News
Texas Court Stops Rodney Reed’s Execution To Further Review Claims Of Innocence
Posted on · The ruling came hours after the Texas parole board recommended that Gov. Greg Abbott delay Reed’s death for 120 days.
Texas
Pressure Is Mounting To Stop Rodney Reed’s Execution. Where Does His Case Stand?
Posted on · 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.
News
Bobby Moore’s Death Sentence Is Changed To Life In Prison After Lengthy Court Fights Over Intellectual Disability
Posted on · Moore was sentenced to death in 1980 in the fatal shooting of an elderly store clerk during a Houston robbery.
Texas
House Speaker Dennis Bonnen Says, “No Laws Were Broken.” Legal Hurdles Remain.
Posted on · Bonnen has been eager to dismiss speculation that he did anything illegal during a June 12 meeting with conservative activist Michael Quinn Sullivan. But a probe into the event is ongoing.
Local
A GPS Company Repossessed A Houston Murder Suspect’s Ankle Monitor For Late Fees. He Was Untracked For Two Weeks.
Posted on · The incident highlights differences in GPS monitoring for defendants released from jail on money bonds and no-cash bonds. One department has arrestees pay vendors directly, the other has costs go through them.
Texas
Federal Judge Orders Galveston County To Have Defense Lawyers At Bail-Setting Hearings
Posted on · Galveston County, like Harris and Dallas, was sued for bail practices that lawyers and judges have said discriminate against poor criminal defendants.
News
El Paso Shooting Suspect Said He Ordered His AK-47 And Ammo From Overseas
Posted on · The white suspect in the racist massacre told El Paso police he bought the gun from Romania and picked it up at a Dallas-area store. Experts say guns imported from overseas are often cheaper than those from the U.S.
Texas
Federal Court Stops Execution Of Dexter Johnson Within 24 Hours Of His Scheduled Death
Posted on · In his recent appeals, Johnson has claimed he is intellectually disabled and therefore ineligible for the death penalty. He was convicted of a double murder in Harris County that took place in 2006.
Texas
Texas Leaders: Hemp Law Did Not Decriminalize Marijuana
Posted on · A law legalizing hemp changed the definition of marijuana, causing district attorneys across the state to drop low-level possession cases and stop accepting new ones.
Texas
After Texas’ Second Supreme Court Loss In A Death Penalty Case, Reform Bill Lands Key GOP Support
Posted on · The chairs of two House committees signed on as joint authors of a bill that would set the method of determining if a capital murder defendant is intellectually disabled and therefore ineligible for execution.
Texas
For The Second Time, U.S. Supreme Court Reverses Death Sentence Decision For Texas Inmate Bobby Moore
Posted on · This time, the majority of the justices said Moore has shown he is intellectually disabled.
News
Texas Sees Uptick In Executions, Death Sentences In 2018
Posted on · The state put to death 13 men this year. That's more than half the total number of people executed in the entire country: 25. Still, the death row population — both here and nationwide — is at a historic low.
News
State Representative Ron Reynolds Turns Himself in to Serve Year-Long Jail Sentence
Posted on · The Missouri City Democrat was convicted of multiple misdemeanors for illegally soliciting clients for his personal injury law practice.
News
Police Officers Are Almost Never Convicted of Murder; Body Cameras May Have Made The Difference in This Texas Case
Posted on · After more than 13 hours of deliberation, jurors convicted former Balch Springs police officer Roy Oliver of murder in the fatal shooting of an unarmed, 15-year-old black teenager.
News
Will A Texas Law That Overturns Convictions Based on Bad Science Save This Death Row Inmate?
Posted on · The 2013 law was credited with stopping Robert Roberson's execution two years ago, and his conviction is now under review in county court.