Tag Archives: Travis County District Attorney
The Provability Gap: Why sexual assault cases are so hard to prosecute in Austin
Austin had the highest number of rapes reported in large Texas cities in 2017. The rate of reported rapes that year was also nearly 40 percent higher than U.S. cities of similar size. The Travis County district attorney says law…
Public Safety • By Nadia Hamdan • Aug 26, 2019
Amid criticism, Travis County DA resigns from state sexual assault task force
Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore resigned from the state’s Sexual Assault Survivors’ Task Force on Friday. Her appointment was cut short after critics, including survivors suing over Moore’s record of handling sexual assaults, expressed concern. The task force was…
Austin • By Nadia Hamdan • Jul 30, 2019
New Texas law has Travis County dismissing marijuana cases
Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore said Wednesday her office is dismissing 32 felony cases involving possession or delivery of marijuana or THC, pending further investigation, as the result of a new Texas law legalizing hemp. The law, which took…
Public Safety • By Trey Shaar • Jul 5, 2019
Sexual assault survivor accuses Travis County prosecutor of lying about her case
Lawyers for a woman who says she was sexually assaulted in Austin are asking a court to force Travis County prosecutors to answer questions and provide evidence after learning of a prosecutor’s phone call they say defames the woman. Emily…
Courts • By Nadia Hamdan • Mar 5, 2019
Despite Austin’s crime lab meltdown, Texas is working to clear its DNA backlog
When Wendy Davis decided to find out how many untested rape kits there were in the state of Texas, she readily admits she had no idea what she was getting into. Davis, a former state senator, was first told that…
Police • By Cate Malek • Sep 20, 2017
The implosion of Austin's crime lab: A timeline
It has blindsided Austin’s criminal justice community. What started a year ago as a few concerns over an audit has spiraled into the permanent closure of the city’s crime lab and the firing of nearly all of its employees. The…
Police • By Austin Monitor • Sep 18, 2017
Subscribe to our newsletter
Travis County DA announces not all police shootings will go before grand jury
The Travis County District Attorney’s Office will no longer bring all police shooting cases before a grand jury. Flanked by representatives of the local NAACP, police union and the Austin Police Department, District Attorney Margaret Moore announced the changes –…
