As 2014 approaches, Texas district and county attorneys are preparing to implement a new law that aims to prevent wrongful convictions by requiring prosecutors to open their files to defense lawyers. Sounds simple: Prosecutors have boxes with files that have evidence, and they just have to lift the lids and extract the papers. The reality? Not so much.

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Former Williamson County State District Judge Ken Anderson, who oversaw Michael Morton’s wrongful murder conviction as a prosecutor, was sentenced to nine days in jail and will surrender his law license as part of a deal to resolve criminal charges and a civil lawsuit.

Williamson County state district Judge Ken Anderson, who oversaw the wrongful murder conviction of Michael Morton in 1987, has submitted a letter to Gov. Rick Perry resigning his position effective immediately.

UPDATED: A Texas appeals court on Friday ordered a new trial for Dennis Davis, who is serving 36 years in prison for the 1985 murder of Natalie Antonetti of Austin. In an opinion, the 3rd Court of Appeals agreed with Davis' assertion that his trial counsel was ineffective and did not present witness testimony relevant to his case. 

Legislators approved at least seven bills meant to prevent future wrongful convictions. Michael Morton’s ubiquitous presence and lobbying efforts helped. But both reform advocates and prosecutors agree that the increased presence of Tea Party Republicans also changed the Legislature’s attitude toward law and order.

House lawmakers on Tuesday approved two bills meant to ensure that wrongful convictions, like the one that Michael Morton behind bars for nearly 25 years, don't happen to others. The measures will stop next on Gov. Rick Perry's desk.

Monday marks the 50th anniversary of the landmark Brady v. Maryland decision, and the Texas House is scheduled to vote on a law that some legal experts say would ensure that the ruling’s tenets are carried out to help prevent wrongful convictions. Five decades after the ruling, Texas is on the verge of requiring prosecutors to open their files.

UPDATED: Williamson County state district Judge Ken Anderson has filed an appeal asking a court to rule that a warrant for his arrest should be void because it violates the statute of limitations.

Senators on Thursday passed Senate Bill 1611, also known as the "Michael Morton Act," which would require prosecutors to turn over evidence to defense lawyers in criminal cases. The chamber erupted in applause following the vote. Morton said had the proposed law been in place when his wife was murdered, he might not have been wrongfully convicted.

A fight over what defense lawyers could do with information about their clients in criminal cases after prosecutors turn it over to them is threatening to stymie the “Michael Morton Act.” State Sen. Joan Huffman and some prosecutors want a restriction that limits how defense lawyers can share that information.

A jury in March found Mark Alan Norwood guilty of the 1986 murder of Christine Morton, and he was sentenced to life in prison. This photo slideshow provides an overview of the timeline and characters in the tragic case.

The prosecutor who secured Mark Norwood's murder conviction says that if Michael Morton had not fought from prison to prove his innocence in his wife's murder, the DNA testing that led to Norwood’s conviction might not have been done. Norwood’s lawyers said that problems in the original 1986 investigation impacted their defense.

Family members of Christine Morton and Debra Baker filled a Tom Green County courtroom with tearful hugs and relieved smiles on Wednesday after a jury found Mark Alan Norwood guilty of murder. Norwood, 58, received an automatic life sentence after the jury decided he was guilty of Morton's 1986 murder, for which her husband was wrongfully convicted. 

After calling just three witnesses on Mark Norwood's behalf, lawyers for the man accused of killing Christine Morton in 1986 rested ther case Tuesday afternoon. Closing arguments in the capital murder trial are scheduled to begin on Wednesday morning.

State Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, on Tuesday plans to present a revised version of his criminal discovery bill that would require only prosecutors to disclose information in criminal trials.

On the third day of Mark Alan Norwood’s capital murder trial, prosecutors concluded their presentation of DNA evidence that connects him to the 1986 murder of Christine Morton. Jurors also saw graphic photos of the fatal wounds she experienced and heard from the man who bought the gun Norwood allegedly stole from the Morton's home. 

Christine Morton's brother John Kirkpatrick testified Wednesday in the trial of Mark Norwood, who is accused of beating Morton to death in 1986. Kirkpatrick told jurors how he found the bandana that links Norwood to the crime.