Texas

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Defendant Wouldn't Shut Up. Judge's Orders: 'Hit Him'

Terry Lee Morris' conviction has been overturned after judge ordered him electrified during trial

(Newser) - What went down in a Texas courtroom in 2014 was literally shocking enough to result in a man's conviction being overturned late last month. As originally reported by the Texas Lawyer website Tuesday, Terry Lee Morris, who'd been found guilty of sex crimes against a child and given...

Ted Cruz Doesn't Like Rival Using a Nickname

Chris Cuomo explains why Rafael Edward Cruz is a hypocrite

(Newser) - In a sign of the politics to come before November's midterms, Ted Cruz has called out a rival's name change—and been called a hypocrite. After Rep. Beto O'Rourke won the Democratic primary for the Texas Senate race Tuesday, Cruz released a radio ad slamming O'Rourke...

Texas Candidate Gets Most of Her Donations in Semen

Ana Lisa Garza gets the support of deer breeders

(Newser) - A candidate running for the Texas state legislature is garnering attention over her campaign donations—most of which consist of frozen deer semen, the Hill reports. Ana Lisa Garza has received $87,500 for her gutsy run against eight-term Democrat Ryan Guillen, $51,000 of which are listed as in-kind...

Texas Gov. Halts Execution for 1st Time in Over a Decade

Thomas Whitaker says he's 'thankful' for Gov. Greg Abbott's decision

(Newser) - Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has accepted the state parole board's recommendation and is sparing the life of convicted killer Thomas "Bart" Whitaker, the AP reports. The 38-year-old Whitaker was set for execution Thursday evening for masterminding a murder plot that took the lives of his mother and younger...

He Had His Mom, Brother Killed. Will He Die Tonight?
With His Execution Nigh,
a Big Twist in Texas
the rundown
Feb 22, 2018 11:47 AM CST

With His Execution Nigh, a Big Twist in Texas

Thomas Whitaker's case is in Gov. Greg Abbott's hands

(Newser) - The crime was horrific, the aftermath doubly so: A Texas family of four was shot by a masked gunman in December 2003. Kent Whitaker's wife and one of his two sons didn't make it, and Whitaker's initial desire for vengeance gave way to a decision to forgive,...

An Extraordinary Clock Is Being Built in Texas

Jeff Bezos ponied up the land for the 10K-year clock

(Newser) - The clock has been in the works for three decades—essentially a blink of the eye in the grand scheme of things. That's because the timepiece, dreamed up by Danny Hillis in 1989, per CNBC , is designed to run for 10,000 years without any human intervention. Hillis'...

They're FEMA's Elite Rescuers, Yet Some Do Little Rescuing

Bureaucracy, too much gear, and other inefficiencies are marring response efforts

(Newser) - They're called the "national Swiss Army knife of emergency response," teams of highly trained first responders sent by FEMA across the US when disaster strikes. But when hurricanes pummeled Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico last summer, many of the thousands deployed via the agency's National Urban...

YouTube Stars Awake to Terrifying Ordeal

'Disturbed' fan with gun searched Megan Turney and Gavin Free's home while they hid in closet

(Newser) - It's their job to attract viewers. YouTube personalities Megan Turney and boyfriend Gavin Free just never expected one would turn up at their house with a gun. That's precisely what police say happened late last month in Austin, Texas. According to police documents, Turney and Free awoke to...

650 Interviews Later, Border Agent's Death Still a Mystery

FBI says there's no evidence Rogelio Martinez was murdered

(Newser) - The FBI says it has conducted more than 650 interviews and found no evidence that Border Patrol Agent Rogelio Martinez's fatal injuries were caused by an attack, despite his union's insistence that he was murdered. After an autopsy released Tuesday stated that Martinez died from blunt-force trauma from...

He Went in for the Flu. He Lost His Feet and Fingers

Texas dad Brian Herndon developed pneumonia as well as influenza and went into septic shock

(Newser) - "One minute you've got the flu and the next minute you're septic." That's the message from a Texas man who lost both of his feet and nearly all of his fingers after coming down last month with the illness, per WFAA . As flu season continues...

He's Fighting to Save His Family's Killer. The Killer: His Own Son

Bart Whitaker set to be executed Feb. 22 for killing his mom and brother, but dad isn't giving up on him

(Newser) - "My wife and son were murdered by a masked gunman, and my other son and I were left for dead, but survived." Those are the words of Kent Whitaker on his website , detailing the horrific crime that tore his life apart in December 2003. But, he adds, things...

Texas Executes Man Who Killed Girls as Mom Listened

'Well, hi, Mary Jean,' he said to ex-wife.

(Newser) - A former Dallas accountant condemned for fatally shooting his two young daughters while their mother listened helplessly on the phone was put to death Thursday night in Texas. John David Battaglia was executed for the May 2001 killings of his 9-year-old daughter, Faith, and her 6-year-old sister, Liberty. Battaglia and...

Texas Man Who Killed His Girls as Mom Listened Set to Die

John David Battaglia's execution was called off in 2016

(Newser) - Former Dallas accountant John David Battaglia is set for execution Thursday evening for the May 2001 slayings of his 9-year-old daughter, Faith, and her 6-year-old sister, Liberty. Battaglia and his wife had separated and the girls were killed at his Dallas apartment during a scheduled visit while their mother listened...

FBI Accidentally Kills Victim of 'Movie-Style' Kidnapping

Shots fired early Thursday inside Houston home

(Newser) - A "movie-style" kidnapping came to a grim ending as an FBI agent accidentally shot and killed the bound victim in Texas. "We do this job to help people and it doesn't always go our way," Conroe Police Chief Philip Dupuis said Thursday, per the Houston Chronicle...

Rat-Chewed Skeleton in Wall Suggests Fatal Misstep

Remains identified as those of Houston homeowner Mary Cerruti

(Newser) - A years-old mystery in Texas has been solved—at least in part. Three years after Houston resident Mary Cerruti seemingly disappeared, authorities have confirmed it was her skeleton discovered in the wall of her former home by new tenants last March, alongside a pair of glasses that resembled those Cerruti...

Judge Interrupts Jury to Deliver Message From God

Texas jurors ignored his plea not to convict in sex trafficking case

(Newser) - A strange court controversy out of Texas, where a judge interrupted jurors deciding a defendant's fate in a sex-trafficking case and urged them not to convict. Twice. Later, state district judge Jack Robison explained that God told him to do so, reports the Austin American-Statesman . And the kicker: The...

With One Tweet, a Houston Dad's Bakery Is Saved

18-year-old daughter took to social media to save failing business after Hurricane Harvey tanked sales

(Newser) - A Texas high school senior figured out how to wield social media for good, and she may have saved her family's business in the process. ABC News and KTRK report on how 18-year-old Jackie Garza was fretting about how to get her dad, Trinidad Garza, not to shutter La...

'Tourniquet Killer' Before Death: 'I Wish I Could Undo the Past'

Anthony Allen Shore executed in Texas

(Newser) - Texas carried out the nation's first execution of 2018 Thursday evening, giving a lethal injection to a man who became known as Houston's "Tourniquet Killer" because of his signature murder technique on four female victims. Anthony Allen Shore was put to death for one of those slayings,...

Texas 'Tourniquet Killer' Set to Be First US Execution of 2018

Anthony Shore confessed to 4 killings

(Newser) - A man who became known as Houston's "Tourniquet Killer" because of his signature murder technique on four female victims more than two decades ago is set to become the nation's first prisoner executed in 2018. Texas prison officials are scheduled to give Anthony Allen Shore, 55, a...

Date Allegedly Ends With Ruined Warhols, Potential Life Sentence

Lindy Lou Layman, 29, appeared in court Tuesday

(Newser) - A Dallas woman appeared in court on Tuesday in connection with a December date gone horribly wrong . Following the appearance, the attorney for Lindy Lou Layman said, "We certainly disagree with Mr. Buzbee's rendition of the facts," per People . As for Layman's rendition of the facts,...

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