Category Archives: Crime and Punishment

Another data point on ransomware

And other cybersecurity incidents, from the FBI. A series of cyberattacks across Texas, including some in the Houston region, are part of a growing statewide and national trend of increasingly sophisticated groups working through computers to steal money and information, … Continue reading

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Grand jury empaneled in Paxton case

Well, well, well. Federal prosecutors have seated a grand jury in San Antonio and called witnesses close to suspended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to testify, two sources with knowledge of the investigation told the American-Statesman. The purpose of the … Continue reading

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On bringing DPS troopers to Houston

I have some questions. Call in the troopers. That’s one of state Sen. John Whitmire’s plans for reducing crime in Houston, which voters consistently have rated as one of their top concerns. A similar partnership with the Texas Department of … Continue reading

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More requests for DOJ asked to investigate shady migrant flights

Massachusetts gets aboard. Cape and Islands District Attorney Rob Galibois is officially joining hands with California and Texas officials who have asked US Attorney General Merrick B. Garland to help  investigate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s scheme to transport immigrants to Martha’s … Continue reading

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Ken Paxton’s long-awaited first day in court

Literally years in the making. Impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton moved a small step closer to trial Thursday on long-delayed felony securities fraud charges, though both sides agreed his Senate impeachment trial looms large as a factor. Meeting briefly in … Continue reading

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Ken Paxton has a day in court today

Now he gets to deal with those almost-decade-old state securities fraud charges against him. And we may even get a trial date! All eyes will be on the Harris County Criminal Courthouse when impeached Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton appears … Continue reading

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Gag order? What gag order?

It doesn’t count if I’m fundraising, right? Suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton is fundraising off his upcoming impeachment trial and characterizing the rare political event in a way that appears to be a direct violation of the gag order established … Continue reading

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HPD releases its official report on the AstroWorld tragedy

Read it and see for yourself. They looked like rag dolls, Reece Wheeler thought. One by one, the Astroworld Festival coordinator watched from the command center as unconscious Travis Scott fans’ were crowd-surfed out of the mosh pit and dumped … Continue reading

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Another Paxton roundup

We’ll start with this big Chron story about yet another allegation of unethical legal conduct by Ken Paxton. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is suspended from duty as he awaits his impeachment trial, jeopardized his office’s prosecution of a GOP … Continue reading

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Is ShotSpotter working?

This story would suggest the answer is No. Houston city leaders deployed the gunshot surveillance system ShotSpotter to strengthen police responses in neighborhoods where gunfire too often rings out. But three years into its deployment, crime statistics show the technology hasn’t made a … Continue reading

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DOJ asked to investigate shady migrant flights

Feels like this should have been done awhile ago, but better late than never. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), California State Attorney General Rob Bonta and Texas Sheriff Javier Salazar sent a letter to the Department of Justice on Thursday … Continue reading

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Grand jury no-bills Travis Scott

No criminal charges will be filed over the deaths at the 2021 AstroWorld concert. A grand jury declined on Thursday to criminally indict rapper Travis Scott and five others in the 2021 Astroworld concert deaths, capping a nearly two-year police … Continue reading

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Paxton’s securities trial will be in Harris County

Hey, remember all those years ago when Ken Paxton was indicted on securities fraud charges, and how he’s been able to avoid seeing the inside of a courtroom because of a barrage of appeals and other legal maneuvers? Well, we … Continue reading

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Bexar County Sheriff’s Office files charges related to Florida immigration relocation stunt

Update of interest. The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office says it has completed its investigation into the transport of 49 migrants from San Antonio to Martha’s Vineyard last September by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration and filed criminal charges with the … Continue reading

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Nate Paul arrested by feds

Well, well, well. Nate Paul, the Austin real estate developer central to allegations of illegal conduct by Ken Paxton, Texas’ now-suspended attorney general, was arrested by the FBI on Thursday. Paul was booked into the Travis County Jail at 4:25 … Continue reading

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Houston’s violent crime rate drops in 2023

I have three things to say about this. Mayor Sylvester Turner on Wednesday touted his crime initiative as the reason behind a double-digit year-to-year reduction in violent crime in the first quarter of 2023, but experts say the figures mirror wider national trends and warned … Continue reading

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Spending even more on court-appointed attorneys

But maybe there’s an end in sight. Harris County is on track to pay $95 million by the end of October to private attorneys for representing low-income people accused of crimes — about $35 million more than the county budgeted … Continue reading

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The drones of Pearland

I mean, we’ll see. Certainly the Pearland Police Department will see lots of things. Pearland’s police department has become the nation’s first law enforcement agency to win Federal Aviation Administration approval to use a system in which drones controlled from … Continue reading

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More on spending less on court-appointed lawyers

Seems like a good start. A Houston Chronicle investigation into how some private attorneys earn enormous sums to represent thousands of indigent people accused of crimes in Harris County – at a cost of $60 million to taxpayers last year – is prompting … Continue reading

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So about that DPS delay in notifying the victims of the credential stuffing attack

Here’s their explanation. [DPS Director Steve] McCraw said DPS officials kept the news under wraps to avoid jeopardizing the agency’s investigation, including efforts to arrest the fraudsters who organized the scheme. The explanation came in response to questioning from state … Continue reading

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DPS victimized by credential stuffing attack

That’s the technical term for this. The Texas Department of Public Safety was duped into shipping at least 3,000 Texas driver’s licenses to a Chinese organized crime group that targeted Asian Texans, DPS Director Steve McCraw told a Texas House … Continue reading

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We do need more felony courts

This is a good start. County officials are considering adding new district courts and making more room for detainees in an effort to reduce to county’s court backlog and alleviate overcrowding at the Harris County Jail. During Commissioners Court on … Continue reading

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Let’s spend less money on court-appointed lawyers

That’s my main takeaway from this. Harris County paid one private attorney just over $1 million last year to represent hundreds of low-income people accused of crimes, helping proliferate a system that critics say wastes taxpayer dollars and robs indigent defendants of … Continue reading

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ShotSpotter

I’m more skeptical than not, but there is a way to make me less so. Two years in, Houston’s ShotSpotter program has resulted in 5,450 alerts, 99 arrests and the seizure of 107 guns, but no real consensus on its … Continue reading

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In support of Crystal Mason

Hoping for the best. The same month Tarrant County officials announced the creation of an election integrity task force, a group of 14 bipartisan prosecutors threw their weight behind an effort to acquit the woman at the center of a high-profile … Continue reading

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The last thing we need is more people in the jail

This is a rare place where Democrats have leverage. Make good use of it. With an eye on Harris County, Texas lawmakers are considering new measures aimed at keeping more defendants accused of violent and sexual crimes behind bars as … Continue reading

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Uvalde school district will not finish its internal review of police response to mass shooting

If nothing else, there are two clear arguments to be made in this debate. The Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District announced it will not continue with an independent review of the district police response to the Robb Elementary School shooting. … Continue reading

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Uvalde DA gets DPS report on school shooting

We’re still a long way from seeing it for ourselves. State police investigating the Uvalde school shooting have sent an initial report to prosecutors, according to a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety. The Texas Rangers, a division … Continue reading

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More guns found at domestic violence incidents

Not great. The 2021 State of the State report from the Texas Council on Family Violence (TCFV) outlines key domestic violence statistics from the past two years. The report shows the number of domestic violence calls law enforcement responded to … Continue reading

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The medical response also failed at Uvalde

This is a very hard story to read, with graphic descriptions of injuries suffered by the shooting victims at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. Click over very carefully, but whether you read or not know that the failures at the … Continue reading

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Please don’t threaten to kill your political opponents

We really shouldn’t have to say these things, except that nowadays we really do. A former candidate for U.S. representative has been accused of threatening to kill his political opponent, U.S. Rep. Randy Weber, TX-14, according to federal court filings. … Continue reading

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More on hoax school shooter reports

I don’t know when this ends, but I continue to be worried that they will cause a major problem eventually. This year has seen a significant number of hoax calls across the country. In the three weeks between mid-September and … Continue reading

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The Ken Paxton problem is bigger than Ken Paxton

It’s that there’s just no accountability, barring the election result we’re all desperately hoping for. In the wake of the 2020 presidential election, Republican officials around the country have been giving increasing attention and resources to investigating election crimes. Most … Continue reading

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Collin County DA accused of sexual harassment

Oh, boy. Six individuals who currently work or have worked in the Collin County District Attorney’s office filed a federal civil suit Monday, alleging that they were sexually harassed, discriminated against because of their gender, and faced retaliation after reporting … Continue reading

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