The latest courts news from The Texas Tribune.
A federal judge in 2015 found that Texas violates foster children's constitutional rights. At a hearing this week, court monitors found some progress in reforming the foster care system — but also noted several concerns. Full Story
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It’s unclear if Paxton has unblocked others on Twitter who were not named in the lawsuit. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has signaled that he is looking forward to signing the bill. Full Story
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The Washington D.C. judge's ruling is the latest on the eviction moratorium, which some judges have upheld while others said it goes too far. The Biden administration is appealing the decision. Full Story
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The Texas House on Tuesday approved House Bill 20, one of Gov. Greg Abbott's emergency items this year, and sent it to the Senate. Full Story
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Huberty was arrested on April 23 in Montgomery County after he crashed his Corvette into a minivan and failed a sobriety test. He was driving home from the state Capitol. Full Story
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The outcome could prompt a lawsuit over what opponents say is an unconstitutional ban on abortion. The vote comes less than a year after Planned Parenthood opened a clinic in the West Texas city. Full Story
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The measure likely faces an uphill climb in the Senate, where two years ago Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick opposed similar legislation. Full Story
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While proponents of the proposed ordinance view abortion as an “inconceivably wicked action,” detractors say it would be immediately challenged in court and that battles over abortion access are best fought at the state and federal levels. Full Story
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Even some religious groups are opposed to Texas legislation that would bar government officials from closing places of worship in any situation — even during a pandemic. Full Story
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The conservative Republican and rancher states in the lawsuit filed Monday in Fort Worth federal court that he is suing in his capacity as a private citizen — not on behalf of the state. Full Story
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California banned state-funded travel to Texas because of a 2017 religious-refusal law for adoptions in the state, which critics called discriminatory against LGBTQ families. Full Story
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The court declined to hear a Texas-led case that seeks to uphold a Trump-era "public charge" policy that could limit how many immigrants qualify for green cards. Full Story
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Advocates say the episode is a horrific example of a long-standing problem that hardly ever makes headlines: America’s criminal justice system too often fails to protect victims of domestic and family violence from their abusers. Full Story
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The proposed court would handle some of the state's most high-profile appeals, which are typically handled by the mostly Democrat 3rd Court of Appeals based in Austin. Full Story
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Riles has been deemed mentally incompetent for execution repeatedly in his decades on death row. Full Story
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Nearly two dozen lawsuits allege that failures by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the operator of the state's main power grid, led to the wrongful death of a family member. Full Story
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Dallas County issued Shelley Luther a temporary restraining order to close her business. But the Texas Supreme Court said the order was too vague. Full Story
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The lawsuit argues that being blocked from viewing the attorney general's tweets is a violation of the First Amendment because it limits the right of people to participate in a public forum and access Ken Paxton's statements. Full Story
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While it’s been months since New Year’s, Paxton argued the case wasn’t moot and asked the court to prevent Austin and Travis — or other local authorities — from issuing similar orders in the future. The court refused. Full Story
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