The latest courts news from The Texas Tribune.
Texas immigrants and their advocates said they're pleased that a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction keeping the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in place. But they said they remain focused on the push in Congress to make the program permanent. Full Story
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A federal judge in California issued a nationwide preliminary injunction Tuesday blocking the Trump administration’s decision to phase out a program that shields young undocumented immigrants from deportation. Full Story
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Chris Evans, who is challenging state Rep. J.D. Sheffield in the Republican primary, pleaded guilty in 2001 to making a pipe bomb. "Growing up, I blew up tree stumps recreationally," he told the Tribune. Full Story
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The legal battles over the state's political maps and voter ID requirements will extend into 2018. Here's what to expect. Full Story
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A Mexican reporter and his son who were on the verge of deportation earlier this month will be able to appeal their denial of an asylum claim, their lawyer confirmed on Thursday. Full Story
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An effort to free Mexican reporter Emilio Gutiérrez and his son from immigration detention has garnered national attention. And now, a border congressman has also stepped in to advocate for the duo. Full Story
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Weather-related prison evacuations, legal battles over execution drugs and death sentences, and reform efforts at the Texas Legislature led the state's criminal justice headlines in 2017. Full Story
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The state's highest criminal court agreed Wednesday to intervene in prosecutors' long-running fight to get paid for their handling of the securities fraud case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Full Story
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Bo French says the "Thief Bill Waybourn" Facebook page he created to mock Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn was merely satire. Three law enforcement groups are calling it a "scandalous crime." Full Story
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James Ho, a well-respected Dallas attorney and former state solicitor general, was confirmed Thursday to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. He joins Don Willett, a longtime Texas Supreme Court justice who was confirmed Wednesday. Full Story
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Texas executed more people than any other state this year, but fewer new death sentences has led to a shrinking death row population. Full Story
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The U.S. Senate confirmed Don Willett, a Texas Supreme Court justice, to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday. A confirmation vote on Jim Ho, a former state solicitor general, is expected later this week. Full Story
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A lawsuit filed this fall alleges that Paul Pressler, a former state judge, lawmaker and leader on the religious right, repeatedly sexually assaulted a young man over a period of decades, beginning when the boy was just 14. Full Story
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The prosecutor in the death penalty case of a man who didn't kill anyone has asked the parole board and Gov. Greg Abbott to change his sentence to life in prison. Full Story
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Five months after the death of a severely disabled woman in a state facility, three employees have been indicted on felony murder charges. Full Story
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Several state senators indicated at a Tuesday committee hearing that they would be open to closing at least some of Texas' five remaining remote lockups for committed youth. Full Story
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It appears that Texas will not ask the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a case against the state's restrictions on language interpreters at the ballot box, letting a lower court ruling stand. Full Story
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The burden of a federal court order mandating the free release of poor misdemeanor defendants from jail has fallen onto the Harris County Sheriff. County data shows more than 40 percent of the sheriff's bonds fail because defendants aren't showing up to court, but critics say that number doesn't tell the whole story. Full Story
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The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stopped the state's last remaining execution of 2017, sending the San Antonio case back to court to resolve claims of false testimony at trial. Full Story
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Texas Supreme Court Justice Don Willett, a nominee of President Donald Trump to a federal court, defended past tweets about transgender people and same-sex marriage as jokes at a confirmation hearing Wednesday. Full Story
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