Sid Miller Criminal Case Would Stay in Travis County
If embattled Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is prosecuted for misusing government funds, his trial would be in Travis County, officials said Friday. Full Story
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Johnathan Silver
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Johnathan Silver reported on the state’s criminal justice system for the Tribune from 2015 to 2017. Previously, Johnathan was a Texas Associated Press Managing Editors Buster Haas intern and staff reporter at the Victoria Advocate. A Fort Worth native, Johnathan graduated from The University of Texas at Arlington with bachelor’s degrees in political science and criminal justice – and a graduation mug from The Shorthorn, the campus student newspaper.
Past Contributions
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![Sid Miller, Texas Agriculture Commissioner answers questions about fee increases at TTEvents on Mar. 10, 2016.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Bland Committee Calls for New Jail, Body Cameras
Waller County needs a new jail, local officers need body cameras to record their activities and the sheriff's office needs to promote civility, a study committee formed after the death of Sandra Bland said Tuesday. Full Story
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![Vigil at the Waller Co. sheriff's office in Hempstead, Texas for Sandra Bland, the 28-year-old woman who died in the jail days after arriving in the area to start a new job, on July 17, 2015.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond -
Officials' Personal Email Addresses Open to Public, Court Says
Public officials who use private email accounts to conduct official business cannot conceal their personal email addresses when releasing public information, a state appeals court ruled Friday. Full Story
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Bernie Tiede Painted As Victim, Calculating Killer
Attorneys painted two vastly different pictures of the former Carthage mortician Wednesday during opening statements in his second sentencing trial for Marjorie Nugent's 1996 murder. Full Story
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![Bernie Tiede wipes tears from his eye during opening remarks at his sentencing hearing Wednesday, April 6, 2016, at the Rusk County Courthouse in Henderson.]()
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New Sentencing Trial for Bernie Starts Wednesday
Bernie Tiede — who in 1996 killed his elderly companion, Marjorie Nugent, and inspired a Richard Linklater dark comedy — could learn in just a few weeks whether he'll remain free, return to a life sentence or land somewhere in between. Full Story
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![Bernie Tiede, who had been imprisoned since 1997 for the murder of Marjorie Nugent, was released from the Panola County Detention Center in May 2014. He was released on the condition that he live with filmmaker Richard Linklater, director of the movie "Bernie."]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson -
Trooper in Sandra Bland Case Pleads Not Guilty
Former Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Brian Encinia appeared before a state district judge Tuesday and entered a not guilty plea to a perjury charge stemming from his arrest of Sandra Bland. Full Story
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![Former Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Brian Encinia leaves court after his arraignment at the Waller County Courthouse in Hempstead, Texas Tuesday, Mar. 22, 2016.]()
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Sandra Bland Case: Fired DPS Trooper to Appear in Court Tuesday
When former Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Brian Encinia steps into a Waller County courtroom on Tuesday for his arraignment, he will move forward with one of three battles he is fighting since he arrested Sandra Bland last year. Full Story
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![The January 2016 booking photo (left) of Brian Encinia, the DPS trooper who pulled over and arrested Sandra Bland.]()
Credit: Waller County Sheriff Dept. -
Inmate Declared Innocent is Still in Texas Prison
Although a Dallas County district judge decided he was innocent eight years ago, Ben Spencer remains behind bars for a 1987 aggravated robbery he insists he did not commit. Full Story
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![Despite a 2008 judge's ruling that he is "factually innocent" of the 1987 murder he is imprisoned for, Ben Spencer continues to serve time in the Coffield Prison Unit. Feb. 27, 2013.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond -
Survey Captures Security Fears Among Judges
A survey taken after Travis County state District Judge Julie Kocurek was shot last fall in the driveway of her Austin home found that hundreds of Texas judges have feared for their safety at least once in the last two years. Full Story
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![Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Juvenile Offenders Find Rehabilitation Through New Work Program
The Texas Juvenile Justice Department has developed a pilot program that places a handful of young offenders in on- and off-facility jobs if they have already earned a high school diploma or GED. Full Story
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![Miriam works at the AG-Mart Pet Supply Store in Brownwood, Texas as part of her TJJD work program on January 20, 2016.]()
Credit: Cooper Neill