Category Archives: Crime and Punishment

We don’t know how HPD spends its money

Posted on May 19, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This is just ridiculous. Houston Police Department auditors examining two dozen of the agency’s top earners of overtime pay in 2022 found they could not fully account for how most of the officers spent their time, noting some divisions within … Continue reading →

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More on the Carla Wyatt DUI

Posted on May 15, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

More details emerge. Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt told a Texas City police officer she was “in heaven” before she was arrested and accused of driving while intoxicated early Saturday morning, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by the … Continue reading →

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Carla Wyatt arrested again

Posted on May 11, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This is getting to be more than just sad. Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt was arrested Saturday in Texas City and charged with driving while intoxicated, her third arrest during her time in office, authorities say. Wyatt, 56, was stopped … Continue reading →

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Charges remain against Mark Aguirre

Posted on April 18, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

We really need to get this case to trial already. A former Houston police captain accused of attacking an AC repairman he thought was participating in an election conspiracy lost his latest bid to have assault charges against him thrown … Continue reading →

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DPS and Rangers investigating Camp Mystic

Posted on April 12, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Okay. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Tuesday that the Texas Rangers have launched a criminal investigation into Camp Mystic, where 25 campers and two counselors were killed during a catastrophic flash flood on July 4. And the Texas Department of … Continue reading →

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KP George removed from office

Posted on April 11, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

A rough year gets worse. Fort Bend County Judge KP George was suspended from office Friday following his felony money laundering conviction, a rare move that removes the county’s top elected official from power and puts county government under temporary leadership. During a … Continue reading →

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Grand jury no-bills Carla Wyatt

Posted on April 3, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Okay then. A grand jury on Wednesday declined to indict Harris County’s elected treasurer, Carla Wyatt, on a burglary of a vehicle charge, court records show. The decision followed the prosecution’s decision to skip a public hearing over the merits of Wyatt’s … Continue reading →

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Wyatt case goes to grand jury

Posted on March 27, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Okay. The criminal case against Harris County’s elected treasurer, Carla Wyatt, will go before a grand jury following the repeated postponement of a hearing aimed at deciding whether her burglary of a vehicle charge should proceed, according to court records. … Continue reading →

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Harris County criminal case backlog cleared

Posted on March 22, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Great news. After months of declining criminal caseloads in Harris County courts, prosecutors on Tuesday declared victory in clearing out a crippling backlog of felony cases caused by Hurricane Harvey and exacerbated by the pandemic. “The backlog is not numbers,” District … Continue reading →

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KP George convicted of money laundering

Posted on March 21, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Welp. Fort Bend County Judge KP George was convicted Friday of felony money laundering after jurors found he funneled campaign funds into personal accounts and used the money to cover his personal expenses. The verdict came after several hours of … Continue reading →

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Ordinance proposed to officially limit HPD’s interactions with ICE

Posted on March 20, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Excellent. A trio of Houston City Council members are pushing a plan to change the way Houston police officers work with federal immigration agents, sidestepping Mayor John Whitmire’s authority a week after the mayor announced a more modest tweak to … Continue reading →

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The KP George trial is underway

Posted on March 18, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be something. A Fort Bend District Attorney’s Office fraud investigator stood in front of a jury Thursday — wielding a Sharpie and poster board — and said the numbers looked clear to him. When he first ran … Continue reading →

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So where are we now with HPD and ICE?

Posted on March 16, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s start here, which I think frames the issue in the best practical terms. Mayor John Whitmire’s denials finally hit a wall. When he first took office, the mayor said the Houston Police Department wasn’t working with U.S. Immigration and … Continue reading →

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No last minute reprieve for KP George

Posted on March 10, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Rough week for our guy KP. A Houston appeals court on Monday rejected Fort Bend County Judge KP George’s last-ditch attempt to remove the county’s top prosecutor from his money laundering case, clearing the way for his trial to begin … Continue reading →

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Mayor Whitmire finally says something about HPD and ICE

Posted on March 9, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Took him long enough. A day after a Chronicle report found Houston police officers in at least two instances arrested drivers and personally transported them to immigration agents, Mayor John Whitmire told Univision Houston the arrests violated department policies. Whitmire, who hasn’t responded … Continue reading →

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Ruben Ray Martinez

Posted on February 23, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Remember his name. Three months into President Donald Trump’s mass deportation undertaking, an ICE officer shot and killed a U.S. citizen in South Padre Island, long before immigration agents killed another American in Minnesota that prompted outrage across the nation, … Continue reading →

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Hearing held on Maria Rojas’ injunction appeal

Posted on February 21, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Keeping a close eye on this. Attorneys for Maria Rojas, the Texas midwife accused of providing illegal abortions, asked an appeals court to reverse a temporary injunction that prevents her from practicing medicine while her landmark case moves through the … Continue reading →

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KP George fails to disqualify Fort Bend prosecutor

Posted on February 7, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, this case is going to be something else. A Fort Bend County judge has denied County Judge KP George’s attempt to remove District Attorney Brian Middleton and his office from prosecuting George’s criminal case, rejecting the defense’s claim that … Continue reading →

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Former Uvalde officer acquitted

Posted on January 23, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. A former police officer was acquitted Wednesday evening of charges he failed in his duties to confront the gunman at an Uvalde, Texas, elementary school during the critical opening minutes of what would become one of the deadliest school … Continue reading →

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We sure have a lot of mass shooting memorials

Posted on January 18, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Good Lord. This is some upsetting stuff, so stop reading now if this is not something you want to face today. On May 18, 2018, a student entered Santa Fe High School, between Houston and Galveston, and opened fire with … Continue reading →

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Will Carla Wyatt be removed from office?

Posted on January 11, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe, but too soon to say. It’s too early to consider removing Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt from office or reducing her duties following her arrest, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said Thursday. The embattled treasurer was arrested and charged with … Continue reading →

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First trial over Uvalde law enforcement response to begin

Posted on January 7, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

First of two, assuming no plea deals or late-in-the-day dismissals. Former Uvalde schools police Officer Adrian Gonzales was among the first officers to arrive at Robb Elementary in 2022 after a gunman opened fire on students and teachers. Gonzales’ criminal … Continue reading →

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Harris County Treasurer appears in court

Posted on January 4, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This wasn’t as straightforward as one might have expected. A judge on Friday deemed allegations against Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt following her Washington Avenue arrest ambiguous enough to merit a deeper look. Wyatt, a Democrat elected in 2022, was … Continue reading →

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DPS investigating Flock

Posted on January 3, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

More of an administrative matter than anything else, but potentially with real consequences. State troopers are investigating the company behind thousands of license plate-reading cameras used by police agencies and private groups across the Houston region, over claims the company … Continue reading →

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Harris County Treasurer arrested on misdemeanor burglary charges

Posted on December 30, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

WTF?? Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt is in hot water after being arrested for allegedly breaking into a vehicle over the weekend. Wyatt, a Democrat who has been treasurer since 2023, was arrested just after noon on Saturday and faces … Continue reading →

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Whitmire finally admits that HPD is cooperating with ICE

Posted on November 11, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Goddamn it. Houston Mayor John Whitmire acknowledged Saturday that the city is cooperating with federal immigration authorities after denying for months that Houston police would get involved with immigration enforcement. Whitmire was a guest speaker at a conference Saturday hosted by former Kemah Mayor Bill King, a fellow at Rice … Continue reading →

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HPD king of overtime reassigned

Posted on November 7, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating. A Houston police officer who racked up more than $170,000 in overtime writing tickets in 2024 has been transferred out of the traffic division, the Chronicle has learned through an open records request. Around a week after testifying in court about … Continue reading →

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Ogg contempt hearing delayed again

Posted on October 30, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll get there eventually. A contempt of court hearing is still in the works for former Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg to determine if she violated a gag order in the criminal case for two Venezuelan nationals accused of raping and killing … Continue reading →

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Why is HPD calling ICE so much more often now?

Posted on October 14, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

We deserve some answers. Houston police officers have called federal immigration agents on civilians over 100 times since President Donald Trump took office in January — a jump of more than 1,000% from any of the previous five years, according to public records obtained … Continue reading →

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More indictments in the Maria Rojas case

Posted on October 13, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Paxton pushing paper. Eight people have been indicted on charges of practicing medicine without a license as part of the Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s investigation into a Houston-area midwife accused of providing illegal abortions, the attorney general’s office announced Wednesday. … Continue reading →

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Who asked for this task force?

Posted on October 6, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Other than Greg Abbott, anyway. State and Harris County law enforcement will join forces on a task force aimed at cracking down on repeat violent offenders, whom police leaders say are fueling much of the region’s crime problem, Gov. Greg … Continue reading →

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Home Depot is watching you

Posted on September 21, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Beware the surveillance cameras. Hundreds of AI-powered automated license plate reading cameras paid for by Lowe’s and Home Depot and stationed in the hardware stores’ parking lots are being fed into a massive surveillance system that law enforcement can access, … Continue reading →

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Some uses of police overtime are more sensible than others

Posted on September 15, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. As thousands of protesters gathered at Houston City Hall earlier this year during the No Kings protest against President Donald Trump’s multimillion-dollar military parade, Houston police leaders spent more than $102,000 on police overtime … Continue reading →

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More indictments against Maria Rojas

Posted on September 10, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Remember to wait until her lawyers get a chance to respond before making any inferences about this. The Texas midwife who earlier this year became the first person charged under the state law banning people from performing abortions is now charged with 15 … Continue reading →

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