Texas criminal appeals court removes Tomas Gallo from death row because of his intellectual disability
The court re-sentenced Gallo to life in prison for the murder of his girlfriend’s 3-year-old daughter. Full Story
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![The Huntsville Unit Texas State Penitentiary houses the execution chamber of Texas and is located in Huntsville on Jan. 31, 2024.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
State district judge recommends overturning Melissa Lucio’s death sentence
In a rare joint statement, the district attorney and the defense agreed that prosecutors withheld evidence that could point to a Rio Grande Valley woman’s innocence in the death of her toddler. Full Story
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![Melissa Lucio was convicted and sentenced to death in 2008 for the murder of her her 2-year-old daughter, Mariah Alvarez.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Melissa Lucio's attorneys -
Man crashes stolen 18-wheeler into DPS office, killing one and injuring several others
Authorities arrested the driver, whom a local official said was denied a commercial driver’s license from the Brenham DPS station. Full Story
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![Texas Department of Public Safety vehicles outside of the state Capitol on Aug. 11, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Two Denton school district principals indicted on charges of illegal electioneering
A grand jury indicted the principals for allegedly using their school emails to encourage staff to vote for certain candidates in the March primary. Full Story
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![A woman holds a sign reading "No Vouchers" outside Denton Calvary Academy on March 27, 2023.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Matt Iaia/The North Texas Daily -
Texas National Guard member charged with human smuggling after high-speed chase near the border
Authorities said the 26-year-old turned around at a Border Patrol checkpoint and fled from police in Kinney County. Full Story
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
How Texas’ cash bail system and under-resourced jails can wreak havoc on women who are poor
In Texas, money can make a difference in how much time people who are legally presumed innocent sit behind bars awaiting the outcome of criminal cases. Full Story
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![Angela Collier in her home on Monday, March 18, 2024, in Midway, TX.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Nearly two years after the Uvalde massacre, here’s who has been reprimanded and where investigations stand
As a grand jury considers whether any law enforcement officers are criminally charged for their inaction during the Robb Elementary shooting, some families say they feel they’ve been let down and betrayed by elected officials. Full Story
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![Copy of the Department of Justice's Critical Incident Review Active Shooter at Robb Elementary School, at the Herby Ham Activity Centerin Uvalde on Jan. 18, 2024.]()
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
In Texas, natural disasters increase domestic violence risks
After Hurricane Harvey and Winter Storm Uri, domestic violence calls dropped immediately because of outages but in the days that followed, they rose. Full Story
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![A San Marcos neighborhood is blanketed with several inches of snow as a massive winter weather system causes power outages across Texas on Feb. 15, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas appeals court overturns Crystal Mason’s conviction, 5-year sentence for illegal voting
Mason gained national attention after she was convicted for voting while under supervised release for felony tax fraud. She said she didn’t know she was ineligible to vote. Full Story
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![Crystal Mason in Fort Worth on Sept. 9, 2019.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
Texas criminal appeals court takes man off death row over intellectual disability
Since Randall Mays was sentenced to death in 2008 for the murder of two sheriff’s deputies, his lawyers have argued his intellectual disability exempts him from execution. Full Story
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![Guard towers are located around the Polunsky Unit on Jan. 31, 2024.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
Legal experts say it’s rare to pursue jail time in securities fraud cases like Paxton’s
In 2015, Attorney General Ken Paxton was indicted on three securities fraud felony charges. Experts in securities fraud say those charges are rarely pursued. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton talks with his team in the 185th Criminal District court at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center before his pretrial hearing March 26, 2024, in Houston.]()
Credit: Danielle Villasana for The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton agrees to community service, paying restitution to avoid trial in securities fraud case
Paxton, who will not have to enter a plea under the terms of the agreement, faced the prospect of decades in prison if he had been convicted of fraud. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton enters the 185th Criminal District court at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center for his pretrial hearing March 26, 2024, in Houston.]()
Credit: Danielle Villasana for The Texas Tribune -
Feds arrest five men accused of smuggling illegally purchased guns to cartels in Mexico
The men were charged with two criminal offenses, including straw purchasing of firearms, created by the 2022 bipartisan gun safety bill authored by Sen. John Cornyn. Full Story
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![A Springfield Saint Victor AR-15 rifle is displayed during the National Rifle Association annual convention in Houston on May 27, 2022.]()
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Uvalde police chief resigns after controversial report cleared officers who responded to school shooting
Daniel Rodriguez was out of town during the 2022 massacre. He told the local newspaper he was “not forced, asked or pressured” to resign. Full Story
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![Uvalde Special City Council meeting at City Hall on June 7, 2022.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy for The Texas Tribune -
“The families deserve more”: Uvalde city report clears local officers of wrongdoing
Families were infuriated by praise for local law enforcement in a report on the Robb Elementary School shooting released Thursday by a private investigator. Full Story
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![A mural in memory of Makenna Lee Elrod, one of the 21 Robb Elementary school shooting victims in Uvalde on Oct. 22, 2022.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
El Paso judge says he’s concerned that Ken Paxton has “ulterior political motives”’ in migrant shelter probe
The judge will make a ruling soon on whether Annunciation House is obligated to release all the documents the attorney general’s office has demanded. Full Story
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![Ruben Garcia, director of Annunciation House, sits at the witness stand answering questions from Jerome Wesevich, a lawyer with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid representing Annunciation House, during a motion hearing with Judge Francisco Dominguez in the 205th District Courtroom in El Paso on Thursday, March 7, 2024.]()
Credit: Gaby Velasquez/El Paso Times/USA TODAY NETWORK via REUTERS -
Dallas County sheriff to face predecessor Lupe Valdez, who ran for governor in 2018, in runoff election
Valdez ran the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department until 2017, when she stepped down to run against Gov. Greg Abbott. Full Story
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![Former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez, left, and current Dallas County Sheriff Marian Brown]()
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Sean Teare unseats Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg in primary
Teare, a former prosecutor in Ogg’s office, defeated the two-term incumbent at Tuesday’s primary and will face the Republican nominee in November’s general election. Full Story
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![Candidate for Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare.]()
Credit: Sean Teare for Harris County District Attorney Campagin -
U.S. Supreme Court continues blocking Texas immigration law
Senate Bill 4 would allow Texas police to arrest people suspected of illegally crossing the border. Full Story
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![National Guard members tell migrants that they cannot cross through that area and that they need to walk until the end of the property to turn themselves in Eagle Pass, Texas on July 29, 2023. As there is concertina wire installed along the Urbina’s property, migrants are told to walk to the end of the property. Many make that walk which can be difficult to do through slippery rocks in the water, the current and the inclined river bank, while some find spots through the concertina wire and manage to get through. Some will be sent back after being arrested for trespassing private property without allowing them to go through the immigration process in the U.S.
Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Verónica Gabriela Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune -
Supreme Court divided over gun rights challenge to Trump bump stock ban
Austin gun store owner Michael Cargill challenged the ban on the devices used in major mass killings after he was forced to surrender two bump stocks. Full Story
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![Assault-style weapons are laid on a table at a gun show in San Marcos on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune
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