Courts
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sues nonprofit that serves homeless in South Austin
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued an Austin nonprofit that serves people experiencing homelessness. The lawsuit accuses Sunrise Homeless Navigation Center of fostering drug use, violence and other activities that endanger nearby residents. Sunrise Homeless Navigation Center has operated out of Sunrise Community…
Courts • By Olivia Aldridge, KUT • Nov 27, 2024
Ken Paxton sues Travis County for approving security funds for DA José Garza behind closed doors
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed another lawsuit against the Travis County Commissioners Court on Monday – this time over a $115,000 payment the court made to District Attorney José Garza’s office behind closed doors. The payment was approved during a…
Courts • By Katy McAfee • Oct 1, 2024
Attorney files complaint about consultant’s statements on Central Health
On Monday, attorney Fred Lewis filed a complaint alleging the unauthorized practice of law by Steve Herbst, the lead consultant on a contract with Forvis Mazars to review the performance of Central Health for Travis County. The complaint was based…
Courts • By Jo Clifton • Sep 24, 2024
Travis County sues Paxton over voter registration efforts
Travis County is fighting back. That’s the message that County Judge Andy Brown, County Attorney Delia Garza, County Tax Assessor-Collector and Voter Registrar Bruce Elfant and County Commissioner Jeff Travillion delivered at a press conference on Tuesday. They denounced Texas…
Courts • By Jo Clifton • Sep 18, 2024
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Mayoral candidate Doug Greco sues city to overturn campaign finance rule
Mayoral candidate Doug Greco and his campaign, along with Ramon Duran – a Bexar County resident who supports Greco’s candidacy – filed suit in federal court on Tuesday, challenging the provision of the Austin City Charter that prevents City Council…
Courts • By Jo Clifton • Sep 11, 2024
Austin to argue city’s immunity from suit at Supreme Court
Attorneys for the city of Austin will attempt to convince the Texas Supreme Court this morning that two Austin police officers chasing a suspect did not act with “reckless disregard” during an emergency so that the city is still immune…
Courts • By Jo Clifton • Sep 10, 2024
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Austin ISD settles lawsuit over delayed special ed evaluations, creates fund for affected students
A federal court signed off on a settlement Wednesday between Disability Rights Texas and Austin ISD over its backlog of special education evaluations. The settlement requires the district to establish a fund to help cover the cost of services for students who…
Courts • By Becky Fogel, KUT • Sep 6, 2024
State court rules Austin must release files on police complaints. Here's what that means.
Austin police must release records of officer complaints previously kept in house to the police oversight office, a state district judge has ruled. The personnel files – known colloquially as “g-files” – were a cornerstone of the Austin Police Oversight Act,…
Courts • By Andrew Weber, KUT • Sep 4, 2024
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Judge’s order halts Nov. 5 charter election
Travis County District Judge Maya Guerra Gamble on Thursday ordered the city of Austin to eliminate 13 proposed charter amendments from the Nov. 5 ballot because City Council violated the Texas Open Meetings Act in setting a hearing on the…
Courts • By Jo Clifton • Aug 30, 2024
Class action lawsuit targets Austin taxes over Project Connect
A new class-action lawsuit is seeking to block the city from collecting any property taxes, potentially starving Austin’s municipal government of almost all revenue, until it kills a tax approved by voters in 2020 to fund the largest public transit expansion…
Courts • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Aug 28, 2024
Save Our Springs Alliance files another lawsuit against City Council over Open Meetings Act
Claiming that City Council has again violated the Texas Open Meetings Act, the Save Our Springs Alliance on Monday filed a lawsuit seeking to block the city’s placement of 13 proposed charter amendments on the November ballot. It is the…
Courts • By Amy Smith • Aug 20, 2024
Commissioners advance program to provide legal counsel at bail hearings
The Travis County Commissioners Court voted Tuesday to move forward on implementing a program to provide legal representation to arrested individuals during magistration, when a judge determines probable cause for arrest and sets bail. Commissioners will first need to authorize…
