Dig Deeper Texas

Rep. Harold Dutton, D-Houston, told of walking through downtown Houston and crossing against a red light. He said he stopped when he saw a car coming, which turned out to be a police car.

“The policeman stopped in front of me and said, ‘Do you see that light?’” Dutton continued. “You know what I wanted to ask him? How many people do I see with (the law firm) Vinson & Elkins T-shirts on who jog through downtown Houston every day who run the lights?

“Where is he? Why doesn’t he ask them about it? You know why? They don’t have a suit on, but they don’t look like me.”

The bill would have created a new offense, punishable by a maximum fine of $500, for a person who has been detained by police to fail to provide their name, address and date of birth.

Failure to give that information is now an offense only if a person has been arrested. Such a refusal can be punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a maximum fine of $2,000.

Rep. Dianne White Delisi, author of the bill, said it does not intrude on law-abiding, innocent citizens. She said it could help police investigate suspicious persons lurking near schools or potential terrorists.

“I would ask you to separate the most serious issue of racism from this issue of law enforcement,” said Delisi, R-Temple.