Criminal justice

Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot ignited a firestorm of controversy when he announced he wouldn't prosecute some low-level crimes, including certain theft offenses. But he's among many prosecutors turning their focus away from nonviolent offenses.

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Consideration of the bill comes more than a year after a gunman killed 26 in a Sutherland Springs church.

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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has expressed wariness to expanding the Compassionate Use Program, but the bill's Senate sponsor said Patrick helped craft the version that cleared a key hurdle Friday.

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As lawmakers in Austin work to pass a sweeping school safety bill, many Santa Fe survivors and their loved ones say they’re focused less on what’s happening at the Capitol and more on what can be done to rebuild and uplift their community.

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The bill to end the unpopular Driver Responsibility Program, which adds annual surcharges on top of traffic fines — and prompts the suspension of millions of driver's licenses — sailed through the upper chamber. If the measure becomes law, pending surcharges will be dropped.

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Texas has been fighting the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's ban on the state's attempted import of lethal injection drugs. But the Justice Department says federal law doesn't give the FDA oversight.

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A measure to limit arrests for misdemeanors that only result in fines initially got House approval. Then it failed on a subsequent vote amid what some say was confusion over what the bill would do. Lawmakers tried to revive it Friday evening — after several lawmakers had left the chamber — but that attempt also failed.

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The bill addresses many of the conditions of the state's incarcerated women. It would also require the department to offer up to 10 free feminine hygiene products to women each day.

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The prison system's existing doses were all set to expire before the state's five currently scheduled executions. See our updated lethal drug tracker for the latest movement in the state's supply.

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The bill was one of several bail reform measures filed after federal court rulings, jail deaths and a state trooper's murder drew attention to Texas' pretrial jailing practices. A late addition to limit who could be released from jail at no cost was removed by lawmakers Friday.

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Under the measure, defendants who have active psychotic symptoms of certain mental illnesses at the time of the crime would be ineligible for capital punishment. The bill now heads to the more conservative Senate.

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One of the big bills of the session — a sales- for property-tax swap — was put on ice this week. Lots of other bills are ready for their post-session burials, too, but keep your eyes open. In the Texas Legislature, dead legislation has a way of coming back to life.

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The family of Sandra Bland — who died in a Waller County jail cell — is calling for a reopening of the criminal investigation into Bland's arrest and death after seeing footage for the first time.

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State Rep. Dade Phelan added the provision to a Senate bill that would bar cities from enacting rules on how businesses schedule their employees’ shifts. LGBTQ groups worried that without the language, businesses could pick which employees get certain benefits.

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The lawsuit has the potential to upend the structure of the entity responsible for regulating Texas' legal profession. Critics suggest that Paxton's involvement may be politically motivated.

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A college student's research helped bring together community leaders to organize a public ceremony to tell Grover Everett’s story.

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The Texas House tentatively approved a bill Thursday that would repeal the tough-to-kill Driver Responsibility Program, which critics say traps low-income drivers in a cycle of debt.

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Johnson was convicted in the 2007 murders of Maria Aparece and Huy Ngo in Harris County, a crime he committed at 18. He was set for execution Thursday before a court ruled that his new lawyer should have more time to look into federal appellate issues.

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The lower chamber gave initial approval to a bill creating a pretrial process to determine if a capital murder defendant is intellectually disabled — more than 15 years after the U.S. Supreme Court said executing such prisoners is cruel and unusual punishment.

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The House vote Monday is the first time the lower chamber approved such a measure, marking significant progress. But the opposition of the lieutenant governor remains a major hurdle.

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