On Monday night’s edition of Piers Morgan Tonight, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott spoke out against both background checks for personal gun sales and a ban on high-capacity magazines.
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
Bill Aims to Address Changing Science in Criminal Appeals
State Sen. John Whitmire has filed a bill to make it easier for those convicted based on science that has since been discredited to appeal their sentences. Prosecutors have called such legislation unnecessary.
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Criminal Justice
Piers Morgan to Hold Show at Texas Gun Range
CNN host Piers Morgan, who has been fiercely critical of U.S. gun laws since the elementary school killings in Connecticut, is bringing his show to Texas on Monday to debate gun policy.
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Criminal Justice
Morton’s Conviction Comes to Define Former Williamson County DA
Williamson County State District Judge Ken Anderson faces a court of inquiry, starting Monday, that will determine whether he should face charges over a wrongful murder conviction.
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Criminal Justice
Apprehensions, Narcotics Seizures Increase at Border
U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents seized about 1.7 million pounds of narcotics in Texas in fiscal 2012, about 270,000 pounds more than their counterparts in Arizona, New Mexico and California combined.
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Criminal Justice
Hygiene Products Running Low in Prisons as State Contracts Lapse
Texas prisons are running low on hygiene products that are not considered necessities for inmates, including toothpaste and deodorant. Family members and inmates are frustrated as state officials try to find a contractor.
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Criminal Justice
Lawmakers Renew Push to Ban Texting While Driving
At a briefing Tuesday, lawmakers and relatives of people killed while texting and driving renewed a push to make the practice illegal. A proposal passed during the last session but was vetoed by Gov. Rick Perry.
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Criminal Justice
Arson Reviewers Expect Small Number of Problem Cases
The Innocence Project of Texas told the state Forensic Science Commission on Friday that its investigation of old arson convictions for possible wrongful convictions has raised serious concerns in only a handful of cases.
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Criminal Justice
Groups Urge Lawmakers to Shutter Privately Run Jail
Civil rights, human rights and criminal justice groups on Thursday sent a letter to lawmakers urging them to close a privately run state jail in downtown Dallas.
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Criminal Justice
Bill Would Count Prisoners Differently in Redistricting
Resuscitating the 2011 redistricting battle, two lawmakers have filed bills requiring the state to count prisoners at their last home address rather than where they are incarcerated. They say it cheats urban districts out of representatives.