How plans for a West Texas drag show turned into a war over the First Amendment
In the staunchly conservative Panhandle, LGBTQ+ Texans say political and legal battles overlook their humanity. Full Story
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![From left, Marcus Stovall and Bear Bright stand of the sidewalk across the street from the courthouse Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023 in Canyon, Tx.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
Immigrant families on edge amid uncertainty over new Texas law
Advocates for immigrant rights say they worry the law could encourage racial profiling. The law’s authors say it won’t likely be enforced beyond the border. Full Story
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![Migrants in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico cross the border from Mexico to the U.S. side of the Rio Grande, on March 20, 2024.]()
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U.S. Supreme Court hears Texas case on politically motivated arrests
Former Castle Hills Council Member Sylvia Gonzalez sued the city after police arrested her for tampering with government records, which she said was in retaliation for her criticism of the city manager. Full Story
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![Supreme Court police officers walk alongside protective barriers in Washington D.C., on Nov. 1, 2021.]()
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Disagreement and confusion on display in hearing over Texas’ new immigration law
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments about whether to allow back into effect a law allowing state and local authorities to deport migrants. Full Story
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![A group of migrants walk to an El Paso County Sheriff transport van to be taken to processing on the day the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals hears oral arguments on Texas' motion to lift a block an immigration law that would allow state officials to arrest migrants suspected of being in the country illegally, in El Paso, on March 20, 2024.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Justin Hamel -
Texas’ new immigration law is blocked again
Hours after the U.S. Supreme Court had allowed Senate Bill 4 to go into effect, a federal appeals court let an earlier injunction stand. SB 4 lets Texas police arrest people suspected of illegally crossing the Texas-Mexico border. Full Story
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![Migrants walk along the Rio Grande passed the recently installed buoys in Eagle Pass, Texas on July 29, 2023. As there is concertina wire installed along the Urbina’s property, migrants are told to walk to the end of the property. Many make that walk which can be difficult to do through slippery rocks in the water, the current and the inclined river bank, while some find spots through the concertina wire and manage to get through.
Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Verónica Gabriela Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune -
Supreme Court permits Texas police to arrest people who illegally cross the border as the SB 4 legal clash continues
The ruling allows Texas to start enforcing SB 4 while a lawsuit over its constitutionality remains pending before a federal appeals court. Full Story
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![The U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 4, 2022.]()
Credit: Jason Garza for The Texas Tribune -
Texas immigration law: Here’s what to know about SB 4
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed Texas to enforce its illegal entry law amid an ongoing lawsuit. Full Story
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![Texas National Guard members install a sign, meant to detract migrants from crossing the Rio Grande, at the bank of the river in Eagle Pass, on Jan. 17, 2024.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Supreme Court declines to intervene in lawsuit over West Texas A&M drag shows
The decision means university President Walter Wendler could cancel an on-campus drag show next week. He canceled a previous show last year. Full Story
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![Students rallied against the university president’s decision to cancel a drag performance at West Texas A&M University on March 23, 2023.]()
Credit: David Bowser for The Texas Tribune -
Texas sues Colony Ridge development for fraudulent real estate practices
Residents of the Houston-area development, who were maligned by Republicans last year, have complained about the developer for years. Full Story
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![A sign outside of the Colony Ridge development on Oct. 10, 2023, in New Caney, Texas.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
El Paso judge blocks Ken Paxton’s efforts to subpoena Annunciation House
The judge questioned Paxton’s true motives to investigate the shelter, saying there is “a real and credible concern” the state has a predetermined goal of shutting down Annunciation House. Full Story
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![205th District Judge Francisco Dominguez speaks during a motion hearing with in the 205th District Courtroom in El Paso on Thursday, March 7, 2024.]()
Credit: Gaby Velasquez/El Paso Times/USA TODAY Network via REUTERS -
Texas Supreme Court refuses to hear ethics lawsuits brought by conservative activist Michael Quinn Sullivan
In 2014, and following a two-year investigation, the Texas Ethics Commission fined Sullivan $10,000 for failing to register as a lobbyist. Full Story
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![Michael Quinn Sullivan of Empower Texans speaks at a conservative grassroots rally for property tax relief and reform at the Texas Capitol on Tuesday, April 16, 2019.]()
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El Paso judge says he’s concerned that Ken Paxton has “ulterior political motives”’ in migrant shelter probe
The judge will make a ruling soon on whether Annunciation House is obligated to release all the documents the attorney general’s office has demanded. Full Story
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![Ruben Garcia, director of Annunciation House, sits at the witness stand answering questions from Jerome Wesevich, a lawyer with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid representing Annunciation House, during a motion hearing with Judge Francisco Dominguez in the 205th District Courtroom in El Paso on Thursday, March 7, 2024.]()
Credit: Gaby Velasquez/El Paso Times/USA TODAY NETWORK via REUTERS -
Texas Supreme Court Justice John Devine narrowly survives heated primary centered on judicial ethics
Devine will face 281st District Judge Christine Vinh Weems in November’s general election. Full Story
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![Texas Supreme Court Justice John Devine listens to Douglas Alexander make oral arguments in the cases Abbott v. City of San Antonio, Abbott v. Jenkins, and Abbott v. Harris County, Feb. 22. 2023 in Austin. The cases were consolidated for oral arguments, as they all concern whether an executive order barring local mask mandates falls within the scope of authority granted to the Governor under the Texas Disaster Act.]()
Credit: Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman via REUTERS -
Ken Paxton successfully ousts three Republican criminal appeal court judges
Three incumbent judges with nearly a century of criminal law experience fell victim to Paxton’s political revenge tour after they ruled against the attorney general in a 2021 voter fraud case. Full Story
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![The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Jan. 15, 2020.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas prosecutor disciplined for allowing murder charge against woman who self-managed an abortion
The State Bar of Texas has fined and suspended Starr County’s district attorney for pursuing a murder indictment against 26-year-old woman after she self-managed an abortion. Full Story
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![The Starr County seal on Jan. 12, 2022.]()
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Texas law allowing police to arrest migrants suspected of being in country illegally blocked by federal judge
Senate Bill 4 was Texas’ latest attempt to deter people from crossing the Texas-Mexico border amid a surge in migration. Full Story
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![Migrants traverse the bank of the Rio Grande at Shelby Park in Eagle Pass, on Jan. 19, 2024.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas DPS Director Steve McCraw testifies before grand jury investigating Uvalde school shooting
McCraw, the state police chief, traveled to Uvalde to appear before a grand jury considering criminal charges against officers for their botched response to the 2022 school shooting. Full Story
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![Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw testifies during the Homeland Security & Public Safety committee hearing at the state Capitol in Austin on Feb. 28, 2023. McCraw emphasized the drug and human smuggling crisis at the border, and answered questions concerning the training that DPS officers undergo in relation to school shootings.]()
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Texas executes Ivan Cantu for Dallas murders despite doubts of his guilt
Faith leaders and jurors from the original trial launched a public campaign to reconsider recanted testimony in Cantu’s case. Texas courts declined. Full Story
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![Ivan Cantu poses for a photo on Jan. 31, 2024. Cantu is locked in a room for visitation and uses a telephone to speak to a reporter.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
In leaked audio, Supreme Court Justice John Devine railed against “brainwashed” GOP colleagues
Devine, a former anti-abortion activist, faces a heated primary challenge that has focused on questions about his ethics. Full Story
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![Texas Supreme Court Justice John Devine, far left, with fellow judges on the House floor in Austin in 2013.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Gov. Greg Abbott signals support for IVF in Texas after Alabama ruling
Abbott stopped short of calling on the Legislature to take actions to protect IVF after a Alabama court ruling threw fertility treatments into legal limbo in that state. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks about the recent 88th Legislative Session to an audience at the Texas Public Policy Foundation offices in Austin, on June 2, 2023. Abbott recounted policy victories in regards to fentanyl and the border crisis, as well as limiting gender affirming care and banning DEI practices in higher education. Abbott ended the event by promising to call a special session for school choice, after the current special session for property tax resolves.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune