In a case with potentially vast implications for groundwater rules, the court has unanimously ruled in favor of two farmers in the San Antonio area who challenged a local aquifer authority’s restrictions on their well use.
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
Texas Joins Lawsuit to Fight Contraceptive Rule
Texas has joined six other states and a handful of Catholic organizations in a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a new health care rule approved by the federal government that would require all employers to include coverage for contraceptives in employees’ health care benefits.
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University of Texas/Texas Tribune Polls
UT/TT Poll: Economy, Border Issues Are Texans’ Biggest Concerns
At the national level, voters are concerned about pocketbook issues, while at home immigration is the top problem.
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Criminal Justice
State Seeks Gag Order in 1986 Murder Case
A Williamson County judge will consider silencing parties to the murder case against Mark Alan Norwood. He is charged with the 1986 beating death of Christine Morton, whose husband spent nearly 25 years in prison for the crime.
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University of Texas/Texas Tribune Polls
UT/TT Poll: Texans Split on Re-electing Perry
Gov. Rick Perry told us on Tuesday that he may run for re-election. Voters aren’t sold, according to a new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll.
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Criminal Justice
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Aaronson interactively charts the legal wrangling between Texas and the feds, Aguilar on what Obama’s budget means for the border, Galbraith on congressional ambivalence about a wind tax credit, Grissom on cuts to crime victims services, Hamilton on UT-Austin’s plan to boost graduation rates, Ramsey on our woefully low voter turnout, Ramshaw on a new Super PAC targeting incumbents of both parties, Root on conservative opposition to the Keystone pipeline and M. Smith on cash-starved school districts in the advertising game: The best of our best content from February 13-17, 2012.
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Criminal Justice
Investigation Sought Into Violence at Youth Prisons
A Tribune report on increasing youth-on-youth violence at Texas Juvenile Justice Department facilities has advocates calling for an investigation into systemic problems at the agency.
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Criminal Justice
Crime Victims Services Bracing for Major Cuts
The Texas attorney general’s office is advising agencies that serve crime victims to prepare for big cuts during the next budget cycle because of a severe shortfall projected for the state’s crime victims fund.
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Criminal Justice
Pipeline Companies Fighting for Property Rights
The Texas Supreme Court could decide by this week whether it erred in allowing pipeline companies to force their way onto private land. As Dave Fehling of StateImpact Texas reports, the legal wrangling comes as drilling in the state is surging.
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Criminal Justice
State Seeking Room for Mentally Ill Inmates
A judge’s expected ruling forcing the state to find room to treat mentally ill inmates is sending officials in search of space at already-full mental hospitals.