An estimated 1.6 million adult Texans have substance use disorders, many addicted to drugs that arrive illegally from Mexico.
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
New program moves women from prison to life
Before they can earn their freedom, about 40 Texas prisoners will be the first to complete a six-month program that focuses on decision-making and life skills.
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Criminal Justice
Waco man’s death sentence, conviction thrown out over seizure of texts
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals threw out the conviction and death sentence of a Waco man Friday after ruling that the trial court’s admission of text messages was unconstitutional because they were seized without a warrant.
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Criminal Justice
Immigration detention centers will continue operating despite judge’s ruling
Two immigration detention centers in Texas will continue their day-to-day operations despite a Travis County judge’s ruling last week that denied the facilities state licenses.
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Criminal Justice
Greg Abbott appoints new Dallas County district attorney
Republican Faith Johnson, a former state district court judge, will finish the term of Dallas District Attorney Susan Hawk, who resigned in September after taking medical leaves to treat depression and mood disorder.
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Criminal Justice
Revised screening, vigilance lead to drop in Texas jail suicides
Texas county jails have seen an almost 60 percent decrease in suicides from last year.
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Criminal Justice
Execution halted again for Dallas man who killed his daughters
John Battaglia shot and killed his two young daughters in 2001. He now has another chance to prove he is mentally incompetent to be executed.
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Criminal Justice
Lawmakers hope to enact port-staffing bill before Trump takes over
The race is on for Texas lawmakers to pass legislation to beef up staffing and improve facilities at the country’s land ports while President Obama is still around to sign it.
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Criminal Justice
Waller County wins fight to keep courthouse gun ban. Maybe.
A district court judge in Waller County says it can ban guns at its courthouse, but Attorney General Ken Paxton is trying to convince another court in Travis County to disagree.
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Criminal Justice
Justices debate definition of intellectual disability in Texas death row case
The U.S. Supreme Court appeared fairly split among party lines in Texas’ latest death penalty case, which focuses on how to define intellectual disability among death row inmates.
