1.0American Civil Liberties UnionJulia Birnbach/news/author/jbirnbachState v. Ochoa | American Civil Liberties Unionrich600338<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="3NcbQFiOlP"><a href="/cases/state-v-ochoa">State v. Ochoa</a></blockquote><iframe sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" src="/cases/state-v-ochoa/embed#?secret=3NcbQFiOlP" width="600" height="338" title="“State v. Ochoa” — American Civil Liberties Union" data-secret="3NcbQFiOlP" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" class="wp-embedded-content"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">
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This case in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals concerns the admissibility of a fourteen-year-old defendant’s confession following a Texas Ranger’s coercive interrogation. The ACLU’s State Supreme Court Initiative, alongside the ACLU of Texas, filed an amicus brief arguing that the defendant’s confession was induced by positive promises, and is inadmissible, particularly given his juvenile status and the circumstances of the interrogation. In November 2024, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (the highest court for criminal appeals in Texas) ruled that Holland's interrogation of Ochoa was unconstitutionally coercive in violation of Ochoa's Fourteenth Amendment due process rights.