The latest criminal justice news from The Texas Tribune.
Texans favor the death penalty, even with the alternative of life without parole. They are also nominally in favor of abortion rights and are more likely than not to favor medically assisted suicide for terminal patients. Full Story
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Endorsements stack up, so we've prepared a big spreadsheet to show you who is getting the political support of some prominent interest groups, trade groups and political action committees. Full Story
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Researchers at two law schools Monday released an unprecedented listing of all the exoneration cases from the last 23 years. Only two states had more exonerations than Texas, according to the report. Full Story
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The Columbia University law professor on the in-depth investigation his team conducted that they believe revealed that Carlos DeLuna did not commit the murder for which he was executed in 1989. Full Story
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An administrative judge has again denied Kerry Max Cook's request to move his case out of Smith County, a decision the former death row inmate worries will doom his fight to legally prove his innocence. Full Story
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The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Monday stayed the execution of a severely mentally ill inmate convicted of a 1989 robbery and murder at a Fort Worth Steak and Ale restaurant. Full Story
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Defense lawyers argue that judges in Harris County — ordered to review a psychologist's work in two death penalty cases — are simply rubber-stamping the conclusions of the psychologist, who was reprimanded last year. Full Story
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A study of 41 local jails has found that juveniles awaiting trial often face hours of isolation daily or exposure to abuse by older inmates. County jails struggle to deal with a population they are not equipped or trained to handle. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry's "happy warrior" is coming to the rescue again for the state's troubled youth lockups. Jay Kimbrough will serve as special assistant for safety and security at the Texas Juvenile Justice Department. Full Story
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Ted Nugent unplugged: The rocker and Second Amendment defender weighs in on everything from Mitt Romney and the Trayvon Martin case to his theory that President Obama was raised by Communists. Viewer discretion advised. Full Story
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If you thought a little Secret Service investigation or a $10,000 bear hunting fine would tame the "Motor City Madman," well, you probably have never sat down for a chat with Ted Nugent. Full Story
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More energy producers are making "donations" to the Texas Department of Transportation to fix roads torn up by gas well operations. Full Story
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This week in The New York Times and at texastribune.org, Jay Root talks with rock-and-roll star and Second Amendment advocate Ted Nugent. Full Story
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The latest installment in death row inmate Hank Skinner's quest for DNA testing comes today as his lawyers argue to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals that a change in state law should allow for testing in his case. Full Story
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Two men on Monday became the 31st and 32nd individuals to be exonerated by DNA evidence in Dallas County since 2001. Era Sundar of KUT News reports on the faulty eyewitness identification system that may have led to their incarcerations. Full Story
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UPDATED: Former Smith County District Attorney A.D. Clark III denies allegations by Kerry Max Cook's lawyers that Clark had kept the knife linked to Linda Jo Edwards' fatal stabbing at his home. Full Story
Five years after Texas lawmakers overhauled the juvenile justice system, reports of violence, inappropriate staff behavior and poor mental health services at youth lockups are spurring calls for accountability and continued reform. Full Story
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An estimated 68,000 of the more than 99,000 guns submitted to U.S. authorities by Mexican law enforcement for tracing had origins here, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Full Story
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In his latest television ad, U.S. Senate candidate Tom Leppert dismisses his Republican opponents as "empty suits" and compares them all to President Obama. Full Story
How do you get state judges to go to a weekday afternoon reception in rural West Texas? It depends on who else is there — and what it could mean for their re-election bids. Full Story
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