Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the life of a truly remarkable woman, Ruby Session, who passed away earlier this month. In 1985, Ms. Session's son, Timothy Cole--a veteran, a student at Texas Tech University and a Black man--was wrongfully convicted of the rape of a woman in Lubbock County and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. He died there of an asthma attack while incarcerated. In 2009, DNA evidence proved that Tim Cole was wrongfully convicted; and in 2010 he received the first posthumous pardon in Texas history. Ms. Session fought for justice for her son, but throughout all of that, she still fought for justice for everyone in the State who had been wrongfully convicted. Thanks to her efforts, Texas now has additional safeguards to prevent wrongful convictions and to provide restitution to former prisoners who have been exonerated of their crimes. I am honored to have known Ms. Session and to have supported her pursuit of justice while I served in the Texas Legislature. Her spirit lives on in her reforms and in the many individuals whose lives she has touched. ____________________”