not systematically track or report its use. TPCA believes greater transparency is essential. What isn't measured cannot be effectively evaluated or held accountable.
The Law of Parties has been used to impose the same punishment on people whose actions, intent, and level of responsibility differed significantly. In some cases, individuals who neither killed nor intended for a killing to occur have received the same sentence as the person who committed the act.
TPCA urges lawmakers to:
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Create statewide reporting and tracking of Law of Parties convictions.
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Narrow and clearly define when the Law of Parties can be applied.
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End the use of the felony murder rule and ensure criminal liability is proportionate to an individual's actual conduct and intent.
Justice requires accountability that reflects a person's own actions, not punishment based solely on association. Texas must reform the Law of Parties to better align with the principles of fairness, proportionality, and due process.
Voices of LoP
"I am now 42 years old and have spent more than half my life inside prison, longer than I was alive and free on the outside. I call this half-life a point of no return that does things to a man. Other things like this that make me reflect back on my life are growing a beard for the first time only to find that there's some grey in it. I didn't have anything to shave when I first came down. I am guilty of burglary, not murder."
"I lost my father to cancer while on the inside. Christmas was a big deal in my family. Every year my Mother and us would put up the big artificial tree she was so proud of with its hundreds of lites and ornaments. We'd always leave it up well after Christmas into the New Year. At the time of my arrest, it was up. For 25 years, my mother has kept that tree up in her home, in our home, in hopes of me coming home. She still puts gifts under it for me. She tells me we will take it down together when I come home. Please let me return home to help her with this. This is the type of home I will be returning to. I can count on one hand the number of times my mother hasn't visited in 25 years. She comes to see me every weekend without fail. I am guilty of burglary, not murder."
