Incarcerated Texans enlisted to work in county morgue as COVID-19 deaths overwhelm El Paso
The inmates working in the morgue will earn $2 an hour. They are low-level offenders that are part of the detention facility's trustee program. Full Story
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![El Paso County detention inmates, also known as “trustees” who are low-level offenders, help move bodies to mobile morgue units outside the Medical Examiner's Office in El Paso on Nov. 14, 2020.]()
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Appeals court again halts El Paso County’s shutdown of nonessential businesses
The 8th Court of Appeals urged the county judge and a group of local restaurants to find some middle ground on coronavirus restrictions that don’t violate Gov. Greg Abbott’s statewide mandate. Full Story
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![People wait outside to pick up their food order on day one of the shelter-in-place order that was put in place by the county judge on Oct. 30, 2020, in El Paso. The El Paso mayor and Gov. Abbott are fighting the order in court.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
Former aides file whistleblower lawsuit alleging retaliation by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton
The lawsuit paints the clearest picture yet about what motivated the whistleblowers to come forward against Paxton, the state’s top legal authority, and the retribution they say they experienced after they made that report. Full Story
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![Ken Paxton at the inauguration ceremony of Judge Michelle Slaughter at the state Capitol in Austin on Jan. 11, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Republicans kept their grip on Texas government in 2020. In 2021, they'll be able to tighten it.
Because Republicans in the state House and Senate held onto their 20-year majority, they are positioned to further entrench their power until the next redistricting rolls around in 2031. Full Story
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![The Republican Party of Texas office in downtown Austin.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Appeals court temporarily stops El Paso business shutdown
A state district judge permitted the El Paso shutdown to stand last week pending a final resolution of the case, but the 8th Court of Appeals paused the shutdown until a final decision is made. That could come as soon as Friday. Full Story
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![Scenes from downtown near the international bridge on day one of the shelter-in-place order that was put in place by the county judge on Oct. 30, 2020, in El Paso. The El Paso mayor and Gov. Abbott are fighting the order in court.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
With hospitals full, El Paso extends business shutdown for three weeks
The extension comes despite the Texas attorney general’s office’s ongoing efforts to have the county order rejected by state courts. A decision is expected later in the week. Full Story
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![Medical personnel wear personal protective equipment as they register residents waiting in line at a COVID-19 testing site at El Paso Community College Valle Verde Campus in El Paso on Oct. 21, 2020.]()
Credit: Joel Angel Juárez for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is back in hot water. He’s escaped before.
Paxton has spent much of his time in public life haunted by accusations of illegal or unethical behavior, causing quiet discomfort among some Republican colleagues. He’s always held on. Will this time be different? Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks to the Gun Owners of America assembly.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Key U.S. Supreme Court justices sound skeptical of Texas' argument to throw out Affordable Care Act
Texas argues the entire law must fall after Congress zeroed out one critical provision. Several justices seemed unconvinced. Full Story
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What to expect as Texas heads to the U.S. Supreme Court in bid to overturn the Affordable Care Act
On Tuesday morning, the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear a Texas-led challenge to the landmark health law. Full Story
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![Protestors gathered in front of the Supreme Court in Washington D.C., in 2015, to show support for the Affordable Care Act.]()
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El Paso’s shutdown order can stay in place despite attempts by the state to intervene
Local restaurants, joined by the Texas attorney general's office, had asked a judge to halt the El Paso county judge's order closing nonessential businesses for two weeks during a new COVID-19 spike. Full Story
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![New medical tents set up at University Medical Center of El Paso hospital due to the huge spike in active COVID-19 cases (11,300+) in El Paso. October 25, 2020.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
Court documents show friendly relationship between Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Nate Paul, donor at the center of new criminal allegations
Paul’s testimony included a reference to having hired a woman who, according to two people who were told by Paxton, was involved in an extramarital relationship with the attorney general. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton spoke at the Texas Federation of Republican Women Convention in Dallas on Oct. 19, 2017.]()
Credit: Laura Buckman/The Texas Tribune -
Whistleblowers say Texas AG's office retaliated against them — placing an armed guard in the office — after they reported Ken Paxton
In formal complaints, six whistleblowers allege they were retaliated against after reporting Paxton — with a “hostile” work environment that included being kept from attending important meetings and empty cardboard boxes delivered near their offices. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton spoke to the Republican convention delegates in 2018.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Democrats' hopes of flipping Texas again fall short as Republicans dominate the state's 2020 elections
This year proved another disappointment for Texas Democrats, who underperformed the high expectations they had set for themselves, particularly in a hotly contested battle for dominance in the Texas House. Full Story
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![A Republican party flag at an event by U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in College Station in October.]()
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President Donald Trump defeats Joe Biden in Texas
The Republican incumbent was poised to win Texas’ 38 electoral votes after an unexpectedly tight statewide race for the White House. Full Story
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![President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at the Fayetteville Regional Airport in North Carolina on Nov. 2, 2020.]()
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Harris County voters will only have one drive-thru polling site on Election Day
The closures of nine drive-thru locations follow a series of legal challenges led by a group of Texas Republicans. The county will still offer more than 800 polling locations. Full Story
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![A voter drops off a ballot in the drive-through line at NRG Stadium in Houston during the first day of early voting on Oct. 13, 2020.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Two more senior aides fired from Texas attorney general’s office in wake of criminal accusations against Ken Paxton
David Maxwell and Mark Penley, top law enforcement aides at the agency, were fired after being on paid leave for weeks. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton at a press conference in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in 2016.]()
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Nearly 127,000 Harris County drive-thru votes appear safe after federal judge rejects GOP-led Texas lawsuit
The Republican plaintiffs in an appeal asked that drive-thru voting be halted on Election Day, but did not immediately ask again that ballots that have already been cast be tossed out. Full Story
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![Cars lined up to vote in the drive-thru line at NRG Stadium in Houston during the first day of early voting on Oct. 13, 2020.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Supreme Court allows inmate to sue prison officers after he was forced to spend six days in unsanitary cells with human waste
Trent Michael Taylor alleges that he was kept for three days in a cell covered with feces and spent another three days in a cell with sewage on the floor in a psychiatric prison unit in Lubbock. Full Story
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![Texas Department of Criminal Justice William G. McConnell Unit at Chase Field in Beeville.]()
Credit: Jennifer Whitney for The Texas Tribune -
Harris County Democrats' headquarters vandalized
The local party said its locks were filled with super glue, preventing officials from accessing their office. Also, federal officials are sending election monitors to Harris and Waller counties. And Texas is on pace to set a record for voter turnout Tuesday. Full Story
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![A voting sign at the South Austin Recreation Center polling site on Oct. 14, 2020.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas Supreme Court rejects Republican-led effort to throw out nearly 127,000 Harris County votes
A handful of GOP activists and candidates had asked the state's highest civil court to rule Harris County's drive-thru voting locations illegal and invalidate votes that have already been cast. The challenge has also been filed in federal court. Full Story
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![Voters line up to utilize drive-through voting at NRG Stadium in Houston during the first day of early voting on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune
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