A 2008 federal court decision that ordered the state to restructure its bilingual and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) programs was overturned by the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans today.
Judiciary of Texas
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Can Rick Green Be Stopped?
Ever since his narrow March 2 win set off a collective grumble from the legal establishment, thereโs been a movement afoot to shore up support for his runoff opponent. Now the fruits of those efforts have ripened. ๏ปฟ
Posted in
Health care
DNA Destruction
In the weeks before state health officials incinerated more than 5 million baby blood samples that they stored without consent, privacy advocates, parents and legislators reached a last-ditch accord to save them but couldnโt convince the Department of State Health Services to sign on. A Texas Tribune investigation found that the agency had turned hundreds of such samples over to a federal Armed Forces lab to build a DNA database โ and hadnโt been upfront about it with lawmakers or the public.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
TribBlog: Judges Gone Wild [Updated]
In an unexpected reversal, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has thrown out Charles Dean Hood’s death sentence on the heels of a U.S. Supreme Court appeal and national media attention.
Posted in
Demographics
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Hu, Philpott, and Ramsey on the Democratic gubernatorial debate, the pre-game, the post-game, and the highlight reel. Thevenot on the push for accountability in persistently low-performing schools. M. Smith on the Republican assault on sitting Republican appellate judge. Hamilton on a county with more than one Tea Party trying to claim conservative voters. With lawmakers staring down a growing budget crunch, Aguilar looks back at the last one for instruction. Grissom finds that U.S. Border Patrol has quietly stopped a program to deport illegal immigrants through Presidio. Ramshaw reports on a West Texas nurse who got into and out of criminal trouble for complaining about a doctor she worked with. The second University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll finds Rick Perry and Bill White with big leads in their respective party primaries. Rapoport found herself in the eye of the storm, traveling with Debra Medina on the day the candidate unexpectedly and disastrously made national news when Glenn Beck asked her on his radio shows about the attacks on the World Trade Center on 9/11. The best of our best from February 8 to 12, 2010.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
The Trials of Felipe Reyna
Two former Texas Supreme Court justices and a Goliath of state judicial politics are trying to oust the 10th Court of Appeals judge from the courthouse that he once cleaned as a janitor.
Posted in
State Government
2010: Terri Hodge to Resign, Plead Guilty
The embattled state representative admits making a false statement on a federal tax return.
Posted inState Government
Guest Column: The End of Judicial Elections?
The U.S. Supreme Courtโs decision in the Citizens United case will come to be seen as the third horseman of the apocalypse for lawyers, judges, and those who favor the direct election of state judges.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Odor in the Court
Even if 84 percent of Americans believe judges should not hear cases from major campaign contributors, the big Texas law firms that have donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to them over the last ten years see nothing wrong with business as usual.
Posted in
State Government
TribBlog: Advocates Want DOJ To Probe State School Firings
Advocates for people with disabilities want the U.S. Justice Department to investigate state employees who were fired for abuse, but never criminally prosecuted for it.
