Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

Senate rejects Burleson woman picked by Perry for parole board



AUSTIN — The Senate voted 27-4 on Wednesday to reject retired banker Shanda Perkins of Burleson as Gov. Rick Perry’s nominee to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles in the face of criticism that she is unqualified for a position that deals with "life and death" issues.

But Perry stands by the nominee, spokeswoman Allison Castle said. "Shanda Perkins possesses the experience necessary for the position. She has worked in prison ministry and as a counselor for children who were victims of sexual abuse," Castle said.

It was the first time in decades that a gubernatorial appointee has been rejected on the Senate floor.

In a telephone interview, Perkins expressed disappointment but said she would be willing to serve in another post. The Senate’s action would send her appointment back to the Senate nominations committee to leave the door open for Perry to appoint her to another position.

Perry appointed Perkins, 51, to the board in February. The seven-member panel, which is often at the center of death penalty cases, is empowered to grant or revoke parole and recommend when the governor should grant clemency or pardons.

The nominations committee recommended Perkins 4-1. But as her appointment came before the full Senate along with other nominees, Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, called for Perkins to be severed from the list and rejected.

'Not qualified’

"Simply put, members, this person is not qualified to serve on the Board of Pardons and Paroles," said Whitmire, the Senate’s longest-serving member, who leads the Criminal Justice Committee. The board, he said, deals with life-and-death matters and demands qualifications.

Whitmire cited Perkins’ extensive background in banking and suggested that Perry could nominate her to "a more appropriate area of state government." Whitmire also described Perry’s three other nominations to the board as "outstanding."

Perkins defended her credentials, saying she has been counseling troubled children and adults for over 20 years. She said teachers and sales executives have served on the board.

Her interest in helping troubled youths and adults began when she was 15, she said, when she and her mother counseled runaway teenage girls in south Fort Worth. Her mother, Gloria Gillaspie, is pastor of the Lighthouse Church in Burleson.

"I wanted to make a difference on the board and bring a little more compassion. That was my goal," she said after learning of the Senate’s decision. "My heart is really in that area."

'Whatever I can do’

But Perkins also signaled her willingness to accept another position. "Whatever I can do for the state of Texas, I’m certainly willing to do that," she said.

During her nomination hearing, Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, said the appointment was based on politics rather than experience with criminal-justice matters. He also questioned Perkins about her role in a complaint filed against JoAnne Webb, who was arrested at her husband’s business in 2003 for selling sex toys to undercover officers.

A judge dismissed the case against Webb.

Perkins said that her involvement in the sex-toy flap was "minuscule" and that she didn’t agree with Webb’s arrest. During her testimony, Perkins said all she did was give a copy of Burleson’s ordinance prohibiting sexually oriented businesses near churches and schools to the chamber of commerce president.