The latest courts news from The Texas Tribune.
Garland provided no details of how federal officials may challenge one of the nation’s strictest bans on abortion. His statement came days after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to block the law, at least for now. Full Story
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The case ricocheted through federal courts for nearly seven years and over several elections, with federal judges ruling that Texas lawmakers discriminated against Hispanic and Black voters when crafting one of the nation’s strictest voter ID laws. Full Story
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Harris County joined a coalition of community and advocacy groups filing lawsuits over Senate Bill 1, arguing the far-reaching rewrite of Texas voting laws violates the U.S. Constitution and numerous federal laws and will suppress voters. Full Story
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Senate Bill 8, which allows anyone to sue anyone who performs or aids in an abortion, marks an unprecedented change to who has standing to bring a lawsuit. The tactic is also an emerging trend in Republican-dominated states that may compromise constitutional rights, some legal experts said. Full Story
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The country just noticed what Texas was doing, and although Texans have been watching the debate over this anti-abortion law all year, even some of them were surprised at how quickly the legally protected right to abortion disappeared. Full Story
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the Supreme Court's decision not to halt the law "an injustice" and Vice President Kamala Harris promised the administration would defend abortion rights. Full Story
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Under Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security push, Texas state police have arrested hundreds of migrants in the conservative county, usually after spotting them on cargo trains or walking remote ranch lands. Sent to a state prison retooled as an immigration jail, many men were left without lawyers for weeks. Full Story
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Texas’ strict new law sends patients scrambling for alternative ways to access abortion, including out-of-state clinics and “self-managed” procedures. Full Story
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The decision came as major providers in the state said they had canceled most of their abortion appointments and advocates fretted that the procedure had been all but banned in Texas. Full Story
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One abortion provider said it was “engulfed” in treating more than 100 patients at one clinic before the law took effect Wednesday. Full Story
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Senate Bill 8 is poised to officially become law on Wednesday. Full Story
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The House balked at a part of the Senate’s bill that would have barred charitable groups from posting bail for some defendants, but otherwise embraced new limits on letting people accused of violent crimes out of jail. Full Story
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The bill would nearly triple border security funding from the last biennium. The legislation needs one more vote of approval from the House before moving to the Senate. Full Story
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is using the state seal to shield himself against accusations by former top aides. And former Gov. Rick Perry is using it as well — as a backdrop for a sales pitch. Full Story
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The Biden administration says it will continue its legal fight against the revival of a Trump-era policy that requires asylum-seekers to stay in Mexico while their cases are pending. Full Story
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The “remain in Mexico” policy known as Migrant Protection Protocols requires many asylum-seekers to wait outside the United States for their cases to be decided. Full Story
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Attorneys for former employees who were fired after accusing Paxton of abuse of office say report is "full of half-truths, outright lies, and glaring omissions." Meanwhile, the FBI is also reportedly investigating. Full Story
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COVID-19 is surging again in Texas. Gov. Greg Abbott has tested positive. Hospitalizations are increasing faster than at any other time. Local officials and school leaders are rebelling against Abbott’s ban on mask mandates. Here’s the latest. Full Story
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Gov. Greg Abbott wanted the high court to disallow mask mandates in Texas school districts. Justices dismissed their request on a technicality, without issuing a ruling on their legal arguments. Full Story
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The ruling is yet another blow to reproductive rights advocates after Texas passed a law this year that goes into effect Sept. 1 banning abortions as early as six weeks. That law is also currently being challenged in court. Full Story
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