Texas criminal justice

Statewide appeals court justices heard oral arguments Wednesday in Attorney General Ken Paxton's appeal of a ruling against his office that would temporarily stop him from enforcing case reporting rules against primarily Democratic elected attorneys in the state's most populous counties.

The Autism Society of Texas and the Autism Society of America have issued an open letter urging Texas officials to stop the scheduled October 16 execution of Robert Roberson, a man with autism who was sentenced to death in 2003 for the death of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki.

And in 2025, the Texas Legislature's 89th session was no different. Earlier this year, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 412, which makes changes that could mean criminal charges for educators.

Paxton sued O'Rourke and his political group, Powered by People, last week, arguing that the group was deceptively fundraising for and illegally supporting Texas Democrats' walkout.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is calling on the "full faith and credit" clause of the U.S. Constitution, which says states should typically honor each other's judicial proceedings.

On Wednesday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott released his official proclamation announcing a special legislative session. Texas lawmakers will be back in Austin starting on July 21. The session, which originally looked like it would focus on regulating THC, now includes several emergency preparedness topics.

After three sessions, Texas lawmakers passed a bill last month that defines consent and fixes what advocates called a loophole in state sexual assault laws.

A North Texas man charged with capital murder after slipping mifepristone into his girlfriend's food signals another attempt to rein in abortion pills.

Ruben Gutierrez is challenging the constitutionality of a state law that restricts death row inmates from seeking tests that he says will prove he's not a murderer.

The oversight agency missed key inspections and left prisoner complaints unresolved.