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The latest courts news from The Texas Tribune.

  • Bassett: Politics Stymied Willingham Investigation

    By Aziza Musa

    The former chairman of a state forensic board applauded the current commissioners' report on the arson investigation used to convict Cameron Todd Willingham, but said he's deeply concerned that politics stymied their ability to take a stronger stance. Full Story 

    John Bradley, left, is the new chair of the Texas Forensic Science Commission. Cameron Todd Willingham, right, was executed for setting a house fire that killed his three daughters.
    Credit: Jacob Villanueva

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Ross Ramsey

    Hamilton on Victoria's efforts to divorce the University of Houston, Ramshaw on a disagreement between right-to-life groups over laws governing when life ends, E. Smith's TribLive interview with Sen. Kel Seliger and Rep. Burt Solomons on redistricting, Aguilar's interview with the mayor of Juárez, Tan on the continuing hunt for money to buy down budget cuts, Grissom on a psychologist who found more than a dozen inmates mentally competent to face the death penalty, Stiles and yours truly on the House redistricting maps and Galbraith on cutting or killing a tax break for high-cost natural gas producers: The best of our best content from April 11 to 15, 2011. Full Story 

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    Credit: Todd Wiseman

  • Board Approves Report on Willingham

    By Aziza Musa

    Members of a state forensic board today accepted an amended version of a report on convicted arsonist Cameron Todd Willingham's case, but won't rule on professional negligence until the attorney general says whether they have jurisdiction to do so. Full Story 

    Presiding Officer of the Texas Forensic Science Commission John Bradley during a commission meeting April 14th, 2011
    Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera

  • Psychologist Reprimanded in Death Penalty Cases

    By Brandi Grissom

    A psychologist who examined 14 inmates now on Texas’ death row — and two others who were subsequently executed — and found them intellectually competent enough to face the death penalty has agreed never to perform such evaluations again. Full Story 

    Dr. George Denkowski conducted psychological exams for more than a dozen current death row inmates. 1) Anthony Pierce 2) Virgilio Maldonado 3) Calvin Hunter 4) John Matamoros 5) Derrick Charles 6) Kim Ly Lim 7) Coy Wesbrook 8) Joel Escobedo 9) Jamie McCoskey 10) Warren Rivers 11) Tomas Gallo 12) Steven Butler 13) Alfred Brown
    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • Still No Decision on Question of Negligence in Willingham Case

    By Aziza Musa

    After releasing a draft report on the case of convicted arsonist Cameron Todd Willingham, state forensic board members refused again today to rule on whether investigators in the case were professionally negligent in deciding the fire that killed Willingham's three daughters was intentionally ignited. Full Story 

    Presiding Officer of the Texas Forensic Science Commission John Bradley during a commission meeting April 14th, 2011
    Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera

  • Senate Approves Legislation on Teen Sex

    By Becca Aaronson

    Two bills regulating teenagers’ sex lives passed on the Senate floor today — one would outlaw “sexting” by minors; the other would exempt young adults caught having consensual sex with a minor from registering as sex offenders. Full Story 

    State Sen. Royce West D-Dallas at the 2010 Texas Democratic convention in Corpus Christi, Tex. on June 26.
    Credit: Spencer Selvidge

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Ross Ramsey

    Tan's wall-to-wall coverage of the budget (with more from the rest of the Trib crew, interviews with some of the freshmen seeing this up close for the first time and a map of how it works), Philpott on the similarities between budget worries in Texas and those elsewhere, M. Smith explains school finance, Ramshaw on the dwindling insurance options for orphans, Grissom on legal fights over the drugs used for state executions, Aguilar on the run-up to the debate over sanctuary cities, Stiles maps the diversity of Texas counties, Galbraith on efforts to recycle plastic bags and Hamilton on calls for "entrepreneurship" at the University of Texas: The best of our best content from March 28 to April 1, 2011. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Muliadi Soenaryo

  • Judge Denies Death Penalty Drug Challenge

    By Brandi Grissom

    Travis County District Court Judge Stephen Yelenosky this afternoon denied the request of two death row inmates to temporarily halt executions with Texas' new lethal injection drug. Lawyers for Cleve Foster and Humberto Leal said they would immediately appeal the judge's decision. Full Story 

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