Clarence Curtis Jordan, who is intellectually disabled and had no legal representation for decades, was resentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
Courts
Stay up to date on Texas courts with in-depth coverage of major rulings, judicial elections, criminal justice, and the judges shaping state law from The Texas Tribune.
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Courts
Texas death row inmate asks Supreme Court to allow appeal challenging hypnotized witness
Charles Flores wants to use Texas’ “junk science” law to appeal his conviction, saying it was improperly based on testimony from a neighbor who was hypnotized by police.
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State Government
Texas’ app age verification law allowed to go into effect for now
A federal appeals court allowed Texas to require app stores to verify users’ ages and seek parental consent before a minor can download apps.
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Courts
Paxton sues Denton to block gender-neutral changing rooms at Pride pool party
Two LGBTQ+ groups called the lawsuit “frivolous,” saying plans for the event at a public pool had already changed to comply with a new Texas law.
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Courts
Federal court allows Texas immigration law to take effect, continuing legal seesaw
A U.S. judge on Thursday granted a preliminary injunction against critical sections of Senate Bill 4, but a provision allowing police to arrest people suspected of illegal entry did activate.
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2026 Texas Elections
Paxton-backed Thomas Smith defeats Alison Fox in GOP runoff for Texas’ highest criminal court
The all-Republican Court of Criminal Appeals has undergone extensive turnover since AG Ken Paxton began targeting incumbent judges.
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Higher Education
Pro-Palestinian protesters sue UT Dallas leaders, police officers over alleged punishment
The lawsuit accuses University of Texas at Dallas police officers of using excessive force while arresting students last year.
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Immigration
Inside the legal battle over undocumented immigrants’ right to challenge their detention
Last year the Trump administration launched a policy of keeping all immigrants arrested by ICE in detention without the right to request bond, reversing decades of established law.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Ken Paxton wanted to limit forum shopping. Now lawyers say he’s improperly seeking favorable courts.
ProPublica and The Texas Tribune have identified at least 30 lawsuits filed by the attorney general over the past nine years that have a tenuous connection to the counties in which they were filed.
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Redistricting Texas 2025
Texas Supreme Court rejects Abbott’s request to remove Democratic Rep. Gene Wu from office over redistricting protest
More than 50 Democrats, including Wu — the House Democratic leader — left the state last August to shut down the Legislature and stall passage of the GOP’s map.
