The latest criminal justice news from The Texas Tribune.
The American Legislative Exchange Council is eliminating its committee that developed policies on crime and elections. State Rep. Jerry Madden, chairman of the committee, said the group will no longer focus on gun laws. Full Story
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The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals heard from Megan Winfrey's lawyer and the San Jacinto County district attorney Wednesday as Winfrey challenges her conviction for a 2004 murder. Full Story
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This interactive breaks down the costs of the lawsuits that Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has brought against the federal government. Full Story
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Aaronson maps Medicaid patients' access to pharmacies, Aguilar on Mexicans in exile, Batheja on an unlikely threat to a veteran lawmaker's re-election, Galbraith and Murphy interactively track reservoir levels around the state, Grissom on the ringleaders who rule the state's largest youth lockup, Hamilton on how much Texas professors are paid, Ramsey on who's conservative, Ramshaw and Tan on the latest Planned Parenthood kerfuffle, Root on what Santorum's exit means for the Texas primary, and parts 4 (by M. Smith) and 5 (by Tan and Dehn) of our series on school district closures: The best of our best content from April 9-13, 2012. Full Story
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A report from the independent ombudsman's office raises concerns about a small group of youths who purchase control of weaker youths using drugs, cigarettes and money at the Giddings State School. Full Story
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A Texas Supreme Court advisory committee today will consider whether to approve divorce forms. But many family law attorneys argue that forms are insufficient. Full Story
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Domingo Garcia's campaign for Congress may boost Hispanic turnout enough to unseat state Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, who is facing his first primary challenge in 16 years. Full Story
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A judge today granted Kerry Max Cook's request for more DNA testing in the 1977 murder of Linda Jo Edwards, but the former death row inmate will have to fight to prove his innocence in the same place where he was twice sentenced to death. Full Story
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The first two parts of M. Smith's series on failing school districts (plus Murphy and Seger's interactive on how districts' characteristics relate to ratings), Root on lagging GOP candidates for president trying to shore things up in Texas, Ramshaw on a "fiscal switcheroo" to get federal money for women's health programs, Galbraith talks to a West Texas farmer about crop insurance and climate change and Aguilar on the money behind a lawsuit on long rifle sales: The best of our best content from April 2 to 6, 2012. Full Story
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Redistricting has cost Texas taxpayers nearly $1.5 million in legal expenses so far — a total that could rise as more invoices are filed. Use our interactive to compare spending by category or to see the number of hours billed for legal work. Full Story
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The state's highest criminal court on Wednesday ordered a lower court to review a death penalty case that involved a psychologist reprimanded last year for using unscientific methods. Full Story
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On the heels of a fatal shooting at a college in Oakland, Calif., Texans and lawmakers are again preparing to debate the merits of allowing students to carry concealed firearms on college campuses. Full Story
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A national firearms trade group is helping finance a lawsuit, originally filed by a San Antonio-based gun dealer, that challenges a federal reporting requirement for the sale of long rifles. Full Story
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Kerry Max Cook was released from death row in 1997 but has never officially been declared an exoneree. Michael Hall of Texas Monthly reports on Cook's complex case and his challenging fight to move on with his life. Full Story
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Political candidates across Texas are gearing up for the state's May 29 primaries. And as Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports, that partisan campaigning extends to candidates who often promise to be impartial: the state’s judges. Full Story
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The executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance on how drug policies are making Texas’ criminal justice system “horrific,” and who has the most to gain and lose by amending current drug policies. Full Story
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Here's a final roundup of Texas reactions to the last day of the U.S. Supreme Court's historic hearings on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Full Story
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“Life is really, really good,” said Michael Morton, who was exonerated in the 1986 murder of his wife. He tells the Tribune of his ordeal and his newfound freedom. Full Story
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On Sunday's edition of 60 Minutes, Texas exoneree Michael Morton told Lara Logan that it's not revenge he's after — it's accountability. Full Story
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The Texas redistricting case is closed, but Texas still has 17 lawsuits pending against the federal government. This updated interactive includes the latest lawsuit filed regarding the Women's Health Program. Full Story
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