Tag Archives: lawsuit

The AG race and the lawsuit to kill Obamacare

Posted on September 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I feel like this is a better issue for Justin Nelson than it is for Ken Paxton. Of course, on the down side, for it to really be salient millions of people will have lost health insurance. Not that Ken … Continue reading →

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Dallas County gets the Harris County treatment in its bail lawsuit

Posted on September 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We have a precedent, even if everything is still a work in progress. Taking a cue from the rulings on Harris County’s bail-setting practices, a U.S. district judge in Dallas issued a temporary order Thursday evening saying the county’s post-arrest … Continue reading →

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Dallas lawsuit over candidate eligibility officially mooted

Posted on September 24, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: On Thursday, September 20, 2018, the Fifth Court of Appeals issued an Order in Dallas County GOP v. Dallas County Democratic Party, stating that any relief related to the November election is moot, and that the appeal, … Continue reading →

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Now how much would you pay to fix Houston’s sewer system?

Posted on September 24, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We may be about to find out. Federal and state authorities sued the city of Houston over its long-running struggle to limit sewage spills on Friday, marking the beginning of the end of a years-long negotiation that could force the … Continue reading →

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Voter ID lawsuit officially ends

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

That’s all there is, at least until the next atrocity. A federal judge formally dismissed the lawsuit challenging the Texas voter ID law Monday, the final step in a yearslong fight that will allow the state to enforce a weakened … Continue reading →

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Southwest Key sues city over permit for child detention warehouse

Posted on September 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Screw them. The Austin-based nonprofit trying to open a shelter to house migrant children east of downtown sued the city of Houston Friday, alleging a discriminatory, baseless and politically motivated campaign to prevent it from opening the facility. Southwest Key … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 25 Comments

Another Lopez brother gets banned from taekwondo

Posted on September 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Steven Lopez this time. Two-time Olympic taekwondo gold medalist Steven Lopez has been banned permanently from competition by the U.S. Center for SafeSport, based on the results of the agency’s investigation into Lopez’s sexual relationship with an underage female in … Continue reading →

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You know, there is a cheaper way to do this

Posted on September 15, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Why are we still outsourcing inmates? County commissioners next week will consider a proposal to outsource inmates to the Fort Bend County Jail, which would allow Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez to slow — but not stop — the flow … Continue reading →

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Partisan statewide judicial elections upheld

Posted on September 14, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I’d totally forgotten about this lawsuit. A federal judge has rejected a race-based challenge to the way Texans fill seats on the state’s highest courts. U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos of Corpus Christi handed the state of Texas a … Continue reading →

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The hearing for the lawsuit to kill Obamacare

Posted on September 7, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. At the hearing Wednesday, Texas aimed to convince U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor to block the law across the country as it continues to fight a months- or years-long legal case that could land before the … Continue reading →

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The city has its own bail lawsuit

Posted on September 7, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not going well. Houston city officials intentionally destroyed evidence, wiping crucial data from the computer drives of top police commanders that is potentially relevant to a lawsuit about the detention of suspects beyond the 48-hour deadline for a magistrate … Continue reading →

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“Fetal remains” law tossed

Posted on September 6, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Very good. U.S. District Judge David Alan Ezra struck down a Texas law on Wednesday that would have required hospitals and clinics to bury cremate fetal remains, causing another courtroom setback for state leaders and anti-abortion groups. Under Senate Bill … Continue reading →

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DACA lives another day

Posted on September 1, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

But don’t relax just yet. A federal district judge on Friday denied the state of Texas’ request that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program be put on hold after Texas and nine other states sued to halt the Obama-era … Continue reading →

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Going for Section 3

Posted on August 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I wouldn’t get my hopes up, but Lord knows this is desperately needed. The voters of color, civil rights groups and Democratic lawmakers who have long challenged the validity of Texas’ political maps were dealt a bruising loss earlier this … Continue reading →

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The Republicans really, really want to win SD19 by forfeit

Posted on August 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Sure is what it looks like. With early voting set to begin in less than two weeks, the Republican Party of Texas is continuing efforts to have Democrat Pete Gallego removed from the ballot, which if successful would leave only … Continue reading →

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Nelson attacks Paxton over Obamacare lawsuit

Posted on August 30, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Democrat challenging Ken Paxton is denouncing the attorney general for suing to wipe out the Affordable Care Act‘s health care protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions. Justin Nelson, a Houston attorney, plans to hold a rally outside the federal courthouse in Ft. … Continue reading →

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Trump administration seeks to dismiss MALDEF lawsuit over Census citizenship question

Posted on August 29, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It’s hard to keep all these Census lawsuits straight. As multiple court fights over the addition of a citizenship question to the once-a-decade census heat up, the Trump administration is working to keep several Texas groups representing Latino and Asian … Continue reading →

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Dallas County “discrimination against white voters” lawsuit dismissed

Posted on August 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It was always a silly idea. A federal judge Thursday dismissed a landmark lawsuit that accused Dallas County commissioners of discriminating against white voters. The lawsuit sought to dismantle the boundaries the county uses to elect commissioners, claiming that the … Continue reading →

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Appeals court allows city to post video of pay parity hearing

Posted on August 26, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Probably doesn’t matter much at this point, but there it is. A Texas appeals court on Thursday ordered a state district judge to rescind his temporary restraining order requiring the city of Houston to remove video from its website that … Continue reading →

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Taekwondo coach Jean Lopez un-banned

Posted on August 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Hard to understand this. The U.S. Center for SafeSport has lifted a permanent ban imposed earlier this year on Sugar Land taekwondo coach Jean Lopez, clearing the way for Lopez to resume coaching while he and his brother, two-time Olympic … Continue reading →

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Texans’ cheer coach quits

Posted on August 24, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Of interest. Altovise Gary, the longtime director of the Houston Texans cheerleaders squad who was named as a defendant in one of two recent federal court lawsuits filed against the team, has resigned, a team spokeswoman said Tuesday. Gary resigned … Continue reading →

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Blake Farenthold is still a toad

Posted on August 21, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

In case you were wondering. A former Texas congressman had tried steering a federal contract to the owner of a business who gave him a $160,000-a-year job after the congressman resigned amid sexual harassment allegations, according to a newspaper investigation … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit upholds dismissal of campus carry lawsuit

Posted on August 20, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Not a surprise. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday upheld Texas’ campus carry law, delivering another clear victory to the state in a longshot, long-running lawsuit brought by University of Texas at Austin professors opposed to the … Continue reading →

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The firefighter pay parity referendum won’t be decided by the voters

Posted on August 20, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

it will be decided by the courts. Here’s a story out of Austin to illustrate. Former Travis County judge Bill Aleshire has sued the city of Austin in the Texas Supreme Court, challenging the ballot language of a proposition up … Continue reading →

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Woodfill and Hotze take their next shot at same sex employee benefits

Posted on August 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. Anti-LGBTQ activists are again asking a Harris County judge to halt benefits for the same-sex spouses of Houston city employees, according to a recently filed motion. The motion for summary judgment in Pidgeon v. Turner, a … Continue reading →

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Partial halt to bail lawsuit order

Posted on August 18, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here comes the Fifth Circuit again. A majority opinion by Circuit Judge Jerry E. Smith halted part of an order by Chief U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal which compelled certain defendants to be released immediately on no-cost bail in … Continue reading →

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ReBuild re-vote approved

Posted on August 17, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Add another item to the ballot. City Council on Wednesday unanimously agreed to put the controversial street and drainage program known as ReBuild Houston before voters again in November, but not before tweaking the ballot language in hopes of avoiding … Continue reading →

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Dallas County Republicans still trying to knock all the Dems off the ballot

Posted on August 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here comes the appeal. Dallas County Republicans will appeal a ruling that blocked efforts to remove scores of Democrats from the November election ballot. A formal intent to appeal was filed Monday on behalf of Missy Shorey, the chairwoman of … Continue reading →

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SD19 runoff date set

Posted on August 14, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Mark your calendars. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has picked Sept. 18 as the date of the special election runoff to replace convicted former state Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio. Early voting will run Sept. 10-14. The runoff pits Republican Pete … Continue reading →

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The end of the voter ID fight

Posted on August 13, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I guess that’s it. After seven long years of litigation, opponents of Texas’ voter ID law say the case is over. In a court filing on Wednesday, opponents of the law requiring Texas voters to present photo identification to vote … Continue reading →

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State GOP sues to toss Gallego off SD19 runoff ballot

Posted on August 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, good grief. The Republican Party of Texas filed a lawsuit Friday aiming to kick Democrat Pete Gallego off the ballot in the special election runoff to replace convicted former state Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio. Gallego is heading to … Continue reading →

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Rape kit lawsuit dismissal will be appealed

Posted on August 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

To be expected. Two women who on Friday lost a lawsuit against the City of Houston and a variety of officials over a rape kit backlog will file an appeal, an attorney for the women announced in a news release … Continue reading →

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The DACA hearing

Posted on August 10, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know about this. The state of Texas will continue to incur irreparable financial harm if an Obama-era immigration program isn’t halted immediately, attorneys for the state argued in Houston on Wednesday. But lawyers representing nearly two dozen recipients … Continue reading →

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Bail practices lawsuit hearing

Posted on August 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We so need to be done with this. More than a dozen Harris County misdemeanor judges contend that public safety would be imperiled if they followed an “untenable” new pretrial release order by a Houston federal judge who has found … Continue reading →

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