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Sometimes the interests of public safety outweigh any single person’s privacy rights. According to an April 2017 report, police in Georgia conducted a drug dog sweep of a high school, then followed it up with pat down searches of 900 students. Some students said the searchers were “aggressive.” School officials stated that they did not…
Attorney General Jeff Sessions may be shifting the country back to the harsh policies of the 1980s. The “war on drugs” was a policy created by the Nixon Administration in the early 1970s. Under the policy, courts adopted a no tolerance policy for drug offenses. The most noticeable effect of the policy was a massive…
Rick Perry, the former Texas governor and current U.S. Energy Secretary, has endorsed two proposed criminal justice reforms currently in the Texas legislature that would help people who have been charged or convicted of crimes. Writing in the Houston Chronicle, Perry touted reforms that took place during his tenure as governor that helped reduce Texas’…
Another execution has been halted in Texas just days before a death row inmate was slated to die. Last Friday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals halted the execution of a man who was convicted of a murder during a robbery in Fort Worth in 2004. The Texas Tribune reported it was the second time…
Police and prosecutors look for any evidence they can find. If you have a Facebook page or Twitter account (or both), you’re not alone. The number of social media users has exploded over the past decade. Recent statistics reveal that 78 percent of people in the United States have one or more social media accounts….
Legislators are seeking tougher measures to combat sexual assault on Texas college campuses, but there is a lack of consensus about how to proceed. State Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, submitted Senate Bill 576. The legislation would require school employees and student leaders to “promptly” report instances of sexual assault, sexual harassment, stalking or family violence…
To avoid being a victim of a summer crime keep the following tips in mind. Most people enjoy the summer. Warm temperatures and much-needed vacations are almost universally loved. However, summer is not without its downsides. Certain crimes, including household crimes, peak in the summer months. To avoid being a victim of a summer crime,…
Texas is one of just seven states nationally that treats 17-year-old offenders as adults in the criminal justice system. That may be about to change if a bill to raise the age of criminal responsibility becomes law. A bill to raise the age from 17 to 18 was passed in the House last week, reported…
The announcement by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, that he will end an independent panel set up to raise scientific standards in forensics, has provoked a backlash. Sessions announced this month that he has suspended a Justice Department review of widespread flaws in FBI forensic expert court testimony. The announcement comes on the back of…
A Texas man who was convicted of the murder of a Putt-Putt golf course assistant manager has been granted a stay of execution by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Paul Storey, 32, was convicted in 2008 for the murder of Jonas Cherry. He was scheduled to die this month, but concerns that defense attorneys…