Civil Rights
An ‘Election Meltdown’ in Texas
How voter suppression, poor planning, incendiary rhetoric, and fear of coronavirus could erode public confidence in elections.
Primary voters in some parts of Texas waited in punishingly long lines to cast a ballot last Tuesday. A surge in Democratic voter turnout overwhelmed many polli...Read More
Reform Candidates are Trying to Change the Definition of a ‘Progressive Prosecutor’ in Texas
Kim Ogg’s primary challenge for Harris County District Attorney is one of several prosecutor races in Texas that could redefine the bounds of criminal justice reform in the state.
When Kim Ogg first ran for Harris County district attorney, she had a simple pitch for criminal justice reform: stop jailing people for petty pot possession. Th...Read More
A Solitary Condition
Texas has banished hundreds of prisoners to more than a decade of solitary confinement. Many of these prisoners aren’t sure how—or, in some cases, if—they will ever get out.
The Prison Inside Prison Texas has banished hundreds of prisoners to more than a decade of solitary confinement, an extreme form of a controversial punishment l...Read More
5 Texas Criminal Justice Stories to Watch in 2020
“Progressive” prosecutors, bail reforms, and increased calls for accountability will all likely be in the news next year.
At the state level, 2019 was largely a year of missed opportunities for reforming the criminal legal system in Texas. Despite a reputation for leading on crimin...Read More
In Dallas, Churches Break the Law to Shelter Homeless People on Freezing Nights
A city ordinance prevents churches and virtually anyone else from acting as emergency shelters, but some are offering safe haven anyway.
The first night of a punishing cold front in January 2018, two people living on the streets of South Dallas died. Others camping underneath the same highway ove...Read More
A Top Cop Accused of Racism Forces Austin to Confront Bias in Law Enforcement
Austin isn’t the only Texas city where trust between police and communities of color has frayed this year.
In late October, Assistant Chief Justin Newsom abruptly resigned from the Austin Police Department after 23 years on the force. Newsom, who oversaw the departme...Read More
Texas’ Method for Funding Courts is a Colossal Waste of Time and Money
Criminal fines and fees, in addition to trapping poor people in a cycle of debt and incarceration, are an incredibly costly source of revenue for local governments, according to a new report.
Texas spends a fortune every year squeezing fines and fees out of criminal defendants. In 2017 alone, the state dumped at least $150 million into court and jail...Read More
The Movement to Free Rodney Reed Illustrates the Growing Unease Over Texas’ Use of the Death Penalty
Deafening calls to spare Rodney Reed’s life point to a larger distrust in Texas’ use of the death penalty and an erosion of confidence in the justice system that convicted him.
After an hourslong rally outside the governor’s mansion in downtown Austin on Saturday, hundreds of people chanting “Free Rodney Reed” briefly blocked str...Read More
The Ghosts of Jefferson
This East Texas tourist town calls itself “the most haunted town in Texas,” but its whitewashed ghost stories elide a complex racial history.
This East Texas tourist town has an economy built on nostalgia tourism, but its whitewashed ghost stories elide a complex racial history. * by Asher Elbein Octo...Read More