INSIDER
After no contest plea, a Texas representative’s charges for impersonating a public servant are dismissed
In June 2022, state Rep. Frederick Frazier was indicted on two charges of impersonating a public servant. A Collin County district judge dismissed the misdemeanor charges as part of his deferred adjudication.
Election vendor hits Texas counties with surcharge for software behind voter registration systems
A California-based vendor of election services is charging several Texas counties tens of thousands of dollars in additional fees.
Man gets life in prison after pleading guilty in the sexual assaults of 4 women in their Texas homes
A man was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty in the attacks of four women who were sexually assaulted in their homes throughout the Dallas area, including three women who were alumnae of the same national Black sorority.
Despite mounting doubts about his guilt, Ivan Cantu running out of time to avoid Texas’ death chamber
Convicted of killing his cousin and his cousin’s fiancée, the death row inmate hopes recanted testimony and other new details spur a review of his case.
Texas high court won’t force Collin County to pay prosecutors in Paxton securities fraud case
Paxton’s securities fraud trial has been delayed for years by a number of pretrial disputes, including how much the special prosecutors should be paid.
Harris County judge sides with Ken Paxton’s prosecutors over pay dispute in securities fraud case
Judge Andrea Beall ruled Tuesday that the prosecutors, Brian Wice and Kent Schaffer, are owed the $300-an-hour rate by the county that they were promised when they started on the case in 2015.
“Let’s clean house”: Paxton tells supporters to lead charge in removing his Republican rivals who impeached him
Paxton named House Speaker Dade Phelan, a fellow Republican, in his brief remarks Saturday in North Texas. The suspended attorney general faces a trial Tuesday that would remove him from office permanently.
Ken Paxton moves one step closer to trial on long-delayed securities fraud charges
The impeached attorney general appeared in a Houston courtroom, where lawyers from both sides agreed to return in October to set an expected trial date on charges that have been pending since 2015.
Ken Paxton’s securities fraud trial will remain in Houston, court rules
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruling overturns lower-court decisions that had moved the case back to Collin County, where the suspended attorney general lives.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott remains silent on potential AG impeachment
A Texas House committee has filed 20 articles of impeachment accusing attorney general of wrongdoing. Republicans’ attempts to remove one of their own sets up a dramatic intraparty showdown in the waning days of the 2023 regular legislative session.
“Nothing bad happens here”: Allen residents say shooting has shattered the town’s sense of safety
A mass shooting at this suburb’s community hub — the outlet mall — has punctured the sense of security that drew many to Allen. “That could have been me and my boys,” one local woman said.
Judge stops Texas execution after questions raised in case
A Texas judge has stopped next week’s scheduled execution of a death row inmate who has long said he’s innocent so there can be more time to review his claims that he was convicted more than 20 years ago with false testimony and questionable evidence.
Texas judge cancels Ivan Cantu execution after new evidence suggests he might be innocent
Two jurors from Cantu’s 2001 double-murder trial now support his appeals, which claim prosecutors relied on false testimony and withheld crucial evidence.
Despite GOP gains across the state, voters in the Austin-area suburb of Round Rock rejected conservative school board candidates
Slates of conservative candidates endorsed by the Republican Party of Texas failed to flip school boards in several suburban races across Texas.
Collin College professor reinstated at school in free speech lawsuit settlement
Suzanne Jones is the second professor to settle with the North Texas college over accusations that the school fired her over protected speech in which administrators disagreed.
Two constables, four police chiefs and over 3,000 other Texans were members of the Oath Keepers, report says
A recent analysis of Oath Keepers’ membership rolls leaked last year found that Texas had more members of the far-right extremist group than any other state — and the most who worked as elected officials, law enforcement officers or members of the military.
Texas executes Kosoul Chanthakoummane for the 2006 murder of a real estate agent
DNA evidence tied Chanthakoummane to Sarah Walker’s murder at a model home in Collin County. In last-minute appeals, his attorneys argue the evidence was not conclusive.
Former employee accuses Collin College of racial discrimination in fourth recent lawsuit against the school
Swee Lian Wee claims she was denied a promotion based on race and that school leaders created a hostile work environment.
Republican Texas House candidate in Collin County charged with impersonating public servant
Frederick Frazier’s runoff opponent accused him of posing as a city code compliance officer to get campaign signs taken down. Frazier said his opponent is to blame in the case.
U.S. Rep. Van Taylor ends reelection campaign after he admits to affair
Taylor made the stunning announcement hours after he finished his five-way primary with 49% of the vote. Former Collin County Judge Keith Self, who finished second, is now likely to become the next congressman for the 3rd District.
Texas county officials call election audits an unnecessary partisan ploy while voicing confidence in 2020 results
Officials in some counties targeted by audits accuse Republican Texas leaders of pandering to conspiracy theorists and undermining faith in elections. They also say the secretary of state’s office hasn’t provided details on what the audits entail.
Collin County detention officers won't face charges over in-custody death of Marvin Scott III
Since Scott’s death, family members had led regular demonstrations outside the Collin County Jail. Multiple news outlets reported that a grand jury recommended the formation of a group to study Scott’s death, which had been ruled a homicide.
Lawyers prosecuting Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s fraud case challenge decision to move trial back to his home county
Last month, a divided three-judge panel ruled that the case should move back to Collin County. Prosecutors are asking the full 1st Court of Appeals to review and reverse that ruling, potentially further delaying the 6-year-old case.
Black inmate's death in Texas jail struggle ruled homicide
The death of a Black man who struggled with detention officers at a Texas jail during what his family members say probably was a mental health crisis has been ruled a homicide.
Black inmate’s death in Texas jail struggle ruled homicide
The death of a Black man who struggled with detention officers at a Texas jail during what his family members say probably was a mental health crisis has been ruled a homicide.
There are likely more tigers in captivity than in the wild, Humane Society of the United States says
Even though captive tigers are a “serious threat,” the Humane Society of the United States said there are likely more tigers in captivity than there are in the wild across the world. “The Humane Society of the United States strongly opposes keeping tigers and other wild animals as pets,” she said. Here’s an expanded list of prohibited animals in Bexar County, according to an order from the Commissioners Court:Prohibited animals in Bexar County, according to an order from the Commissioners Court. AdNorwood said more than 15 years have passed since ACS last helped retrieve a tiger from a San Antonio home. Those include game wardens with the Texas Parks and Wildlife, the San Antonio Zoo or different animal sanctuaries.
Collin County is the center of a political storm as the Texas suburbs become more competitive for Democrats
Six years ago, Collin County was so solidly Republican that many of its representatives in Austin and Washington didn’t even draw Democratic opponents. Collin County was among the first Texas counties this week to exceed its 2016 turnout, and 62% of its voters had already voted as of Wednesday. “Collin County voters are smart,” Taylor said. At the same time, Democrats also see opportunity in injecting the president into the Texas House races in Collin County. “What’s happening in Collin County is what’s happening all across the country,” Leach said.
Judge rules Ken Paxton's 5-year-old criminal case can be heard in his hometown of Collin County
The case was sent to be tried in Houston in 2017 given Paxton’s close political ties in Collin County. Paxton once represented the region in the state Legislature, and now his wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, does. Prosecutors argued they could not get a fair trial in a part of the state where the Paxtons are so well connected. In July 2019, Paxton’s defense attorneys asked a judge to send the case back to Collin County, arguing that the judge who removed it to Houston had not had the authority to do so. Judge Jason Luong sent the case back to Collin County on Friday.
White evangelicals hope to keep changing Texas red for Trump
During a break between morning church services, Beverly Sides, right, with the Prestonwood Cultural Impact Team shows Suzie Brewer election voter guides for various north Texas counties at Prestonwood Baptist Church Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020, in Plano, Texas. He spoke in the parking lot of a pizza place in McKinney, Texas, the county seat. Jeffress, the leader of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, also sees the changes underway in his state. Despite the United States’ troubles with the pandemic and economic crash, white evangelicals remain among the president’s most loyal supporters. Texas evangelicals expect Barrett, whose confirmation hearings are underway in the U.S. Senate this week, to uphold more limits to abortion.
Five health experts on the states coronavirus data backlog and what to expect as schools reopen
The agency has fast-tracked the onboarding of more than 300 labs to provide testing data as quickly as possible, Anton said. Question: Whats the effect of the backlog and the later data dump from a public health standpoint? However, there are relatively few positive TB tests, and there's no expectation that you report negative tests, only the positive ones. Second factor: the poor analysts at the state, they're getting data feeds from I think 600 different laboratories across the state. So I think we're going to see a surge, I think we'll see a surge of positive cases in the next 10 days to two weeks.
Criminal case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will return to his native Collin County, judge rules
A judge moved Texas Attorney General Ken Paxtons case to Harris County years ago, after prosecutors said they could not get a fair trial in Collin County. REUTERS/Bill ClarkYears after it was sent to Harris County, the criminal case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will move back to his native Collin County, a Harris County judge ruled Thursday. A judge moved Paxtons case to Harris County years ago, after prosecutors said they could not get a fair trial in Collin County, Paxtons home and former district from his time in the state Legislature. The two attorneys prosecuting Paxton, Brian Wice and Kent Schaffer, disputed that at a December hearing and said the case belongs in Harris County. But when the Texas State Securities Board reprimanded him for soliciting clients without being properly registered, he signed a disciplinary order without disputing its findings.