Tag Archives: Texas Civil Rights Project

More on the status of SB4

Posted on March 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Ed Sills sent this one-pager from MALDEF to his mailing list; there’s no link and I couldn’t find it on the MALDEF webpage, so I’m just going to copy and paste here: What did the Fifth Circuit Court decide? On … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Yet another report about how much our voter ID law sucked

Posted on June 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Keep ’em coming. Hundreds were delayed from voting and others nearly turned away entirely during the presidential election because of confusion over the status Texas voter ID laws, a new report from a voting rights advocacy group shows. It’s just … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Yet another report about how much our voter ID law sucked

State files motion to combine all the “sanctuary cities” lawsuits

Posted on June 5, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This isn’t a surprise, but there is a bit of a twist. In a filing late Thursday, Attorney General Ken Paxton asked a federal district court in Austin to absorb two other legal challenges that have been filed against the … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

El Paso files “sanctuary cities” lawsuit

Posted on May 24, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Two and counting, as El Paso gets in on the anti-SB4 action. The lawsuit, filed by El Paso County, its Sheriff Richard Wiles and the Texas Organizing Project Education Fund, a client of the Texas Civil Rights Project, charges that … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on El Paso files “sanctuary cities” lawsuit

Some Texas voting rights lawsuit updates

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This has been a busy week for litigation related to voting rights issues in Texas. Here are updates to some cases, all of which happened this past week. From Texas Redistricting: The three-judge panel in the Texas redistricting case has … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

AG’s office sanctioned in voter registration lawsuit

Posted on February 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

They were warned. A federal judge has ordered sanctions against the state of Texas for blowing past deadlines and ignoring a court order to hand over thousands of pages of documents in a lawsuit challenging its voter registration practices. Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on AG’s office sanctioned in voter registration lawsuit

State fails to respond to voter registration lawsuit

Posted on January 31, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s an update on a different voting rights lawsuit from last year. Civil rights lawyers suing Texas over its voter registration practices are asking a federal judge to sanction the state for allegedly blowing past deadlines and ignoring a court … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Another Voting Rights Act violation alleged

Posted on August 25, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

From Friday: Today, a coalition of 10 groups sent a letter to Carlos Casco, Secretary of State of Texas, requesting that his office take immediate steps to comply with the federal Voting Rights Act of 1985 (VRA) and the Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Another Voting Rights Act violation alleged

State settles birth certificate lawsuit

Posted on July 27, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Good. After undergoing mediation, the state of Texas has reached an agreement with undocumented families in a lawsuit over its denial to issue birth certificates to children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants. The state will clarify and expand … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on State settles birth certificate lawsuit

More on the TCRP voter registration lawsuit

Posted on April 6, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the first news story I’ve seen about that voter registration lawsuit that was filed two weeks ago. The lead plaintiff is Jarrod Stringer of San Antonio, who relocated from Arlington in 2014. When he updated his driver license address … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on More on the TCRP voter registration lawsuit

Lawsuit filed over voter registration problems

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

From the Texas Civil Rights Project: In a lawsuit filed this morning in a San Antonio federal court, the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP) challenged voter registration procedures at the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS). As the Complaint explains, … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Oral arguments in birth certificate lawsuit

Posted on October 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman heard oral arguments in a lawsuit filed by a group of undocumented parents and their U.S.-citizen children against the state Department of State Health Services, which has effectively blocked the children from … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

I’m not the only one who thought the state’s response to the birth certificate lawsuit was specious

Posted on July 31, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Actual legal experts didn’t think much of it, either. The state of Texas can’t hide behind sovereign immunity to escape a lawsuit for denying birth certificates to U.S. citizen children of undocumented immigrants, the director of the University of Texas’ … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on I’m not the only one who thought the state’s response to the birth certificate lawsuit was specious

State wants birth certificate lawsuit dropped

Posted on July 24, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know about that. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Wednesday asked a federal district judge to dismiss a lawsuit that claims a state agency violated the U.S. Constitution by denying birth certificates to U.S.-citizen children of immigrant parents. … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Lawsuit filed over state refusal to issue birth certificates

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure this won’t be contentious at all. For nearly 150 years, the United States, under the 14th Amendment, has recognized people born here as citizens, regardless of whether their parents were citizens. But Texas has other plans. In the … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Body cameras for HPD

Posted on September 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’ll be very interested to see how this goes. Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland is asking City Hall for $8 million to equip 3,500 police officers over three years with small body cameras to record encounters between law enforcement and … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Vaping in jail

Posted on July 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Not sure how I feel about this. As a way to allow some inmates to get their nicotine fix and sheriffs to shore up tight budgets, county jails across the country have begun selling electronic cigarettes. Though the trend has … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Vaping in jail

Another lawsuit against Uber and Lyft

Posted on July 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

That’s three lawsuits that I know of. A coalition of Texas disability advocates sued ride-share companies Uber and Lyft on Thursday as part of dozens of lawsuits filed around the state ahead of the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Who enforces voter registration requirements?

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

My guess upon reading this is in effect nobody. A combination of lax enforcement in the state’s election code, a faulty voter registration system and lack of leadership by state election officials have led to the disenfranchisement of thousands of … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Review ordered for Jones allegations

Posted on June 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Moving forward. Chief Justice John Roberts of the U.S. Supreme Court formally ordered on Wednesday that a rare public judicial misconduct complaint against 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Edith Jones be reviewed by officials in a different circuit … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Review ordered for Jones allegations

From the “Things that are not considered legislative emergencies” department

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That list would include removing Texas’ unconstitutional anti-sodomy law from the books. Although Texas’ so-called sodomy law cannot be enforced legally, civil rights advocates say it should be removed from the books because it creates a climate favorable to bullying, … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Another complaint filed against Keller

Posted on January 21, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. A civil rights group is asking the state to revoke the law license of a judge who has been a lightning rod in debates over the death penalty. The Austin-based Texas Civil Rights Project filed … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Another complaint filed against Keller

Trying to reinstate a lawsuit against Sharon Keller

Posted on November 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Last year, a wrongful death lawsuit against Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Sharon Keller that was filed by the daughter of death row inmate Michael Richard, the man who was executed in the “we close at 5” case, was … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Trying to reinstate a lawsuit against Sharon Keller

Another lawsuit filed against DPS

Posted on January 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

That makes two such suits over the new DPS policy of verifying residency status in order to get a drivers license. The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund filed the lawsuit in state district court in Austin. It’s on … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment