Attorneys and experts for both the state and for death row inmate Victor Saldaño agree that he should be allowed to present evidence of his disability to a state criminal appeals court.
Criminal Justice
Get the latest Texas Tribune coverage on criminal justice, including crime, courts, law enforcement, and reforms shaping the state’s justice system.
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Criminal Justice
SCOTUS orders Texas court to reconsider man’s 1997 murder conviction
The ruling came after Cooke County District Attorney John Warren told the U.S. Supreme Court that “the State no longer had confidence in the verdict.”
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Courts
U.S. Supreme Court unanimously sides with Texas man, rules it’s not a crime for marijuana users to have guns
Ali Danial Hemani successfully challenged a federal law prohibiting people who illegally use drugs from owning guns. Justices said that ban is a Second Amendment violation.
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State Government
Former Texas Tribune board member killed in Laredo plane crash
The plane carrying Joshua Baer, who was also the CEO of Austin-based startup accelerator Capital Factory, was on its way to Austin from San José del Cabo in Mexico.
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Criminal Justice
U.S. Supreme Court rejects Texas death row inmate’s appeal challenging hypnosis testimony
Charles Flores argued that his conviction was improperly based on testimony from a witness who changed her recollection after hypnosis by an investigator.
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Criminal Justice
Midland police ID suspect in shooting that left one victim dead, 10 injured
Officials said that the suspect, who had been wanted for attempted capital murder since Wednesday, was found dead in the building where he was barricaded.
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Criminal Justice
Judge recommends medical parole for inmate who had been on Texas death row for 47 years
Clarence Curtis Jordan, who is intellectually disabled and had no legal representation for decades, was resentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
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Public Education
Texas school police pepper-sprayed, tackled and tasered students
School officers across the state turned to heavy-handed tactics on children, often in response to minor misbehavior, investigation shows.
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Criminal Justice
Texas prisoners face new book ban after hundreds test positive for synthetic drugs
Inmates say the policy unfairly punishes them — and note that prison staff also bring in contraband.
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Public Education
Texas’ discipline push sends kids to ‘jail-like’ campuses
Lawmakers increasingly view disciplinary alternative programs as a solution to behavior problems. Critics say they harm students.
