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Hayden Betts is an Austin-based summer reporting fellow. He has reported on the criminal legal system for The Appeal and The American Prospect and recently covered health, housing, and politics in the South Bronx for the Mott Haven Herald. Hayden is a master's student in local accountability reporting at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. He previously earned a bachelor’s degree in the history of science from Harvard University. He grew up in Pasadena, California.
Despite receiving substantial state funding to air-condition prisons in the last few years, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has stayed mum on when it will install cooling across the system. Full Story
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Although a new round of floods elsewhere prompted emergency rescues Sunday, no injuries or deaths were reported. Full Story
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While sirens can help in areas with shaky cell service, experts say officials also need to consider alert fatigue and provide education on what to do in an emergency. Full Story
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Religion and the river are constant Kerr County touchstones. As residents lean on their faith, they grapple with their relationship to the water. Full Story
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In the last nine years, federal funding for a system has been denied to the county as it contends with a tax base hostile to government overspending. Full Story
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Crews are using construction equipment to clear vehicles, trees and homes in a race to locate more than 170 people still missing since Friday’s devastating flood. Full Story
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A North Texas man charged with capital murder after slipping mifepristone into his girlfriend’s food signals another attempt to rein in abortion pills. Full Story
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Although Patrick and hemp industry leaders have quarreled over the risks and benefits of THC, cannabis researchers say it can be addictive but doesn’t usually cause widespread psychosis or brain damage. Full Story
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Abbott will call lawmakers back to Austin to tackle Senate Bill 3, a proposed ban on THC products that he vetoed, as well as five others from his veto list. Full Story
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Texas hemp users stockpile products and consider moving out of state as ban looms, saying the medical marijuana program is currently an untenable alternative. Full Story
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