A local official had asked Paxton for legal guidance on special prosecutor pay — a major question in the criminal case against Paxton himself.
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.
Posted in
State Government
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Google’s new competition cop, says everything is “on the table”
In a multi-state investigation that is focused on online advertising, Paxton vows to get to the bottom of Google’s business practices.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Judge halts execution for man convicted of killing two Henderson County deputies
Randall Mays was scheduled to be executed Oct. 16, but the judge removed the death warrant amid questions that Mays may not be mentally competent to be put to death.
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Criminal Justice
A GPS company repossessed a Houston murder suspect’s ankle monitor for late fees. He was untracked for two weeks.
The incident highlights differences in GPS monitoring for defendants released from jail on money bonds and no-cash bonds. One department has arrestees pay vendors directly, the other has costs go through them.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Amber Guyger trial highlighted why Dallas communities of color often distrust law enforcement
Hours after the former Dallas police officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison for killing Botham Jean, the city’s top cop vowed to launch an internal investigation into police behavior exposed at trial.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger sentenced to 10 years in prison in murder of Botham Jean
Guyger could have received as few as five years or a sentence of up to life in prison.
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Criminal Justice
A trial judge recommended taking Paul Storey off death row. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals said no.
The state’s highest criminal court rejected the judge’s finding that Storey should be resentenced to life in prison after prosecutors falsely said at trial that the murder victim’s family wanted the death penalty.
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Guides
What is Texas’ Castle Doctrine and what does it mean in the Amber Guyger case?
The Castle Doctrine justifies deadly force when a person intrudes on your property. Guyger’s case is murky since she thought she was in her apartment but was actually in the apartment of unarmed Botham Jean.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Jury deliberating fate of Dallas police officer who shot unarmed man in his apartment
A Dallas County jury will decide if Amber Guyger committed murder, manslaughter or no crime at all when she shot and killed Botham Jean in 2018. And a judge said jurors can consider the state’s Castle Doctrine while deliberating.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas executes Robert Sparks after brutal deaths of his stepsons, wife
Sparks was convicted in the 2007 stabbing deaths of his family members in his Dallas home. His lawyers sought to stop his execution with arguments of intellectual disability and a jury tainted by a bailiff wearing a syringe tie.
