July 5, 2023 - To honor America and the freedoms we all enjoy, and to celebrate the significance of Independence Day, local attorneys gathered in the upstairs courtroom of the Historic 1885 Courthouse on Friday, June 30, 2023.
Attorney Deck Jones thanked everyone for attending the reading and explained it is a goal of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association for a formal reading of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights to be performed annually in each of the 254 Texas counties.
Jones then introduced the attorneys participating in the reading to be Stephen Shires, Scott Peal, April Prince, Kim Ryan, and Jeff Adams. He then went on to give some history leading up to the writing of the Declaration of Independence and its signing by 56 courageous men. The Declaration contains three sections: a general statement of natural rights theory and the purposed of government; list of grievances against the British King; and finally the declaration of independence from England.
Next, the group read the Bill of Rights which are the first 10 amendments of the Constitution.
