Two-thirds of the state’s roughly 100 jails and prisons in Texas are not fully air conditioned in inmate housing areas.
Kiah Collier
Kiah Collier was a reporter for the ProPublica-Texas Tribune investigative initiative from 2020 through 2023. She previously worked at the Tribune as a reporter and associate editor, covering energy and the environment through the lens of state government and politics. Kiah has reported for numerous other publications across Texas since 2010, including the Austin American-Statesman and the Houston Chronicle. Her beats also have included government and politics, public education and business. Kiah’s work has been honored with numerous prizes, including a George Foster Peabody Award, a Gerald Loeb Award, the Knight-Risser Prize for Western Environmental Journalism, the National Edward R. Murrow Award for best investigation and the AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Award. A seventh-generation Texan, she grew up in the Austin area and graduated with high honors from the University of Texas at Austin with degrees in journalism and philosophy.
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Criminal Justice
Judge upholds Austin ordinance decriminalizing pot
The Texas attorney general accused Austin of violating state law after voters in 2022 approved an ordinance decriminalizing marijuana possession.
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UT-Austin Protests
UT-Austin says protesters carried guns and assaulted people. One person has received a weapons charge.
School officials have suggested there was planned violence at the protests, but one local prosecutor has raised doubts.
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Criminal Justice
Travis County district attorney faces removal attempt under Texas’ “rogue” prosecutors law
A county resident accuses José Garza of “indiscriminately” pressing charges against law enforcement and refusing to prosecute certain crimes.
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Economy
Court challenge from Texas AG Ken Paxton could end Austin’s light-rail plans
The attorney general took issue with the financial strategy Austin used to navigate the limits state lawmakers have placed on how Texas cities can raise money.
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Ken Paxton Impeachment
Ken Paxton impeachment records reveal fights over witness testimony and alleged bullying
The Texas Senate released hundreds of pages of previously-unreleased documents that pull back the curtain on the proceedings, revealing behind-the-scenes fights between Paxton’s defense team and the prosecution.
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State Government
Texas has spent more than $148 million busing migrants to other parts of the country
Since Gov. Greg Abbott announced the program in 2022, Texas has paid to bus more than 102,000 migrants to cities around the country.
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Criminal Justice
Judge rejects attempts to toss indictments against Texas AG Ken Paxton, keeps April trial on course
Paxton’s securities fraud trial will kick off on April 15. He has been under indictment for nearly nine years. He has pleaded not guilty.
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Criminal Justice
Former police Chief Art Acevedo returning to Austin for City Hall job overseeing the department he once led
Acevedo is expected to create new recruiting strategies, review patrolling operations and improve police academy training.
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Transportation
Cruise suspends self-driving car operations in Austin, nationwide
Austin officials said residents complained about the cars not operating properly. The company’s suspension follows the launch of a federal investigation into incidents with pedestrians in San Francisco.