The proposal, Senate Bill 16 by state Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, would reduce the first-time fee for a license to carry from $140 to $40 and the annual renewal fee from $70 to $40.
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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Criminal Justice
Gov. Greg Abbott: “Sanctuary” law won’t open the door for racial profiling
Following the signing of a controversial “sanctuary cities” ban last week, Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday the law would not open the door for people to get “pulled over and detained.”
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Criminal Justice
Texas House passes bill to outfit officers with bulletproof vests
Senate Bill 12, by state Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, would create and fund a bulletproof vest grant program to outfit approximately 50,000 officers with vests that can withstand rounds from high-caliber firearms.
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Criminal Justice
Report: Texas falling short on police safety during mental health crises
Since January 2000, 79 peace officers in Texas have been shot and killed in the line of duty. For its mini-doc series, “Fallen,” KXAN-TV researched the background of each killer to find common themes — commonly, mental illness.
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Criminal Justice
Bill criminalizing celebratory gunfire on life support in House
House Bill 2583 would charge anyone who shoots a gun without an intended target with a Class A misdemeanor — or a first-degree felony if a serious bodily injury or death occurs as a result.
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Criminal Justice
“Sandra Bland Act” doesn’t address cause of her arrest, family says
The legislation now mostly focuses on mental health issues and county jail operations.
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Criminal Justice
Reaching across the aisle, legislators target voter fraud at nursing homes
In a rare twist, Republicans and Democrats are jointly pushing an effort to crack down on voter fraud. The measure targets ballots cast at nursing homes, and it could make it easier for older Texans to vote.
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Criminal Justice
Execution halted amid claims of false evidence at trial
A Fort Worth man who claims he did not intentionally kill an 89-year-old man had his looming execution halted Friday afternoon.
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Criminal Justice
Texas Senate passes Sandra Bland Act
The bill would mandate that county jails divert people with mental health and substance abuse issues toward treatment, make it easier for defendants with a mental illness or intellectual disability to receive a personal bond and require that independent law enforcement agencies investigate jail deaths.
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Criminal Justice
Bill to enforce reporting of police shootings stumbles, then passes
After failing by one vote on the House floor Wednesday night, a bill to penalize law enforcement agencies that don’t report police shootings to the state was reconsidered and passed.
