The first execution of 2018 in Texas and the nation took place Thursday evening for Houston’s “Tourniquet Killer.” It was the first execution under Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg, a Democrat who oversaw the first year in more than 30 without an execution in the county.
Jolie McCullough
Jolie McCullough was a reporter at The Texas Tribune from 2015 to 2023. She began as a data visualization journalist and then reported on criminal justice policy, ranging from policing and courts to prisons and the death penalty. She joined the Tribune from the Albuquerque Journal, her hometown newspaper. She previously worked at the Arizona Republic and is a graduate of Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Criticism builds for Texas DPS decision to lay off 117 older officers
The Texas Department of Public Safety is feeling the heat over a budget-related decision to lay off 117 officers serving in a retire/rehire program.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas will give out enough bulletproof vests to equip 40 percent of police in the state
Harris County and Houston top the list of hundreds of Texas law enforcement agencies set to receive bulletproof vests from a state grant.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
We’re reporting on sexual harassment in Texas workplaces. Share your story — confidentially — with us.
The Texas Tribune has been reporting on sexual misconduct at the Texas Legislature, but now we’re seeking stories beyond the Capitol. Share your story of Texas workplace harassment with us confidentially.
Posted in
Politics
Amid sexual harassment concerns, lawmakers consider how to check their own power
In their focus on the culture of sexual misconduct that regularly goes unchecked at the Capitol, Texas lawmakers are questioning how to check their own power when it comes to investigating reports of harassment and assault.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Relatives report inadequate heating at more than 30 Texas prisons
Relatives of inmates have reported that more than 30 Texas prisons lacked adequate heating during the state’s recent cold snap. A Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman said Wednesday that all prison units were “operating with adequate heating.”
Posted in
2017 Year in Review
Heat and a hurricane had a big impact on Texas criminal justice in 2017
Weather-related prison evacuations, legal battles over execution drugs and death sentences, and reform efforts at the Texas Legislature led the state’s criminal justice headlines in 2017.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas leads the nation in executions, but its death row population is dropping
Texas executed more people than any other state this year, but fewer new death sentences has led to a shrinking death row population.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
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.
Posted inState Government
Women’s group urges Texas Sens. Miles, Uresti to resign after sexual misconduct reports
Annie’s List, a group that works to elect Democratic women in Texas, has called on state Sens. Borris Miles of Houston and Carlos Uresti of San Antonio, both Democrats, to resign following reports of sexual misconduct.
