Texas Board of Criminal Justice

Overview

The nine member Texas Board of Criminal Justice (TBCJ) is appointed by the governor to oversee the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ), which provides confinement, supervision, rehabilitation, and reintegration of the state’s convicted felons. The board members, who are appointed for staggered, six-year terms, are responsible for hiring the executive director of the department and setting rules and policies which guide the agency. TBCJ members also serve as the Board of Trustees for the Windham School District within the TDCJ. In this capacity, they are responsible for providing general oversight and the hiring of the school system's superintendent.

There are TDCJ divisions which report directly to the board. They are the Office of the Inspector General with oversight of the Investigations Department, the Internal Audit Division, and the office of State Counsel for Offenders. In addition, the PREA Ombudsman is appointed by and reports directly to the board.

Honarable Dale Wainwright, Chairman, Texas Board of Criminal Justice

Hon. Dale Wainwright, Chairman

(term expires 2/2021), was appointed to the TBCJ in August 2015. Texas Governor Greg Abbott named the Honorable Dale Wainwright Chairman of the Texas Board of Criminal Justice. Wainwright chairs the Correctional Institutions Committee and is a member of Audit and Review, Business and Financial Operations and Health Care committees. He is chair of the Texas appellate practice group for an international law firm. He is an appellate lawyer representing clients in complex commercial disputes of all types in state and federal courts and administrative appeals of oil and gas and electric utility disputes. Prior to returning to private practice, Wainwright served on the Texas Supreme Court for 10 years, authoring more than 125 opinions, and he also served as Presiding Judge of the 334th District Court in Harris County. He is the first African American to be elected to serve on the Texas Supreme Court. Wainwright graduated from Howard University (summa cum laude) with a bachelor's degree in economics. He studied abroad at the London School of Economics as the Lucy Dalbiac Luard Scholar and earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of Chicago Law School.

R. Terrell McCombs, Vice-Chairman

(term expires 2/2019), was appointed to the TBCJ in December 2007 and reappointed to the board in April 2013. He was elected as vice-chairman in October 2014. Mr. McCombs chairs the Business and Financial Operations Committee and is a member of the Audit and Review, Human Resources, and Legal committees. Mr. McCombs received his BS from the University of Houston, followed by an MBA in Marketing from the George Washington University, in Washington D.C. He is a regular member of the Boone and Crockett Club, and principal in an independent consulting business, specializing in marketing and financial expertise.

Eric Gambrell, Member, Texas Board of Criminal Justice

Eric Gambrell, Secretary

(term expires 2/2019), was appointed to the TBCJ in December 2007, and reappointed in April 2013. He was elected as secretary in June 2017. Mr. Gambrell chairs the Health Care Committee and he is a member of Business and Financial Operations, Human Resources and Legal committees. Mr. Gambrell received his BA from Texas A&M University before earning his law degree at the University of Texas School of Law. He is a trial partner with Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, L.L.P.

E.F. “Mano” DeAyala, Member

(term expires 2/2023), was appointed to the TBCJ in April 2017. Mr. DeAyala chairs the Community Corrections Committee and is a member of Health Care, Legal and Rehabilitation and Reentry Programs committees. He is a partner and attorney at Buck Keenan LLP, where he serves as counsel to individuals and companies in various industries. In addition to being a member of the State Bar of Texas, he is a Solicitor licensed in England and Wales. He is vice president of the Spring Branch Memorial Sports Association and member of the Solicitors Regulatory Authority and the Houston Bar Association. He is a fellow with the Texas Bar Foundation and the Houston Bar Foundation. DeAyala received a Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Texas at Austin and a Juris Doctor from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law.

Tom G. Fordyce, Member, Texas Board of Criminal Justice

Thomas G. Fordyce, Member

(term expires 2/2021), was appointed to the TBCJ in August 2015. Mr. Fordyce chairs the Human Resource Committee and is a member of Audit and Review, Community Corrections, Correctional Institutions, and the Victim Services committees. Thomas Fordyce is a rancher, cow/calf operator and hay producer who served as a commissioner for the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles and most recently a member of the Trinity River Authority. Prior to that, he was director of TDCJ's Agribusiness, Land and Minerals. Mr. Fordyce served in the United States Marine Corp during the Vietnam War and he currently serves as a member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Lone Survivor Foundation and Huntsville Veterans' Advisory Board.

Larry Don Miles, Member

(term expires 2/2023), was appointed to the TBCJ in August 2014. Pastor Miles chairs the Rehabilitation and Reentry Programs committee and is a member of the Community Corrections, Correctional Institutions and Victim Services committees. Pastor Miles attended West Texas A&M University, Amarillo College, and served in the U.S. Army. He is a pastor and elder of the Trinity Fellowship Church in Amarillo. He oversees state prison and jail ministries for the William P. Clements Unit, Nathaniel J. Neal Unit, and Potter and Randall County jails. Pastor Miles is also a certified volunteer chaplain for the Amarillo Parole office.

Patrick O’Daniel, Member

(term expires 2/2023), was appointed to the TBCJ in April 2017. Mr. O’Daniel is chair of the Audit and Review Committee and is a member of Business and Financial Operations, Correctional Institutions and Legal committees. He is a partner at the law firm of Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP and an adjunct professor at The University of Texas School of Law and he is a certified public accountant. He clerked for United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. He is former president of Catholic Charities of Central Texas, general counsel for Texas Review of Law and Politics and a member of the American Bar Association, National Association of Bond Lawyers, and Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants. O’Daniel received a Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Texas at Austin and a Juris Doctor from The University of Texas School of Law.

Derrelynn Perryman, Member

(term expires 2/2021), was appointed to the TBCJ in August 2015. Derrelynn Perryman chairs the Victim Services Committee and is a member of Health Care, Human Resources and Rehabilitation and Reentry Programs committees. She is the Victim Advocate Director for the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney's Office. She also serves as an adjunct instructor for the School of Social Work and the Criminal Justice and Criminology Department at the University of Texas at Arlington. She retired from the Arlington Police Department after serving for 21 years as the Victim Services Coordinator. She is a certified peace officer instructor, trains officers and first responders, and is a member of the Critical Incident Team with the Arlington Police Department. Ms. Perryman earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in social work from The University of Texas at Arlington.

Thomas P. Wingate, Member

(term expires 2/2019), was appointed to the TBCJ in April 2013. Mr. Wingate chairs the Legal Committee and is a member of Community Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry Programs, and the Victim Services committees. He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from St. Mary’s University, followed by a Juris Doctor from the University of Texas School of Law, and is a Career Prosecutor Graduate from the National College of District Attorneys. In 2007, Governor Perry appointed him Judge, 430th District Court, Hidalgo County. Mr. Wingate is an attorney specializing in commercial and residential real estate law.

Upcoming Meetings of the Texas Board of Criminal Justice

Public Comment Period
2nd and 4th meetings of every year

August 25, 2017	Omni Hotel at Southpark 4140 Governors Row Austin, Texas 78744
October 19, 2017	Wyndham Garden 3401 South IH 35 Austin, Texas 78741

Contact:

Texas Board of Criminal Justice
P.O. Box 13084
Austin, Texas 78711
tbcj@tdcj.texas.gov