The Texas lawmakers who led the Sandra Bland Act are pushing to reinstate the police reforms stripped from their original bill
The lawmakers said they are acting in response to the death of former Houston resident George Floyd. Full Story
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![Austin police officers stand near an overpass on Interstate 35 to prevent protesters from blocking traffic during a rally at Austin police headquarters.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Joe Biden wins endorsements from Beto O'Rourke, other former rivals in late Texas surge
The former vice president received big-name endorsements — including backing from former presidential candidates Beto O'Rourke, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar — as he campaigned in Dallas and Houston on the eve of Super Tuesday. Full Story
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![Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks to a supporters in Dallas the night before Super Tuesday.]()
Credit: Cooper Neill for The Texas Tribune -
As the Texas prison population shrinks, the state is closing two more lockups
The closures are expected in the coming months, as the state faces dangerous understaffing in its prisons. Full Story
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![Telford prison in New Boston.]()
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Prison health care costs are higher than ever in Texas. Many point to an aging prison population.
Although there are fewer people in prison than there were a decade ago, costs have surged along with the share of inmates who are older — and sicker. Full Story
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![The exterior of Huntsville Unit, a prison in Huntsville, Texas on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2019.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
Texas prison guards to get a small raise, but some doubt it will help with chronic understaffing
The state's two-year budget provided $84 million to increase salaries for correctional officers and other prison employees as the Texas Department of Criminal Justice faces nearly 4,000 empty guard positions. Full Story
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![A correctional officer training class led by Major Robert Lopez at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice William G. McConnell Unit at Chase Field in Beeville on Nov. 1, 2013.]()
Credit: Jennifer Whitney for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick says Senate won't pass bill to lower penalties for marijuana
His comment comes the day after the Texas House gave preliminary approval to the bill in a 98-43 vote. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Senators Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham and Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, hold a press conference to announce the filing of Senate bills 6, 7, and 8. Mar. 6, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas could soon increase the legal age to buy tobacco, though active military members might be exempt
Senate Bill 21 passed Tuesday, raising the legal purchasing age for tobacco products from 18 to 21. But its author amended the legislation to exclude active military from the age raise. Full Story
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![A student smokes a cigarette on the College of Communication plaza.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
Texas senator proposes moving all youth in state lockups to shuttered adult jail
After shrinking the population at state-run juvenile lockups, state Sen. John Whitmire wants to move the remaining youth at five facilities to one recently closed adult jail. Full Story
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Courts have called Texas bail practices unconstitutional. Will that push this year's reform efforts to success?
Two years after a bail reform bill died in the Legislature, new bail legislation has other factors working in its favor. Full Story
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![Senator John Whitmire, D-Houston; Rep. Andrew. Murr, R-Junction; Chief Justice Nathan Hecht; and Justice Sharon Keller speak at a press confrence to announce legislation aimed at reforming the state’s bail system.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott proposes bail reform after death of DPS trooper
Abbott said he wanted to fix a flawed system in Texas that allowed the man suspected of killing a trooper last year to get out of jail on bond despite having been previously accused of assaulting a deputy. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott. joined by DPS Director Steve McCraw (seated, left) and Kasey Allen, widow of Damon Allen, speaks at a press conference in Waco on August 7, 2018. Abbott announced a proposal to reform the bail system in Texas. The proposal is in honor of State Trooper Damon Allen, who was killed while on duty in 2017.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
During school safety hearing, Texas lawmakers express support for arming faculty and staff — maybe even with rifles
Following Gov. Greg Abbott's recommendations on school gun safety, members of a Senate committee on school violence debated the efficacy of expanding programs that already arm faculty and school staff. Full Story
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![Left to right: State Sens. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, Eddie Lucio Jr., D-Brownville, and John Whitmire, D-Houston, at the second day of hearings held by the Senate Select Committee on Violence in Schools and School Security on June 12, 2018.]()
Credit: Rachel Zein for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate sends bill to governor discouraging weather-related lawsuits
A tort-reform bill that would discourage property owners from suing insurers over weather-related claims tentatively passed the Texas Senate on Tuesday. Full Story
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Sandra Bland Act gets nod from Texas Senate panel
The legislation would mandate that county jails route people with mental health crises and substance abuse issues to treatment and install electronic sensors or cameras to better monitor inmates. Full Story
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![Sandra Bland, who was found dead at the Waller County Jail in 2015.]()
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New Harris County policy reignites marijuana decriminalization debate
After Harris County’s move to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana, Texas lawmakers disagree about whether local jurisdictions have the discretion to enact such policies. Full Story
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Juvenile justice agency pushes back on claims of ineffectiveness
A Senate Finance committee workgroup has been tasked with exploring ways to improve the Texas Juvenile Justice Department as the agency defends itself from claims of inefficiency. Full Story
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![Detainees are moved from location to location within the Travis County Juvenile Detention Center in Austin, Texas, Monday, June 24, 2013.]()
Credit: Jennifer Whitney for The Texas Tribune -
Dan Patrick makes only one change atop Senate committees
Only one committee received a new committee chair in the Texas Senate. Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, will chair the Senate Administration Committee. Full Story
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Whitmire may avoid some pension votes amid conflict-of-interest concerns
After some Dallas City Council members voiced concerns this week over Whitmire’s work at a law firm whose client list includes city pension fund boards, the Houston Democrat said he would likely abstain from voting on Dallas-specific bills. Full Story
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![Sen. John Whitmire D-Houston holds up a copy of newspaper with an article regarding CPS on the front page as he questions John Stephen, a consultant hired to give a report on Texas child protective services during an October 26, 2016 Senate Finance Committee hearing]()
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Trooper's attorneys might ask judge to toss indictment in Bland case
Attorneys for the state trooper who arrested Sandra Bland are considering asking a judge to throw out his indictment for perjury. 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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Child Welfare Oversight, Teen Drivers' Training and Trump's Women Woes (Video)
In the Roundup: Child welfare agency failures, teen drivers could be taught how to deal with police and Trump's challenges with Texas women. Full Story
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Advocates Push For Early Release of Severely Ill Sex Offenders
A prisoner rights advocate thinks lawmakers should loosen restrictions on medical parole eligibility for sex offenders. A top state lawmaker on criminal justice issues agrees with her but says the issue is just too politically toxic. Full Story
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![An inmate sleeps in his cubicle in the geriatric unit of the Estelle Prison in Huntsville.]()
Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller for The Texas Tribune