Eleven employees in the state’s treasury division got $360,000 in bonuses last year.
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.
Primary Color: Supreme Court Place 9
Rose Vela is no stranger to challenging establishment-backed judicial candidates — and unlike most who run upstart campaigns, she wins. But this year she’s taking on Supreme Court Justice Eva Guzman, the appointee of a governor with the most formidable political machine in recent Texas history.
TribBlog: Judges Gone Wild [Updated]
In an unexpected reversal, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has thrown out Charles Dean Hood’s death sentence on the heels of a U.S. Supreme Court appeal and national media attention.
The Buck Stops Where?
Three of the biggest social services messes of Rick Perry’s ten-year tenure — the sexual abuse scandal at the Texas Youth Commission, fight clubs at state institutions for the disabled and deaths of children on Child Protective Services’ watch — have been noticeably absent from the campaign trail. Is it because Texans don’t hold him accountable for these tragedies? Or because his opponents think GOP primary voters simply don’t care?
TribBlog: Judges Gone Wild
A Supreme Court appeal has breathed new life into a two-decade-old scandal — this one with details a little less banal than a judge’s strict adherence to closing time.
TribBlog: AG’s Office Fires Back At Blood Spot Attorney
The Texas Attorney General’s office is throwing its own punches at the attorney who sued the state over its storage of infant blood samples, saying all he wanted was the headlines.
On the Records: 10 Days, Give or Take
Did it just get easier for governmental agencies in Texas to delay releasing public information?
TribBlog: Packin’ in the Park
Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who has been taking his gun to Big Bend National Park anyway, says he is glad he can now carry without violating the rules.
Data App: Day Care Danger
More than 120 federally subsidized day care centers had their licenses denied or revoked by the state for violations of regulations and minimum standards in the last two years. Map their locations and drill down into the records by the provider name or action taken by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.
The Brief: February 18, 2010
Shami takes another hit, Keller back in the spotlight and the state of Texas’ health.


