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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.
Moving the most violent and troubled youths to adult prison makes it easier to help others in juvenile facilities, some prosecutors and lawmakers say. Youth justice advocates say Texas is giving up on the children who most need help. Full Story
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Joshua Keith Beasley Jr. had been transferred from a Texas youth facility to an adult prison despite a long history of suicidal behavior. Five guards and two supervisors allegedly failed to check on him. Full Story
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Two jurors from Cantu’s 2001 double-murder trial now support his appeals, which claim prosecutors relied on false testimony and withheld crucial evidence. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott has said he wants to pardon Perry, who was convicted by a Travis County jury last week. Full Story
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In an unprecedented use of his power, the Republican governor moved to pardon Daniel Perry less than a day after an Austin jury convicted him in the murder of protester Garrett Foster. Full Story
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Sweltering heat has killed inmates, driven away prison workers and cost taxpayers millions in lawsuits. The House budget would provide air conditioning for 46 prisons, but it’s unclear if the Senate will sign on. Full Story
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In his biennial state of the judiciary, Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht also warned against politics’ encroachment into the third branch of government. Full Story
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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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Plagued by decades of scandals over sexual and physical abuse of children, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department is at a crossroads. Full Story
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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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