Like most of the more than 230 Venezuelan men deported to a Salvadoran prison, José Manuel Ramos Bastidas had followed U.S. immigration rules when he arrived at the Texas border with Mexico. Then Trump rewrote them.
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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Uvalde school shooting
Appeals court orders release of Uvalde school shooting records
Eighteen news organizations including The Texas Tribune have been seeking the records since 2022, when 19 children and 2 teachers were killed at Robb Elementary School.
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Operation Lone Star
Texas judge dismisses case against migrant deported to El Salvador for being an alleged gang member
DPS troopers labeled Pedro Luis Salazar-Cuervo, who remains in a Salvadoran prison, a Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang member based on a photo of him with a tattooed man.
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Politics
Divorce between Ken and Angela Paxton will proceed outside public view, reports say
A Collin County judge’s reported decision could keep details of the divorce from spilling into Ken Paxton’s U.S. Senate race.
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Redistricting Texas 2025
Texas leaders have repeatedly claimed the state’s voting maps are race blind. Until the Trump DOJ disagreed.
Gov. Greg Abbott has acknowledged DOJ concerns that some districts were drawn “along strict racial lines.” Critics say it’s a political ploy.
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Economy
In West Texas, an independent publisher’s arrest sparks First Amendment questions
Publisher David Flash has been documenting the happenings in Jeff Davis County since 2020. Last year, he was banned from county buildings over allegations of harassment.
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Public Education
Texas Education Agency to release schools’ 2024 performance ratings after court ruling
An appeals court granted the state approval to release the ratings after doing the same for 2023 scores in April.
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Criminal Justice
Randall County GOP chair charged with felony election fraud
Kelly Kenten Giles, 64, is accused of providing false information on his application and petition to run for the Randall County Republican Party Chair seat.
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Criminal Justice
Texas’ immigration law is unconstitutional, appeals court rules
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling means that Senate Bill 4, which allows local police to arrest suspected undocumented immigrants, continues to be blocked.
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Politics
Former Democratic state House candidate among nine indicted for alleged vote harvesting in South Texas
The charges are the latest escalation in a probe that resulted in Texas authorities indicting six other Frio County area officials in May.