Proposed ban on corporal punishment in Texas schools fails again
Texas public schools can allow corporal punishment, which includes hitting, spanking, paddling or deliberately inflicting physical pain to discipline students. Full Story
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![Lawmakers on the House floor at the state Capitol on April 6, 2023.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
For migrant children who cross the border alone, a new set of challenges getting health care awaits
A report from the Migration Policy Institute and the American Academy of Pediatrics details the barriers undocumented children face in the United States. Full Story
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![Migrant children in the courtyard of the Our Lady-Guadalupe Catholic Church School in Mission on July 27, 2021.]()
Credit: Jason Garza for The Texas Tribune -
A divided Uvalde hasn’t had time to heal, speakers say
During a Texas Tribune event marking one year since the shooting at Robb Elementary School, parents, mental health experts and faith leaders talked about how the path to recovery isn’t the same for everybody. Full Story
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![Texas Tribune reporter Uriel J. García speaks with Kimberly Mata-Rubio and Veronica Mata at a community event titled "Uvalde: Resilience, Recovery and Healing" at the Southwest Texas Junior College on May 20th, 2023 in Uvalde.]()
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
Texas kids would need parental consent to create social media accounts under House bill
The House gave initial approval to the bill Tuesday. The legislation is a priority for Speaker Dade Phelan. Full Story
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![Sophomore Alexis Phan does her Algebra 2 homework remotely from her home in Pflugerville on Nov. 16, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate approves $15 million bill to expand local mental health treatment options for children and families
The proposal would offer hospitals and nonprofits grant funding to expand child and family mental health services. Full Story
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![State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, speaks to her colleagues in honor of Texas Independence Day on the Senate floor on March 2, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House passes bill barring the death penalty for some mentally ill defendants
The chamber has repeatedly passed legislation in recent sessions eliminating the death penalty in cases of severe mental illness, but this year the measure faced increased pushback from conservative lawmakers. Full Story
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![Interior of Death Chamber by Texas Department of Criminal Justice.]()
Credit: Photo Illustration by Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Watch a conversation about school safety and the mass shooting in Uvalde
In this conversation moderated by Texas Tribune editor in chief Sewell Chan, panelists discussed lessons that must be learned after 19 children and two adults were fatally shot at Robb Elementary School. Full Story
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Workforce shortages in the state psychiatric hospital system prolong jail time for mentally ill Texans
The state has added more beds for jail inmates who need psychiatric treatment to be considered competent to face trial. But at least a third remain empty because the state can’t hire enough people to staff them. Full Story
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![The Austin State Hospital is shown on April 29, 2016. Despite an infusion of funding from lawmakers for the state’s mental health care system, Texas struggles to provide psychiatric care for all patients who need it.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber/The Texas Tribune -
Texas executes Arthur Brown Jr. for Houston slayings despite claims of innocence, intellectual disability
Brown’s appeals ran out after almost 30 years on death row. Defense attorneys claim Harris County prosecutors hid evidence pointing to another suspect in the 1992 shooting deaths of four people in a Houston drug house. Full Story
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![Interior of Death Chamber]()
Credit: Jenevieve Robbins/Texas Department of Criminal Justice -
Closing a critical loophole for gun background checks has gained bipartisan support in Texas
After a ProPublica-Texas Tribune investigation found courts failed to report juvenile mental health hospitalizations to the federal firearm background check system, lawmakers from both parties are backing bills to ensure compliance with the law. Full Story
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![The state Capitol in Austin on Feb. 9, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ shortage of mental health care professionals is getting worse
The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated an already short supply of therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers. Full Story
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![AUSTIN, TEXAS - FEBRUARY 14, 2023: Communities in Schools staff members Christy Mitchell, Dorothy Garza and Amara Nitibhon (left to right) pose for a portrait at Langford Elementary School in Austin, Texas on February 14, 2023. (Photo by Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune)]()
Credit: Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune -
This Texas town has the highest rate of youth attempted suicides in the state. A grieving father hopes to reverse it.
According to a new analysis by a national health care company, Lubbock has the highest rate of attempted suicides by children between the ages of 6 and 17. A local leader suggests a dearth of resources isn’t helping. Full Story
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![Adam Hernandez in a home on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, in Lubbock, Texas. (Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune)]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Texas death row inmate Andre Thomas’ attorneys apply for clemency, citing mental illness
At issue is whether Thomas, who gouged out his eyes after confessing to the 2004 murders of his estranged wife, their son and her daughter, is competent to be executed in April. Full Story
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![The view of Texas' execution chamber from a witness viewing room.]()
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Texans with mental illnesses are dying in Houston-area jails
A Houston Landing investigation found that nearly 180 people in Texas had been flagged as potentially mentally ill but died in jail instead of getting the care they needed. Full Story
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![Rowena Ward replaces flowers on the gravestone belonging to her son, Rory, last month at Klein Memorial Park Cemetery in Houston on Jan. 7, 2023. Rory died in 2021 after being beaten by a fellow inmate at the Harris County Jail — one of 52 people who died of unnatural causes in the custody of Houston area jails and had exhibited mental health concerns over the past decade.]()
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Farmers face a higher risk of suicide. The Texas Agriculture Department wants $500,000 a year to change that.
The department’s helpline is less than a year old. But advocates hope state lawmakers fully fund it as farmers and ranchers continue to face hard economic times and isolation. Full Story
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![Grant Heinrich, Operations Manager for Pro Agri Spraying, stands outside of his Slaton business Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2022.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
After Uvalde shooting, Texas senators recommend better mental health care access and school security
The committee urged lawmakers to pay special attention to rural areas. But its lone proposal on guns would not have made a difference in the Robb Elementary shooting. Full Story
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![Flowers lay on the sign for Robb Elementary School on Wednesday, May 25, 2022 in Uvalde. Twenty one people were killed after a gunman after a high school student opened fire inside Robb Elementary School on Tuesday where two teachers and 19 students were killed.]()
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State leaders won’t commit to specifics about how much they might invest in children’s mental health
As public debate intensifies over how the state will divvy up billions in new money, community groups that treat children for mental illness fear they’re not a priority. Full Story
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![Students arrive at Morehead Middle School on Aug. 19, 2021, in El Paso. The school district, EPISD, as of today voted a mask mandate for all teachers, staff and students in school facilities, defying Gov. Abbott's order that restricted local entities from instituting mask mandates.]()
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U.S. Supreme Court rejects request to review Texas death row inmate Andre Thomas’ case
Thomas’ attorneys appealed saying that some members of the jury that sentenced him had expressed racist views. In their dissent, the court’s three liberal justices wrote that Thomas’ conviction and death sentence were unconstitutional. Full Story
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![The Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 1, 2021. Today, the Supreme Court will hear cases regarding abortion in Texas.]()
Credit: Eric Lee for The Texas Tribune -
How to care for your mental health in the age of climate change and worsening natural disasters
Call or text 800-985-5990 to reach the national Disaster Distress Helpline, or dial 211 to find local mental health resources in Texas. Full Story
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![Barbara Edmonds, right, practices applying pressure on a wound on Deborah Berry during a CERT training at Felix Cook, Jr. Elementary School in Houston on August 1, 2022.]()
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“It’s destroying me”: Storm after storm, climate change increases strain on Texans’ mental health
Tens of thousands of coastal Texas residents have survived repeated extreme weather events including Hurricane Harvey. For many, it has taken an emotional toll, and researchers warn that climate change could be “catastrophic” for our mental health. Full Story
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![Dana Jones, who has been a victim of many floods, holds her head in her hand as she recounts her experiences at her home in Houston on August 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Kylie Cooper/The Texas Tribune