Gov. Greg Abbott asks Texas Rangers to investigate sexual abuse at youth lockups
Gov. Greg Abbott wants the Texas Rangers to investigate sexual abuse at the Texas Juvenile Justice Department. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/25/UP9A0314.jpg)
-
![Gov. Greg Abbott gives a briefing to the media regarding Hurricane Harvey at the DPS command center in Austin, Texas, on August 25, 2017.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
This Texas lawmaker could finish his term from jail
State Rep. Ron Reynolds recently lost his appeal to a 2016 conviction of five misdemeanor ambulance-chasing charges. If his last effort to have his conviction overturned fails, he faces a yearlong jail sentence. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/04/16/RonReynold-2.jpg)
![Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, during a House Environmental Regulations Committee meeting on April 16, 2013.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Former Texas judge accused of sexually assaulting teen for years
A lawsuit filed this fall alleges that Paul Pressler, a former state judge, lawmaker and leader on the religious right, repeatedly sexually assaulted a young man over a period of decades, beginning when the boy was just 14. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/12/11/Paul_Pressler.jpg)
![Paul Pressler, retired justice of the Texas 14th Circuit Court of Appeals.]()
Credit: YouTube screenshot -
District attorney who prosecuted Jeff Wood now wants him off death row
The prosecutor in the death penalty case of a man who didn't kill anyone has asked the parole board and Gov. Greg Abbott to change his sentence to life in prison. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/07/23/TXT-JeffWoodRally-Richmond003.jpg)
![Supporters of Jeff Wood gathered on July 23, 2016, in front of the Governor's Mansion to rally against his scheduled August execution.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond -
With border arrests down, some question Trump's push for more agents
The Department of Homeland Security’s announced a near-record decline in the number of people caught trying to enter the country illegally. Yet the Trump administration still wants to hire thousands of more border agents. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/03/02/TXT-BorderWall-Richmond014a.JPG)
![Customs and Border Protection agents constantly patrol wide gravel roads along the border fence. The traffic — which has increased as border enforcement budgets have soared — is another threat to border wildlife, according to scientists and conservationists.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
Three women indicted in death of impaired woman in state facility
Five months after the death of a severely disabled woman in a state facility, three employees have been indicted on felony murder charges. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/nursing-home-cuts.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
Texas prisons ban over 10,000 books. An Israeli diplomat wants to know why Hitler’s "Mein Kampf" is allowed.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice often takes heat for the books that are banned in state prisons. But the controversy escalated this week when Israel’s general consul to the Southwestern U.S. questioned why Mein Kampf isn't on the list. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Jail-Prison-Bars-1.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Rob Crow -
Texas senators discuss closing youth lockups amid sexual abuse scandal
Several state senators indicated at a Tuesday committee hearing that they would be open to closing at least some of Texas' five remaining remote lockups for committed youth. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/12/05/Whitmire_Nelson_MKC_TT.jpg)
![State Sens. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, John Whitmire, D-Houston, and Royce West, D-Dallas, at a Senate Finance Committee hearing on Dec. 5, 2017.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Two Gainesville youth lockup guards arrested over alleged abuse
Two guards at a Texas lockup for minors were arrested last week after allegedly abusing youths in custody, according to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/TeenInCuffs.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
-
Texas reform advocates want to close all state-run youth lockups
Juvenile justice reform advocates want all the state's youth lockups closed after the department's latest sexual misconduct scandal. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/06/11/JuveJustice-Arrest-2.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Victor V. -
What's happening in Harris County now that the sheriff issues bail bonds?
The burden of a federal court order mandating the free release of poor misdemeanor defendants from jail has fallen onto the Harris County Sheriff. County data shows more than 40 percent of the sheriff's bonds fail because defendants aren't showing up to court, but critics say that number doesn't tell the whole story. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/11/28/Harris_Co_Sheriff_Dept_CR_TT.jpg)
![The Harris Co. Sheriff's Office and Detention Facility in Houston.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals halts state's last execution of 2017
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stopped the state's last remaining execution of 2017, sending the San Antonio case back to court to resolve claims of false testimony at trial. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/08/30/Jail-prisoner.jpg)
![Juan Castillo]()
-
Days later, cause of Border Patrol agent's death still unclear
Days after a U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed and another seriously wounded, details about what happened to the agents, or even whether they were attacked, are still scarce. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/11/18/USBorderPatrol.jpg)
![U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at a processing facility in Brownsville on June 18, 2014.]()
Credit: Eric Gay -
He thought he had a free court-appointed lawyer. Then he got a $10k bill.
Defendants in Texas and across the country are sometimes asked to reimburse the government for the cost of their court-appointed lawyer through a practice called recoupment. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/11/13/Hill_Co_courthouse_TT.jpg)
![The Hill County Courthouse in Hillsboro.]()
Credit: Larry D. Moore CC BY-SA 3.0. -
In race against Keller, Republican highlighting infamous death row call
Sharon Keller, the longtime presiding judge of Texas' Court of Criminal Appeals, has tried to move on from several past ethical controversies — including blocking the last-minute appeal of a 2007 execution. A primary challenger hopes voters will reconsider them. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/10/26/Keller_Bridges_TT.jpg)
![Sharon Keller and David Bridges are both running in the 2018 Republican primary for presiding judge of the state's Court of Criminal Appeals.]()
-
Texas executes Mexican national despite international ire
Texas executed a Mexican national late Wednesday night despite a flurry of last-minute appeals and objections from his native country and United Nations human rights experts. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/11/07/Ruben_Cardenas_TT.jpg)
![Ruben Cardenas was sentenced to death almost 20 years ago for the kidnap, rape and murder of his 16-year-old cousin.]()
Credit: TDCJ -
"Sanctuary cities" law hearing draws debate on free speech, ICE detainers
It was round two in New Orleans on Tuesday for attorneys for the state of Texas and opponents of the state’s anti-“sanctuary cities” law, Senate Bill 4. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/05/29/_95I2131_CMS_protest.jpg)
![A massive protest engulfs the Capitol Rotunda as anti-SB 4 protesters rally on May 29, 2017, the last day of the 85th legislative session.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Air Force: Shooter who killed 26 in Texas church should not have been allowed to buy guns
The Air Force has released a statement that it failed to report Devin Kelley's domestic violence conviction to a national database used to screen firearms buyers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/11/05/Mourners_vigil_RJ_TT.jpg)
![Mourners gathered for the victims of the First Baptist Church shooting at a candlelight vigil in Sutherland Springs on Sunday night, Nov. 5, 2017.]()
Credit: Robin Jerstad for The Texas Tribune -
For Sutherland Springs residents, mass shootings seemed a world away — before Sunday
Mass shootings have become common throughout the nation, but when a community of only about 650 people lost 26 in one event Sunday morning, everyone in Sutherland Springs was impacted. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/11/06/Lupe-CMS.jpg)
![Lupe Picasso came from La Vernia with her 3-year old son to offer help to the residents of nearby Sutherland Springs, site of the deadliest mass shooting in Texas history.]()
Credit: Todd Wiseman / The Texas Tribune -
At least 26 dead after worst mass shooting in Texas history at San Antonio-area church
A lone gunman killed at least 26 people and injured many more at a church in Sutherland Springs. The tiny town was left reeling from the deadliest shooting at a place of worship in American history. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2017/11/05/Police_scene_Sutherland_Springs_RJ_TT.jpg)
![Police tape cordons off the crime scene at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs after the worst mass shooting in Texas history on Sunday, Nov. 5, 2017.]()
Credit: Robin Jerstad for The Texas Tribune