Lawmakers Urged to Reform Parole With Technology
A panel of experts on Tuesday urged lawmakers to use more technology to improve community supervision of parolees, a change they argued would save money and reduce recidivism. Full Story
The latest courts news from The Texas Tribune.
A panel of experts on Tuesday urged lawmakers to use more technology to improve community supervision of parolees, a change they argued would save money and reduce recidivism. Full Story
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday morning that federal limits on the effects of air pollution across state boundaries are legal, striking down a challenge from Texas and a number of other states and industry coalitions. Full Story
A state lawmaker wants to know if it’s legal to have taxpayers foot the bill for the $450-an-hour attorney hired to defend Gov. Rick Perry in a grand jury investigation. Full Story
Gun rights advocates have taken to carrying their weapons into the streets, drawing criticism from gun control supporters who say that such methods are unnecessarily provocative. Full Story
Juan Salaz, who slipped through an open Texas prison cell door 17 years ago, was returned to Houston from Mexico by the U.S. Marshals Service on Thursday morning, the agency said. Full Story
U.S. Border Patrol agents say the illegal traffic on public and private land in the Rio Grande Valley has triggered the need for additional resources in the region. In response, an influx of agents from California, Arizona and Laredo have arrived in the area. Full Story
Amid heated controversy over the placement of dangerous sex offenders, the presiding member of a board that oversees an agency that manages civilly committed violent sex offenders resigned on Tuesday. Full Story
The Texas Juvenile Justice Department on Thursday is set to name its third leader in a month at a meeting of the board that oversees the agency. Full Story
A new report by the University of Texas School of Law Human Rights Clinic claims that extreme conditions in Texas prisons violate the basic human rights of inmates. Full Story
Lawmakers on Tuesday will examine ways to reduce recidivism among prisoners with mental illness and substance addiction. Full Story
The agency charged with prosecuting public corruption cases wrapped up an investigation into Wendy Davis last year without finding any issues worth pursuing and did not uncover anything it believed it should refer to the FBI. Full Story
Six years after Texas officials removed hundreds of children from their polygamist parents, state and local authorities seized the sprawling 1,700-acre Yearning For Zion Ranch this week. Full Story
Democrats are playing defense after a former border sheriff pleaded guilty to federal charges. The news comes after a firestorm over comments Greg Abbott made likening corruption near the Rio Grande to “third world” conditions. Full Story
The Texas Department of Public Safety has stopped using its newest service firearm after state trooper recruits who were the first to use new Smith & Wesson M&P 9 mm handguns reported "concerns" about the weapon. Full Story
A law enforcement training center based at Texas State University in San Marcos may receive $15 million in federal money to support programs that train officers how to handle situations like the recent Fort Hood shooting. Full Story
Two separate rampage shootings within five years at Killeen’s Fort Hood Army base have sparked renewed discussion over whether those on military bases in Texas should be able to carry concealed handguns. Full Story
After a Round Rock school police officer used a Taser to stop a fight Monday, some Texas youth advocates are urging Gov. Rick Perry to ban Tasers and pepper spray in public schools. Full Story
UPDATED: Lawmakers are unlikely to abolish the Driver Responsibility Program next year, but at a hearing Monday, they encouraged critics of it to submit recommendations for reform. Full Story
A judge has denied an injunction a Plano homeowners association sought to stop orthodox Jews from walking through the neighborhood to attend in-home religious ceremonies. Full Story
Many residents of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, have reacted with silence to the death of a former mayor, who was allegedly kidnapped. It’s yet another signal that while violence has ebbed in the city, a climate of fear still exists. Full Story