WASHINGTON — Texas Senate hopeful James Talarico once opposed multiple major legislative efforts to crack down on sex predators getting cashless bail in the early 2020s, though he eventually did back some tighter rules on bail last year.
Back in 2021, the GOP-led Texas state legislature pursued multiple pieces of legislation aimed at cracking down on individuals arrested for alleged heinous crimes being allowed to post no-cash bond, triggering a tense fight with Democrats.
Talarico (D), a Texas state rep since 2018, voted against a May 2021 bill, HB 20, that restricted individuals in jail from posting bail on personal bonds, where they aren’t required to make an upfront payment, if they were arrested for sexual or violent crimes.
The measure also barred charities from posting bond on individuals accused or convicted of a violent crime. That provision came in response to an uptick in charities posting bond for alleged criminals in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.
One gripe lefty critics had was that HB 20 would’ve required anyone booked for certain misdemeanors to remain in jail for at least 48 hours to give a judge time to look at risk assessments.
Ultimately, HB 20 passed the Texas state House 98-46, but failed to become law due to a quorum fight.
That same month, he opposed a proposed constitutional amendment that would’ve barred judges from granting bail to individuals accused of committing sex crimes against minors under 17 and people accused of “committing continuous trafficking of persons.”
It passed the state House 104-35, but failed to go into effect because of the disagreement.
Then, Talarico opposed the “Damon Allen Act” in August of 2021, which stopped individuals arrested for violent or sexual offenses from getting cashless release. That measure ultimately passed 85–40 and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott (D).
In July of that year, Texas state Democrats had drawn national attention for breaking quorum in a separate policy showdown with the GOP over election integrity bills, meaning they stayed out of the legislature so Republicans wouldn’t have enough attendance to be able to conduct business.
Under Texas law, there must be 100 lawmakers present in the state House and 21 in the state Senate to have a quorum and be able to carry out legislative business.
Years later, in 2025, Talarico voted on two occasions to preserve amendments to Jocelyn’s Law, which would restrict illegal immigrants from getting bail if they are charged with felonies. Talarico missed the vote on its passage.
Ultimately, Jocelyn’s Law, which was named after Jocelyn Nungaray, the preteen who was brutally sexually assaulted and murdered by two illegal immigrants from Venezuela in 2024, came up short of being added to Texas’ state constitution.
Despite his prior opposition to GOP-led bail reforms in Texas, Talarico backed a bail reform package last year aimed at restricting individuals who committed certain types of crimes from being eligible for bail. That package drew significant Democratic support.
Gov. Greg Abbott (R) hailed it as “the strongest bail reform package in Texas history.”
“James proudly voted for Governor Abbott’s bill to deny bail for violent criminals, supports prosecuting violent felons, and has voted to send billions of dollars to support law enforcement,” Talarico spokesperson JT Ennis told The Post.
“On the other hand, Ken Paxton’s fellow Republicans have blasted his record of abusing his office to benefit his wealthy donors and the well-connected, allowing criminals back on the street even as it made Texans less safe.”
Talarico has been remarkably competitive against his Senate rival, Texas state Attorney General Ken Paxton (D), in what has historically been a red state. Paxton only has a 0.4-percentage point lead over Talarico in the latest RealClearPolitics aggregate of polling.
Paxton has faced various scandals, including indictment on securities fraud charges in 2015 and reports he cheated on his wife — all of which loomed over his bruising primary against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas).
In 2023, the GOP-led state legislature impeached him over accusations that he obstructed justice in that case, gave preferential treatment to a donor, misappropriated public resources, made false statements against whistleblowers, and more.
Ultimately, the state Senate narrowly acquitted him of the charges in a 16–14 vote.
Paxton and the GOP have sought to keep the pressure on Talarico by knocking him over his history of woke statements while trying to paint him as soft on crime.
