Criminal justice

Texas and its legal foes are back in court this week to hash out whether the state can hold the 2018 elections with its existing political maps.

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A federal judge said that three professors suing the state to block campus carry didn't present any "concrete evidence to substantiate their fears" that the law would have a chilling effect on free speech. 

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Raising money for a politician for non-political purposes raises a question: Were the donors politically motivated, or just friends with a lot of cash on hand?

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"Family friends" of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton are continuing to pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into his effort to fight securities fraud charges. 

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An Austin-based writer's quest to learn his grandfather's story leads to death row — and a little-known series of experiments that involved giving hallucinogens to inmates in the early 1960s.

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Texas police officers and other first responders who have job-related mental health issues can soon be diverted into pretrial treatment programs if they commit a crime, but many large counties don't appear interested in creating the new specialty courts.

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After 10 months and 81 decisions, the Texas Supreme Court wrapped up its 2017 term on Friday. Here's a look back at what the nine justices decided — and didn't. 

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Organizations representing hundreds of Texas cities and school boards unsuccessfully urged Gov. Greg Abbott to veto a bill aimed at restricting drone use around the state.

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The Texas Supreme Court on Friday upheld the state’s ban on direct corporate campaign contributions, denying a challenge from a Tea Party group that called it unconstitutional. 

 

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The Texas Supreme Court on Friday threw out a lower court ruling that said spouses of gay and lesbian public employees are entitled to government-subsidized same-sex marriage benefits.

 

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All four U.S. attorney seats, 11 district judgeships and two slots on the historically conservative U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals sit open.

 

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The securities fraud case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton kicked off Thursday in Harris County with no new trial date being set. Paxton has had two previous trial dates scrapped due to legal disputes.

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Brian Encinia, the ex-trooper who arrested Sandra Bland in 2015, has had his perjury charge dropped. The prosecution moved to dismiss the charge after Encinia agreed to give up his police license.

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The Trump administration has begun to appoint U.S. attorneys and federal judges. But so far those efforts have not reached Texas.

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The border city of El Paso on Tuesday voted to add its name to the list of local governments that have joined a lawsuit to stop Texas' immigration bill, Senate Bill 4, from going into effect.  

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After years of challenging the University of Texas at Austin's use of affirmative action in federal court, Edward Blum will now try to end the practice in state court. 

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Monday was the first day of what could be a lengthy legal battle over Senate Bill 4, which has been billed as the toughest state-based immigration bill in the country. 

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With its current term ending this week, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday delivered a handful of rulings on high-profile cases. Here's what they mean for Texas. 

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The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against a Texas death row inmate Monday, making Erick Davila's case ineligible for review in federal court.

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Texas rules barring sex offenders from using certain websites were thrown into jeopardy Monday morning after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a similar statute in North Carolina violates the First Amendment.

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