Whereas the Houston Police Department should be held accountable by the Houston Mayor and City Council to properly and legally carry out their jobs,

And whereas the Houston Police Crime Lab problems have received national and international new coverage and are now a disgrace to all in the City of Houston,

And whereas innocent people such as Josiah Sutton and George Rodriguez have been released from prison due to the incompetence of the HPD Crime Lab,

And whereas innocent people such as Frances Newton have come within hours of being executed,

And whereas other innocent people such as Johnnie Bernal and Nanon Williams have been locked up since they were 17 years old and have grown into men on Texas death row because of false ballistic testimony given by HPD Crime Lab against them,

Be it resolved that the Honorable Houston Mayor Bill White and the City Council go on record as supporting a moratorium on executions of all people from Harris County until all lost evidence in Harris County cases has been accounted for, all evidence has been re-tested by outside labs, and all evidence that has been damaged by leaking roofs, cross-contamination, or improper storage be publicly documented.

Submitted by the Committee to Free Frances Newton, the Nanon Williams Support Association, and the Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement to the Honorable Houston Mayor Bill White and the Houston City Council on February 22, 2005.