Criminal justice

Roy Oliver was indicted on murder and aggravated assault charges in the 2017 police shooting that killed the unarmed black teen.

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James Byrd Jr., who was dragged to death in Texas 20 years ago, became one of the namesakes for a 2009 federal law expanding hate crime legislation. But just 100 hate crimes have been pursued by federal prosecutors between January 2010 and July 2018.

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The 2013 law was credited with stopping Robert Roberson's execution two years ago, and his conviction is now under review in county court.

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Abbott said he wanted to fix a flawed system in Texas that allowed the man suspected of killing a trooper last year to get out of jail on bond despite having been previously accused of assaulting a deputy.

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Gov. Greg Abbott said Friday he sees a "coalescence" against the idea of having a so-called "red flag" law in Texas, further dooming the proposal's chances in the Legislature. Abbott asked lawmakers to consider the idea as part of the school safety plan he released earlier this year after the deadly Santa Fe High School shooting.

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Following a legal settlement, the prison system has added temporary air conditioning to one unit and made other statewide changes. But the road to change wasn't cheap.

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For the second time, it looks like the government's efforts to reunify separated migrant families will be stymied by its own bureaucratic failings.

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The groups say recent felony charges against prison employees highlight the need for external, independent oversight of the department.

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A federal judge has ordered immigration officials to reunite all migrant children 5 and older with their parents by Thursday — but officials' own data shows that will be near impossible.

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With new execution drugs in stock, the state is fighting a June Texas Supreme Court decision that would identify a 2014 supplier, claiming it would disrupt the state's ability to carry out the death penalty.

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The government has a court-ordered deadline of July 26 to reunify the rest of the children. But last time it came up against a deadline, the government declared almost half the children "ineligible."

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Students have been referred to law enforcement in dramatically higher numbers after the school shootings in Parkland and Santa Fe. A study suggests the arrests show a return to zero-tolerance policies that can harm students.

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The death row inmate claimed that the parole board likely rejected his clemency petition because he was black. The argument highlighted a long-standing criticism of clemency in Texas.

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Schools can pick between programs known as the school marshal program and the Guardian Plan. Here are four things to know about the two existing initiatives that allow school districts to arm their employees.

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Emilio Gutiérrez Soto faced death threats for reporting on cartel crime and government corruption and fled to the U.S. with his son. A judge has set a hearing to determine whether the government has detained them in violation of the First Amendment.

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At a small rally in San Antonio's main plaza, faith leaders joined Chris Young's aunt and the son of the man he killed to call for a stop to Young's execution next week.

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Last month, Texas seemed to be running out of execution drugs. But records show that it has obtained 14 new doses and extended the expiration date of eight more doses already in its possession. Here's a look at the state's current supply, which is now adequate to handle all scheduled executions. 

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Detainees trying to contact their family members are stymied by long wait times, confusing instructions, dropped calls and sometimes per-minute phone charges that critics say are exorbitant.

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In a steady rain of bad news — shootings, immigrant family separations, harsh political differences — one thing stands out. We're tenacious.

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The death row inmate argued that officials likely wouldn't be able to find a vein, and he proposed that the state instead use a firing squad or nitrogen gas. His execution proceeded with no indication of trouble injecting the drugs.

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