The Legislature wrapped up without the same drama that defined the end of the last two sessions, with state GOP leaders checking off nearly everything on their to-do lists.
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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Texas Legislature 2025
Stricter bail rules win final passage in Texas Legislature, will go to voters in November
The House passage of the measure asking voters to amend the state Constitution to tighten the state’s bail laws hands a major policy win to Gov. Greg Abbott.
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Texas Legislature 2025
A bill to air-condition all Texas prisons likely to fail again in the Senate
House Bill 3006 would have required the installation of climate control in state prison by 2032.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Automatic denial of bail for some migrants fails to pass Texas House
Supporters said the proposal, which sought to amend the state constitution, would improve safety. Critics said it would violate due process and unfairly target minority groups.
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Criminal Justice
Top deputies to Attorney General Ken Paxton pushed out over sexual harassment allegations, lawsuit says
The harassment allegedly took place while the two were on leave from the agency working on Paxton’s impeachment defense.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Proposal to automatically deny bail to some previously accused of felonies falls in Texas House
Democrats declined to support Senate Joint Resolution 87, which sprinted through the Senate and needed 100 votes to clear the lower chamber.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas Republicans want to block cities’ gun buyback programs
Much of the debate focused on the tense relationship between cities and the Texas Legislature. The bill is head to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.
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Texas Legislature 2025
“Anti-Red Flag Act” that would limit when guns can be taken from people advances in Texas House
Senate Bill 1362 would prevent officials from taking someone’s firearms if they haven’t been charged with a crime or aren’t subject to a protective order under the Texas Family Code.
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Criminal Justice
Nearly flown to El Salvador, Venezuelans await an uncertain fate in Texas
Detainees say they’re being held in solitary confinement after family members helped them post about their situation on social media.
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Criminal Justice
Texas inmate executed for killing woman he set on fire inside Garland store
Matthew Johnson, who testified he did not intend to kill the elderly clerk, received the death penalty in 2013. The execution is Texas’ fourth and may be the last for 2025.