1.   Both a federal judge and a state judge recently ruled that the clemency process was constitutional, but both judges also criticized the secretive way the parole board operated.

2.   But more broadly, they are arguing that the clemency process here is fundamentally flawed.

3.   District Judge Scott McCown today could set temporary rules for the clemency process while a trial is held to determine whether it is legal.

4.   District Judge Mary Pearl Williams of Austin sided with Gosch in a preliminary ruling that the clemency process is probably illegal and unconstitutional.

5.   He added that Justice is developing rules requiring that comments from victims be obtained as part of the clemency process.

6.   In addition to discouraging an overhaul of the clemency process, Rodriguez disputed the need for a new life-without-parole sentencing option in Texas.

7.   In an appeal that the U.S. Supreme Court denied on Wednesday, Ms. Babcock argued that the clemency process in Texas failed to meet minimum standards of fairness.

8.   In his appeal to the Court of Criminal Appeals, Morales argued that previous court rulings have said the clemency process passes legal muster.

9.   In the appeal rejected Wednesday, her attorneys challenged the clemency process in Texas.

10.   Republicans in Congress have begun to subpoena White House and Justice Department records on the clemency process in anticipation of hearings.