Baa, Baa, Black Sheep

The blog Grits For Breakfast has an interesting post of a bill in the Texas legislature to make the stealing of one goat, sheep or other livestock animal a felony offense.

Beyond the policy madness of a felony rap for stealing a $35 goat, this bill raises a more general complaint I have about such legislation: The political process is not honest about what it would cost. As with all bills expanding incarceration at the Texas Legislature, the official "fiscal note" for SB 1163 claims the legislation is a freebie to taxpayers, but obviously that is false. Source: Grits For Breakfast

Even is this law passes, it's not likely to have an increased deterrent effect. Most felonies around here aren't prosecuted as such since most people get "deferred adjudication". Deferred adjudication means if they complete probation the conviction won't go on their record.