Texas

‘Peoples Lawyer’ Jim Mattox, Former Texas AG, Dies at 65

Former Texas Attorney General Jim Mattox, who called himself the “people’s lawyer,” died in his sleep Thursday at the age of 65. The Austin American-Statesman described Mattox as “a drawling, outsized character and crusading Texas attorney general whose nearly 20-year career in elected office ended in a free-swinging run for…

Nov 21, 2008 1:40 PM CST

Expert Slams Court’s ‘Blame the Victim’ Response to Judge-Prosecutor Affair

An appeals court in Texas has ordered attorneys for an inmate facing the death penalty to explain why they didn’t complain sooner about a now-admitted affair between the judge and the prosecutor in the case, sparking an angry response from an incredulous legal ethics expert News that the Texas Court…

Nov 20, 2008 9:03 PM CST

After Indicting Cheney & Ex-AG Gonzales, DA is No-Show in Court Today

A strange prisoner abuse case in South Texas involving indictments against Vice President Dick Cheney, former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, two state court judges and a former federal prosecutor got a bit more bizarre today when the district attorney who brought it was a no-show in court. Judge Manuel…

Nov 20, 2008 1:48 AM CST

Texas Cheerleaders Indicted in JV Hazing

Seven varsity cheerleaders at a Houston-area high school have been accused in an indictment of illegally hazing their junior varsity counterparts. The indictment says the older cheerleaders blindfolded and bound the hands of the younger cheerleaders, then pushed them into a swimming pool, the Houston Chronicle reports. They attended Morton…

Nov 19, 2008 5:50 PM CST

Miley Cyrus, aka Hannah Montana, to Sing at PI Lawyer’s Holiday Party

Yet another famous singer will perform at this year’s annual holiday party hosted by Houston personal injury lawyer Mark Lanier, and any tween guests are likely to be pleased. Miley Cyrus—who plays Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel—will perform, the Am Law Litigation Daily reports. Last year Lanier gave out…

Nov 19, 2008 3:33 PM CST

Vice President Cheney, Ex-AG Gonzales Indicted in South Texas Prison Abuse Case

A grand jury in South Texas has indicted Vice President Dick Cheney and former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales—as well as a former U.S. attorney and two state court judges—concerning their alleged contribution to claimed prisoner abuse at federal detention centers in Willacy County. “Gonzales is accused of using his…

Nov 19, 2008 12:12 AM CST

On Execution Day, Texas Inmate Eric Cathey Gets Stay

A Texas appeals court today granted a stay of execution to a death row inmate about four hours before he was to get the lethal injection. Eric Cathey, 37, will now have a chance to argue in a court hearing that he should not be executed because he is mentally…

Nov 18, 2008 9:57 PM CST

Pro-Deadbeat Texas Laws Keep Bankruptcy Lawyers Busy, Exempt Street-Legal Bulldozers

With a strong job market and generous state-law rules about going bankrupt, as far as debtors’ assets are concerned, Texas is a mecca for deadbeats and others who can’t or won’t pay their bills. Especially given the high number of mortgage foreclosures in Texas and neighboring states, that means lots…

Nov 18, 2008 5:06 PM CST

Tattooed Texas Judge, Ex-Cocaine Addict, Says He Can Relate to Defendants

Clean and sober for a decade, a newly elected Texas district judge says his earlier battles with cocaine and alcohol addiction will be an asset on the bench because they will help him relate to defendants. And the same is true of his sleeve of tattoos, which reflect his life…

Nov 17, 2008 10:29 PM CST

Exploitation or Love? Son Seeks Divorce for Dad, 87

Although Claude Thomas and Susana Martinez Ramirez married in 2001, it wasn’t until several years afterward that his children realized their father had a wife. Even when Keith Thomas built two homes—one for his dad and one for himself—next to the shop where they worked together, selling hydraulics components, he…

Nov 17, 2008 7:18 PM CST

How the UT’s Dean Sager Hopes to Raise $200 Million—and the Law School’s Profile

Armed with a sharp intellect, great listening skills and wicked sense of humor, the 67-year-old dean of the University of Texas School of Law is trying to do something no dean there has ever done before. The constitutional law scholar has promised to nearly double the law school endowment, by…

Nov 10, 2008 11:54 PM CST

Texas Mom Serving Life Sentence After Boy Dies of Salt Intoxication

Hannah Overton probably did nothing wrong, several experts say. But the Texas mother was convicted of capital murder last year and is serving a life sentence, after a foster child died in her care. The jury apparently convicted her because she wasn’t aggressive enough in seeking medical treatment for the…

Nov 7, 2008 12:43 AM CST

Only 4 Houston Judges Retained, Helped by Oddly Named Challengers

All but four judges in Houston’s Harris County lost their battle for re-election on Tuesday, replaced by Democrats in a wave of straight-ticket voting. The Democratic judges rode on the coattails of Barack Obama, but voters who backed the presidential candidate with an unusual name were not so accepting when…

Nov 6, 2008 1:32 PM CST

GOP Holds on to Texas High Courts, Despite $1M in Democratic Spending

All six Republican incumbents retained judgeships on the two top courts in Texas despite a spirited campaign by Democrats. Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson, the first African-American member of the Texas Supreme Court, retained his seat along with Justices Dale Wainwright and Phil Johnson, the Austin American-Statesman reports. Republicans have held…

Nov 5, 2008 1:31 PM CST

1 Voter Strips to Bra, Another Walks in Texas T-Shirt Disputes

At least two women voters in the Texas area found out only after they got to their polling places about the sweeping scope of a state law banning election paraphernalia, at least as those applying the law are interpreting it. One woman stripped to her bra during early voting, after…

Nov 4, 2008 7:15 PM CST