Tag Archives: lawsuit

More judges caught up in the bail scandal

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

More judges to vote out. For more than a decade, most of Harris County’s felony court judges directed magistrates to deny no-cash bail to all newly arrested defendants, in apparent violation of state judicial conduct rules, according to internal documents … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Fifth Circuit largely upholds bail practices ruling

Posted on February 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The 26-page opinion by Judge Edith Brown Clement affirms the majority of Chief U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal’s landmark ruling, including her finding that the county’s bail policies violated the due process and equal protection clauses of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Fifth Circuit largely upholds bail practices ruling

Lawsuit over how judges are elected statewide goes to trial

Posted on February 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Hey, remember that lawsuit that argued that statewide elections of judges was discriminatory against Latinos? The case is being heard in court this week. El Paso lawyer Carmen Rodriguez and Juanita Valdez-Cox, a community organizer in the Rio Grande Valley, … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Lawsuit over how judges are elected statewide goes to trial

Update on the Dallas ballot lawsuit

Posted on February 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Still waiting on this. Dallas County Republicans have filed a motion to remove Judge Eric Moyé from overseeing a lawsuit that would remove 127 Democrats from the 2018 general election ballot. Moyé, a Democrat, has refused to step aside in … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Update on the Dallas ballot lawsuit

Independent candidates’ day

Posted on February 3, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing with a theme, there are a lot of wannabe independent candidates for various offices, most of whom will never make it onto the ballot. Dallas billionaire Ross Perot did it in 1992 and 1996. Satirist Kinky Friedman and Comptroller … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

One more judge for bail reform

Posted on January 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Once again, credit where credit is due. A long-serving Harris County Republican judge has broken with 14 Republican colleagues, withdrawing from the county’s appeal in a landmark federal lawsuit challenging its bail system for discriminating against poor, low-level offenders. Criminal … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on One more judge for bail reform

“Fetal remains” law blocked in court

Posted on January 30, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It’s deja vu all over again. Texas’ second attempt to require health providers to bury or cremate fetal remains has been temporarily thwarted by a federal judge and another court battle is imminent. In his Monday afternoon ruling, U.S. District … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on “Fetal remains” law blocked in court

Dallas County GOP sues to knock basically all Dallas Democrats off the ballot

Posted on January 24, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Well, that escalated quickly. Dallas County Republicans have filed a lawsuit to have 128 Democrats kicked off the March 6 primary ballot. The lawsuit, filed in Dallas County late Friday, contends that Dallas County Democratic Party Chairman Carol Donovan didn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Lawsuit filed over Dallas County bail practices

Posted on January 23, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Bring it on, I say. On the heels of a federal ruling slamming Harris County for its bail practices, civil rights lawyers have now set their sights on a county with a similar system: Dallas. Six indigent misdemeanor and felony … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Lawsuit filed over Dallas County bail practices

So is there a residency standard now?

Posted on January 21, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

This is curious. State Rep. Dan Huberty’s only primary challenger was on Friday declared ineligible to run to represent House District 127. In a summary judgment, Harris County District Court Judge Bill Burke declared Reginald C. Grant Jr. did not … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on So is there a residency standard now?

SCOTUS will not hear Texas partisan gerrymandering appeal

Posted on January 17, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Not really a big deal. Texas, for now, will not join the list of states fighting in court over the limits of partisan gerrymandering. As it considers cases out of other states over whether extreme practices of partisan gerrymandering can … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on SCOTUS will not hear Texas partisan gerrymandering appeal

Supreme Court hears bag ban arguments

Posted on January 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Hoping for the best, but not really expecting it. In the case Laredo Merchants Association v. The City of Laredo, lawyers spent almost an hour arguing whether Laredo’s 2015 ban was illegal under state law. If the Republican-led court rules … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

SCOTUS will take up Texas redistricting appeal

Posted on January 13, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

As the man once said, hold onto your butts. Further extending a drawn-out legal battle, the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a case over whether Texas’ congressional and House district boundaries discriminate against voters of color. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on SCOTUS will take up Texas redistricting appeal

Yet another ruling against North Carolina’s Congressional map

Posted on January 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Because redistricting litigation is always of interest. A panel of federal judges struck down North Carolina’s congressional map on Tuesday, condemning it as unconstitutional because Republicans had drawn the map seeking a political advantage. The ruling was the first time … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Yet another ruling against North Carolina’s Congressional map

So what’s up with the Farenthold ballot situation?

Posted on January 6, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib provides an update. So how did the Texas Republican Party manage to remove Farenthold from the primary ballot? The short answer is that they violated the election code, according to state officials. But the Texas Secretary of State’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

So where do we stand with handing over voter info to the Trump commission?

Posted on January 4, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

The DMN asks the question. Have state officials turned over Texas voter information to the federal government? In short, not yet. A lawsuit by the Texas NAACP and the Texas League of Women Voters has halted the state’s release of … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The elections we may get in 2018

Posted on January 3, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We know there are going to be a lot of contested elections up and down the ballot in 2018, both primaries and the November general, for state, county, and federal office. There are also at least four possible elections I … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Davila lawsuit over ballot access rejected

Posted on January 3, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

So much for that. Amidst claims of illegal signature gathering and improper mailers in an East End justice of the peace race, a visiting senior judge ruled against a Houston Independent School Board trustee in her suit against the county … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

More on the Pressler lawsuit

Posted on December 29, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron adds some details to the lawsuit against former State Representative and Judge Paul Pressler, who has been accused by Duane Rollins of long-term sexual abuse. Rollins worked in 2003 and 2004 as a personal assistant to Pressler and … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on More on the Pressler lawsuit

Diana Davila sues over ballot rejection

Posted on December 24, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

There’s one of these every cycle. Diana Davila said in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in state district court that her application to run for justice of the peace Precinct 6, Place 2 in the March primary election was inappropriately rejected … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

SCOTUS to consider Texas redistricting case in January

Posted on December 23, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Batten down the hatches. The U.S. Supreme Court will meet Jan. 5 to consider whether to take up a case on how Texas draws its congressional and statehouse maps. In a 5-4 decision split along ideological lines in September, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Microbrewery legal setback

Posted on December 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Kind of a lousy Christmas present. Three Texas brewers are going back to battle with the state after an appeals court reversed a decision that would have allowed them to sell their distribution rights for monetary compensation. In 2014, Peticolas … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Farenthold gets off the ballot

Posted on December 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It started with this. The Republican Party of Texas managed to clear a path Tuesday in federal court for its chairman, James Dickey, to remove U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold’s name from primary ballots. But as of press time, a party … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

CCA to review Paxton prosecutors pay case

Posted on December 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The state’s highest criminal court agreed Wednesday to take a closer look at prosecutors’ long-running fight to get paid for their handling of the securities fraud case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The move by the state’s Court … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment, Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on CCA to review Paxton prosecutors pay case

Inevitable lawsuit over pension bond ballot language filed

Posted on December 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Like night follows day, like flies garbage. Mayor Sylvester Turner misled voters into approving a $1 billion pension bond referendum last month, a new lawsuit alleges, claiming that city officials plan to use the bonds’ passage to sidestep a voter-approved … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Republican Party sues to get Farenthold off the ballot

Posted on December 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Now here‘s something you don’t see every day. The Texas GOP is suing the Texas secretary of state to keep embattled U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold off the 2018 primary ballot — one day after the Corpus Christi Republican announced he … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

The Paul Pressler lawsuit

Posted on December 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here‘s a thing to keep an eye on. A former Texas state judge and lawmaker has been accused of sexually abusing a young man for several decades starting when the boy was just 14, according to a lawsuit filed in … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Paul Pressler lawsuit

Farenthold changes course

Posted on December 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Sort of. U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi, will retire from Congress after finishing his current term, a source close to the congressman told The Tribune Thursday morning. Farenthold soon confirmed the decision in an emotional video posted on Facebook.The … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018, Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Voter ID back before the Fifth Circuit

Posted on December 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

And the worst judge on the Fifth Circuit does her thing. In Texas’ bid to keep its voter identification law intact, it was its legal foes — lawyers representing voting and civil rights groups and individual voters of color — … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

SCOTUS declines to hear Houston’s appeal of same-sex marriage lawsuit

Posted on December 5, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Disappointing, but nowhere close to the end of the line. Denying the city of Houston’s request, the U.S. Supreme Court will not review a June decision by the Texas Supreme Court, which ruled that the landmark decision legalizing same-sex marriage … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Hey, remember that harassment lawsuit against Rep. Blake Farenthold?

Posted on December 4, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I’m just gonna leave this right here. Rep. Blake Farenthold used taxpayer money to settle a sexual harassment claim brought by his former spokesman — the only known sitting member of Congress to have used a little-known congressional account to … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

State has not appealed the voting rights case on language interpreters

Posted on December 2, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. Texas has spent years defending its voting laws in court, regularly appealing rulings that found state lawmakers violated the rights of their voters. So when a federal appellate court in August ruled against the state’s restrictions on language interpreters at the ballot … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on State has not appealed the voting rights case on language interpreters

Rep. Al Green’s revelation

Posted on November 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Not totally sure what to make of this. More than a decade ago, Congressman Al Green had a “romantic encounter” with a former aide in Houston, which later led to an allegation of sexual assault and talk of lawsuits and … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Sports betting at SCOTUS

Posted on November 26, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

A case you might want to watch. Internet gambling in the United States has been limited to just three states since it began in 2013, but it could soon get a big boost from an unlikely source: the U.S. Supreme … Continue reading →

Posted in Jackpot!, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Sports betting at SCOTUS