The region has some of the highest suicide rates in the state. But the safety net for people who need help is being stretched thin, and some Texans are falling through.
East Texas
Posted in
Health care
East Texas county sues drug companies, alleges role in opioid crisis
Upshur County is suing a slew of prescription painkiller manufacturers and distributers in federal court, accusing them of fueling a nationwide opioid addiction epidemic. Other Texas governments may follow suit.
Posted in
Energy
Study: Oil Activity May Be Cause of East Texas Quakes
University of Texas at Austin researchers call it “plausible” that underground injections of oil and gas waste triggered a series of temblors that rattled Timpson residents in 2012.
Posted in
Politics
Can Mary Lou Bruner Rewrite Texas Textbooks?
The Texas State Board of Education doesn’t hold the national sway it once did, so if the controversial East Texas grandmother is elected her impact might be marginal.
Posted in
Politics
Van de Putte’s Statewide Bus Tour Ventures off Democrats’ Beaten Path
State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, is reaching out to voters in conservative hotbeds in North and East Texas — a nod to Democrats’ dependence on increasing voter turnout in statewide races.
Posted in
Energy
Official Says Marvin Nichols Reservoir Should Stay in Water Plan
UPDATED: The Texas Water Development Board’s executive director issued a final recommendation Monday that the controversial Marvin Nichols reservoir in northeast Texas remain in the state water plan for now.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
“Bernie” Movie Plays Key Role in Bernie’s Freedom
Filmmaker Richard Linklater always thought life in prison was too harsh for Bernie Tiede, the East Texas mortician who murdered his 81-year-old companion. Now — in large part because of Linklater’s film on him — Tiede is no longer behind bars.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Jasper Reaches $831,000 Settlement With Fired Police Chief
The East Texas town of Jasper has reached an $831,000 settlement in the federal discrimination lawsuit brought by its first black police chief after his 2012 firing.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
East Texas Town’s Stance on Famed Convict Changes Over 15 Years
When Bernie Tiede went to trial in 1999 for murdering a wealthy Carthage widow, many in the town wanted the young man to see a light punishment. But 15 years into his life sentence, many now say prison is where he belongs.
Posted in
Energy
After Arkansas Spill, East Texans Seek Permanent Shutdown of Pipeline
About eight months after a ruptured pipe spewed at least 210,000 gallons of tar sands oil in Arkansas, residents and some public officials in East Texas are calling on regulators to permanently shutter the Pegasus pipeline, which runs beneath local reservoirs and backyards.