Law

Patent Law: The New Cold War

On the frontlines of the costliest battle in the high-tech world.

DOJ Eyes Will Be On the Ground in Harris, Fort Bend counties on Election Day

Voters in Harris and Fort Bend counties will get an extra treat on Election Day: Federal poll watchers. As a result of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (now 47 years old!), the federal government attempts to make sure every registered voter regardless of race, color "or membership in a minority langua ... More >>

State Criminal Justice System Group: "Texas Failing Traumatized Girls"

The state's juvenile justice system is failing the girls in its custody, according to a new report from the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition. The findings of a one-day survey of approximately 100 girls at the Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Complex suggest that the residents, most of whom ... More >>

Texan Challenges Civil Forfeiture Law

Police can keep your cash, car and other property, regardless of whether you've been convicted of – let alone charged with – a crime.

10 Best Modern Political Speeches

We'll be hearing a lot of great speeches this election season, but lets take a second to remember the true giants of political rhetoric. 10. Martin Luther King: I've Been to the Mountaintop King delivered this speech in Memphis, Tennessee the day before he was assassinated. After talking for a whi ... More >>

Invasion of Piracy

Illegal downloading costs the film industry billions of dollars per year. But does the legal strategy designed to recoup this lost bounty amount to extortion?

Cloaked Brutality

The feds bury border patrol abuses of immigrants, but what’s been unearthed reveals a culture of cruelty.

Grinding Justice

Operation Streamline costs millions, tramples the Constitution, treats migrants like cattle and doesn't work.

Crash Reports

Running a red light and killing someone does not automatically mean you're in trouble in Harris County.

Domestic Violence Cases Spike In Harris County

​Harris County is seeing a big spike in domestic-violence cases this year, District Attorney Patricia Lykos' office announced today. They also announced they've taken a variety of steps to handle it.Jane Waters, chief of the DA's Family Criminal Law Division, reported that 4,900 family violence ch ... More >>

For Their Own Good: A Chance at Rehabilitation

Teens could go to TYC till they're 19, then have another hearing to determine parole or prison after that.

For Their Own Good

Harris County juveniles certified as adults are jailed in isolation 23 hours a day — without being convicted of a crime.

Prosecutors Dismiss Assault Charges in J Prince Gym Beating Case

The Prince of Perjury Palace

In court, the truth didn't matter -- he got his child anyway

The Last Word

They've fought for justice for nine years, but time is running out

Prison Break?

Critics wonder if massive TDCJ cuts will be a prelude to privatization

Screwed!

Robert Casey told on Constable Perry Wooten. Wooten fired him. Now Casey and two other people are suing to get their jobs back.

Passive Aggressive

A court slaps down the D.A.'s bid to broadly expand its antipollution powers

Innocence Lost

The D.A.'s policy cuts into an inmate advocacy program

Old Ways Die Hard

A state law can't break up a juvenile courtroom gang

Nice Guy, Wrong Color

How Ken Bentsen got run over by a rainbow

Dumped On

Houston was supposed to be cracking down on polluters. So why has it spent five years cleaning up on little guys like Walter Bazarsky?

Law Breakers

County prosecutors and the sheriff target a controversial judge

Getting Wasted

Local officials say they are only after compliance and cleanups. Critics claim otherwise.

Sick Kids

For many mentally ill teenagers in Texas, the only way to get treatment is to get arrested.

Bar Tabs

The D.A. and county attorney dip into office funds to up the influence in judicial polls

Paying the Price

Hospital district officials wanted a simple one-sentence policy on immigrant health care. What they got instead was a criminal probe and plenty of politics.

Waivering Rights

Are prosecutors circumventing the new law designed to preserve DNA evidence?

Rejected

Thousands of inmates rely annually on a capricious parole board for their freedom. Most, like George Dismukes, return to their cells without ever knowing why they were denied.

An Open Mike

He wants to castrate pedophiles and purge the courts of politics. He has assailed fellow jurists, lawyers and lawmakers. He's maverick Mike McSpadden, a tennis ace with a tomahawk tongue.

Left Return

Once burdened by debt and internal politics, a rejuvenated Texas ACLU is back mixing it up with those who dare to trample on the U. S. Constitution.

RiceTec Paddy Whack

An Alvin-based rice company, the Prince of Liechtenstein, the United States Patent Office, and an Indian eco-feminist bring global trade debates to a roiling boil on Houston's back burner

A Deadly Passion

Sandra Orellana became known as the woman who had sex on a hotel balcony and fell to her death. Her family says that's a lie- she was murdered by her boss.

Sand in Your Craw?

Make yourself heard

A Yenne for Your Thoughts

Brazoria's D.A. raises privacy issues over DPS emissions tests

Justice on the Block

Is the D.A.'s office for sale to the highest bidder?

Love Hurts

Six of her ex-lovers or associates are wounded or dead. Authorities wonder if old ways die hard for former Houston attorney Catherine Mehaffey Shelton.

Strong Convictions

Hard-line leaders such as loopy Stephen Mansfield have taken their agenda to the Court of Criminal Appeals, where legal precedents--not prosecutions--get overturned

Law and Disorder

In Janice Law's quests for a judgeship, the fourth time was a charm -- and now an alarm for the rest of the courthouse

Conspiracy Theory

Arms dealer-turned-gadfly Al Johnson thinks everyone's out to get him. He's right

Bully on the Bench?

Abrasive encounters with some Hispanics, cash-and-carry court appointments coupled with hefty campaign contributions. Critics wonder if Pat Shelton's speedy dockets are outrunning justice.

Queen of the Good Ol' Boys

The macho world of trial law is ruled by tough, hard-driving men -- and by Katherine Scardino, a tough, hard-driving woman

Easygoing George W. Bush

With help from Democrats Pete Laney and Bob Bullock, Bush has been a Republican governor Texans love. But who'll be his pals if he sets his sights on the presidency?

Bad Science -- or No Science?

Biological Disaster

Zonagen Inc. took its name from Bonnie Dunbar's groundbreaking research into contraceptive vaccines. Then, when she wasn't looking, the company took her research.

Courtship, River Oaks Style

High-powered attorney Earle Lilly was Linda Sarofim Lowe's divorce lawyer, then her lover. Now he's left her, and she wants her $6 million in attorney fees and her Mercedes back.

Keeping the King Quiet

What Really Happened To Rodeny Hulin?

Since his death, teenage inmate Rodney Hulin has become a national symbol of why it's wrong to send juveniles to adult prisons. His true story, though, paints a different kind of troubling picture.

Secrets of the Sphinx?

Big money, big lawyers, bizarre allegations: it's Sarofim v. Sarofim, the divorce from hell

Archer's Way

Don't like the IRS? Neither does Bill Archer. And now the mild-mannered Houston congressman is pushing a radical plan to shut it down.