The latest criminal justice news from The Texas Tribune.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals will hear arguments Wednesday in a case that could determine how courts across the state apply a new law that allows courts to consider changing scientific evidence. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/03/17/WhitemireGavel.jpg)
Some Texas-based advocacy groups say the release of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s use-of-force policy for Border Patrol agents is a positive step for transparency. But they add that more could be done. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/05/07/BorderPatrolCar.jpg)
A letter from a state lawmaker asks the attorney general's office to give an opinion on whether Texas cities' bans on plastic bags are in compliance with the state’s health and safety laws. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/TxTrib_PlasticBag_MS_1.jpg)
UPDATED: The State Bar has begun an investigation of a complaint filed against the prosecutor of former death row inmate Anthony Graves, who who spent 18 years behind bars before being exonerated. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/A_Graves_StillFrame.jpg)
Elections officials across the state said that voter ID was hardly an issue during the 11-day early voting period that led up to Tuesday’s primary. But opponents say the law has already disenfranchised voters. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/08/30/Voter-ID---Valley.jpg)
The cost of housing undocumented immigrants in Texas county jails fell about 8 percent in 2013 from the previous year. Use this interactive to explore trends in detentions of undocumented immigrants in county jails. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/03/03/JailDataApp-2.jpg)
A state law passed in 2011 requires Texas jails to report monthly estimates of the cost of housing undocumented immigrants. Use this interactive to see how many immigrants jails across Texas housed and how much the jails spent. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/03/03/JailDataApp_1.jpg)
The East Texas town of Jasper has reached an $831,000 settlement in the federal discrimination lawsuit brought by its first black police chief after his 2012 firing. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Jasper_TX_002.jpg)
As Republican lawmakers seek to rein in the president's executive authority, proponents of immigration reform are urging the president to keep using it to push through immigration changes. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/_KCA9669.jpg)
UPDATED: The state of Texas on Thursday filed a notice that it intends to appeal a federal judge's ruling Wednesday that Texas' ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/02/11/GayMarriage-Court.jpg)
The state Supreme Court will hear arguments this week in a case challenging the state's regulations on eyebrow threading, which several businesses and threaders say have hurt their ability to operate in Texas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/02/24/Threading-1.jpg)
Three Texas Supreme Court justices up for re-election face GOP primary challenges. Backers of the incumbents are critical about where support for those challengers is coming from. And those challengers have questioned the current court's conservatism. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/01/07/SupremeCourt.jpg)
The Obama administration's climate change agenda on Monday faced one of its first tests in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, which heard a case brought by Texas and industry leaders against a federal greenhouse gas regulation. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/12/04/SmokeStack.jpg)
The Mexican government's reaction to perceived U.S. pressure to hand over Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera will play into whether the head of the ruthless Sinaloa cartel will be extradited here, U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, said on Sunday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/MichaelMcCaul_1.jpg)
The high-profile capture of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera, the leader of Mexico's ruthless Sinaloa drug cartel, should not stoke immediate fears of unrest on Texas' southern border, analysts said Saturday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/02/22/Guzman.jpg)
Mentoring Moms, a program at the Harris County Jail, teaches inmates who are pregnant or have young children how to find jobs, beat addictions and be better parents. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/PregPrison-1.jpg)
A new Harris County Jail program is helping pregnant inmates and young mothers transition back into society. Its goal is to ensure they learn how to be good mothers and to avoid going back to jail. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/02/14/PregPrison-2.jpg)
Gov. Rick Perry's recent remarks about states’ rights and marijuana laws drew national attention, though his staff said they were nothing new. Despite the clamor over the remarks, Texans shouldn't expect marijuana laws to change anytime soon. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/2268521570363c79c46dce527ade9cfb/.Marijuana%20Flickr)
Bernie Teide, convicted of murdering an elderly woman in Carthage 15 years ago, was back in court for proceedings reconsidering his life sentence, so we lead off this all-Texas Blues playlist with "How Long Blues" by T-Bone Walker. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/02/15/2_15PlaylistCollage.jpg)
Citing new federal guidelines and recent violent incidents, a coalition of interest groups has asked the Texas Education Agency to prohibit the use of “less lethal” weapons, like Tasers and pepper spray, in public schools. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/02/12/TaserSpray.jpg)