Cesar Fierro spent 40 years on Texas death row. A court tossed his sentence Wednesday for faulty jury instructions.
Fierro was sentenced to death in El Paso in 1980 for the murder of a taxi driver. Full Story
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Jolie McCullough
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Jolie McCullough was a reporter at The Texas Tribune from 2015 to 2023. She began as a data visualization journalist and then reported on criminal justice policy, ranging from policing and courts to prisons and the death penalty. She joined the Tribune from the Albuquerque Journal, her hometown newspaper. She previously worked at the Arizona Republic and is a graduate of Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Past Contributions
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![Cesar Fierro has been on death row in Texas since 1980 for the 1979 murder of a cab driver in El Paso.]()
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Students face felony charges, expulsions as Texas schools ramp up fight against vaping
Caught off guard by the increase in teen vaping, schools are grasping every tool at hand, including expulsions and suspensions. In some districts, students can face harsh discipline and jail time for having a vape pen in their backpack. Full Story
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![Thomas Williams-Platt, 18, in the backyard of his aunt’s home in Georgetown on Nov. 22, 2019. Last December the then 17-year-old was arrested for bringing a vape pen to his high school.]()
Credit: Angela Piazza for The Texas Tribune -
Texas prison officials violated a judge's order to provide inmates with air conditioning. Now prisoners' lawyers get to investigate.
U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison said the lawyers can further probe the Texas prison agency's violations of a court order to provide air conditioning for some inmates — and agency officials’ false claims that they were in compliance. Full Story
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![Telford prison in New Boston.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
Texas executed Travis Runnels for a prison murder. His lawyers said false testimony put him on death row.
A Texas court has twice overturned death sentences because of one man’s false testimony on restrictions placed on prisoners. Runnels argued the same man’s testimony should have stopped his death, too. Full Story
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![Travis Runnels was sentenced to death for the 2003 murder of prison employee Stanley Wiley.]()
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County ends voluntary evacuation of Port Neches, the second since last week's plant explosion
After recommending Wednesday night that residents leave the area, Jefferson County officials have told residents it's safe to return home. Full Story
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![A process tower flies through air after exploding at the TPC Group Petrochemical Plant in Port Neches. An earlier massive explosion sparked a blaze at the plant on Nov. 27, 2019.]()
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Rodney Reed's execution was set for Wednesday. A Texas court stopped it last week.
The Texas Tribune takes a look at Reed's case as it is sent back to the local court, which will review claims that he is innocent of the murder that put him on death row. Full Story
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![Rodney Reed was sentenced to death for the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites in Bastrop.]()
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Texas court stops Rodney Reed’s execution to further review claims of innocence
The ruling came hours after the Texas parole board recommended that Gov. Greg Abbott delay Reed’s death for 120 days. Full Story
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![Rodney Reed is scheduled to be executed next Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2019.]()
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Pressure is mounting to stop Rodney Reed's execution. Where does his case stand?
Dozens of lawmakers — both Republicans and Democrats — have asked Gov. Greg Abbott and the parole board to stop Reed's execution. There are also multiple appeals in the courts. Full Story
![Rodney Reed was sentenced to death for the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites in Bastrop.]()
Credit: Courtesy KXAN -
Ted Cruz calls efforts to halt Rodney Reed's execution "remarkable bipartisan coalition"
"If there is credible evidence there’s a real chance a defendant is innocent, that evidence should be weighed carefully," Cruz tweeted Friday night. Full Story
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![From left, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rodney Reed.]()
Credit: Illustration by Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Federal judge delays execution of “Texas Seven” prisoner over claims of religious discrimination
For the second time, a court has stopped Murphy's execution over concerns that the Texas prison system's execution procedures discriminate against non-Christian inmates. Full Story
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![Patrick Murphy.]()
Credit: Illustration by Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune