The latest courts news from The Texas Tribune.
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana law Monday that would have curtailed access to abortions in the state. It was nearly identical to a measure the court overturned in Texas in 2016. Full Story
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In the weekend edition of The Brief podcast, Tiffany Bunton — an officer whose uncle died in the back of a squad car two years ago — discusses the national moment of reckoning around police violence and misconduct. Full Story
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LGBTQ Texans are getting back to Pride’s protest roots while standing alongside Black and brown people in their community, who are still fighting for equality on two fronts. Full Story
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Paxton, a Republican, was indicted in 2015 on felony securities fraud charges, but the case has yet to go to trial as side battles persist over the venue where he will be tried and the amount the special prosecutors will be paid. Full Story
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Siding with the state, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo found that Democrats lacked standing to overturn Texas Republicans’ decision to kill straight-ticket voting ahead of the November general election. Full Story
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A new ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court makes clear that it violates federal law to fire an employee on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation. Now Texas lawmakers want to guarantee similar protections for LGBTQ Texans in housing, health care and other spheres. Full Story
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Two independent experts appointed to scrutinize the system described “a disjointed and dangerous child protection system ... where harm to children is at times overlooked, ignored or forgotten.” Full Story
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In a 6-3 opinion, the justices said Terence Andrus had ineffective assistance from his lawyer and that it was unclear if the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals properly considered whether that could have affected his sentence. Full Story
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Texas has no laws on the books explicitly protecting people from workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, but the Supreme Court's ruling on Monday now gives federal protections. Full Story
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As the nation reels from George Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis police, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wants his office to have the authority to prosecute cases in which police kill. That currently falls to local authorities. Full Story
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A Texas Supreme Court ruling gutted their case, so plaintiffs have asked that their state lawsuit be dismissed. But litigation over expanding absentee voting during the pandemic continues in federal court. Full Story
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Moore was resentenced from the death penalty to life in prison last year after the U.S. Supreme Court determined he was intellectually disabled. Since he had already served 40 years, he was immediately eligible for parole. Full Story
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The lawsuit, filed in late March, argues the policies and practices to protect inmates at a geriatric prison were unconstitutional. But an appeals court said many of the practices ordered have already been implemented. Full Story
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The high court let stand a lower court's ruling that Austin's paid sick leave ordinance is unconstitutional because it conflicts with the Texas Minimum Wage Act. Full Story
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Judges questioned both the inmates' arguments and state's positions in a Thursday hearing. In April, the appeals court temporarily blocked a lower judge's order against the Texas Department of Criminal Justice over its coronavirus practices and policies at a geriatric prison. Full Story
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The state plans to appeal the Wednesday ruling from a federal judge in Corpus Christi. Full Story
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Although the court sided with state Attorney General Ken Paxton's interpretation of what constitutes a disability, it indicated that it is up to voters to assess their health and determine if they meet the state's definition, which could allow them to vote by mail. Full Story
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Hundreds of debt collection lawsuits have been filed since Gov. Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster because of COVID-19 in mid-March, according to the Health Care Research and Policy Team at Johns Hopkins University. Full Story
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The partisan differences about voting by mail in Texas — Democrats want to expand it, Republicans believe it's insecure — were in place long before COVID-19 came along. But the pandemic has escalated the debate. Full Story
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In a year when four justices face reelection, the all-Republican high court has made a slate of controversy-generating decisions, including lifting a moratorium on evictions and — for now — limiting voting by mail in this year’s elections. Full Story
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