Austin news

• Commission: ‘Systemic racism’ at root of Flint water crisis

  17-02-2017 23:39 via kxan.com
  
  FLINT, Mich. (AP) — “Systemic racism” going back decades is at the core of problems that caused a lead-contaminated water crisis in the majority black city of Flint, according to a Michigan Civil Rights Commission report issued Friday.
  The report says the commission did not unearth any civil rights law violations and that nobody “intended to poison Flint.” But the 130-page report based on the testimony of more than 100 residents, experts and government and community
  
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• Kyle police catch suspect accused of burglarizing several homes

  17-02-2017 23:32 via kxan.com
  
  KYLE, Texas (KXAN) — Officers in Kyle believe they have the man responsible for several home burglaries in custody.
  Police have filed multiple burglary charges against Taylor Reid Ramirez, 34, of Wimberley, in connection to the residential burglaries in the Amberwood and Spring Brand neighborhoods. 
  The suspect had been seen driving a red four-door SUV, and police say he was seen in security video walking with a limp.
  VIDEO of the burglary suspect 
  KXAN’s Lauren Lanmon repo
  
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• Sheriff may include additional charges in ICE detainer policy

  17-02-2017 22:51 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Travis County Sheriff’s Office says they will likely include additional criminal charges, specifically involving children and the elderly, in their Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer policy.
  Sheriff Sally Hernandez met with District Attorney Margaret Moore on Wednesday to make sure the two offices are sharing information “in a timely and comprehensive manner.”
  The resulting collaboration will give Sheriff Hernandez the chance t
  
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• NBA joins NFL in warning Texas over proposed ‘bathroom bill’

  17-02-2017 22:36 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The NBA is warning Texas over a proposed “bathroom bill” targeting transgender people that is similar to a North Carolina law that prompted the league to move the All-Star Game out of that state.
  The NBA on Friday joined the NFL in suggesting that Texas will be overlooked for future big events if lawmakers pass a bill requiring people to use bathrooms that correspond to the sex on their birth certificate.
  Greg Abbott blasts NFL for wading into ‘bathro
  
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• Pflugerville’s top cop is city’s first female, Hispanic chief

  17-02-2017 21:35 via kxan.com
  
  PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — Way before Jessica Robledo broke down barriers by becoming the new Pflugerville chief of police, she was breaking down doors as the first female street narcotics officer at the Austin Police Department.
  Robledo tells KXAN’s Sally Hernandez her passion for law enforcement started in San Angelo. While a student at Angelo State University, she worked three jobs to pay tuition. One was working security at the local mall when she spotted a shoplifter
  
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• VIDEO: Houston clerk catches toddler falling off counter

  17-02-2017 20:10 via kxan.com
  
  HOUSTON, TX (NBC News) — The moment a toddler was snatched out of the air after falling off of a store counter was caught on camera, as well as his rescuer’s celebration.
  You can see in the video the toddler standing on the counter before he loses his balance, and the one handed grab by the clerk before he hits the floor.
  The employee who caught him, who goes by ‘Tex,’ then realizes his feat, and shows off a little bit for the camera, with a flex and a thumbs up.
  The fami
  
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• John Glenn’s widow turns 97, says she misses him ‘terribly’

  17-02-2017 20:07 via kxan.com
  
  COLUMBUS (AP) – John Glenn’s widow says she misses her husband “terribly” and was touched by the outpouring of love and support when he died two months ago.
  Annie Glenn turns 97 on Friday. On Thursday, she made her first public appearance since her husband’s memorial service, a reception at Ohio State University’s John Glenn College of Public Affairs.
  John Glenn, the first American to orbit Earth, died Dec. 8 at the age of 95.
  Annie Glenn told The Associated P
  
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• Students stage protest in Manor, blocking traffic along US 290

  17-02-2017 19:10 via kxan.com
  
  MANOR, Texas (KXAN) — Students in Manor staged a protest late Friday morning causing some traffic delays on US 290.
  The Manor Independent School District says a handful of students at Manor High School started a protest around 10:15 a.m. The students walked down Us 290 to Manor ISD’s main office. A video posted to Facebook showed westbound traffic on the highway blocked by several law enforcement vehicles around 11 a.m. A spokesperson for the Travis County Sheriff’s Office
  
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• Golfer dives into pond to battle gator that pulled friend’s dog under

  17-02-2017 19:09 via kxan.com
  
  NAPLES, Flordia (WBBH) – Golfer Lucky Copps lived up to his name recently when he jumped into a pond to save a friend’s dog from an attacking alligator.
  Copps was on the links with Carbon, a childhood friend’s black lab he’s been dogsitting. He looked away for a moment, and when he turned around, he saw Carbon swimming in the lake.
  “Now we’re all in trouble. Carbon is in the water swimming right at the gator. They were going right towards each other,” sa
  
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• Drug smugglers use makeshift ferry to move marijuana

  17-02-2017 18:42 via kxan.com
  
  BROWNSVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — In an effort to smuggle illegal drugs across the Rio Grande, some suspects took to constructing a makeshift ferry to get their items across.
  The Customs and Border Patrol says on Thursday morning, agents working in the Brownsville area saw a red Ford Ranger on the Mexico riverbank being loaded onto a floating trailer and made its way to the northside of the riverbank. The truck was then unloaded and the driver took off.
  RELATED: Border Patrol seizes nearly 2 ton
  
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• Selfie lands burglary suspect behind bars

  17-02-2017 17:59 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A 56-year-old Humble man is in the Travis County Jail accused of breaking into various Austin businesses and stealing electronics. According to an arrest warrant, James Johnson, even took selfies of himself with the items he allegedly stole.
  Over the New Year’s Day holiday weekend, the office of SG Interactive in north Austin was broken into and several laptops and tablets were stolen. The business told police the stolen Apple devices were synced to the company&r
  
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• Texas mayor who harshly criticized Muslims nixes re-election

  17-02-2017 16:49 via kxan.com
  IRVING, Texas (AP) — A suburban Dallas mayor who drew national attention for her harsh criticism of Muslims says she won’t seek a third term.
  Irving Mayor Beth Van Duyne (DYNE) told The Dallas Morning News (http://bit.ly/2kw1Zz6) that she “would be honored to work” for President Donald Trump. She was among the few big-city mayors to support Trump’s candidacy in 2016.
  Van Duyne had been on the City Council since 2004 and mayor since 2011. The City Council voted in De
  
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• Trump weighs mobilizing National Guard for immigration roundups

  17-02-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — A draft memo obtained by The Associated Press outlines a Trump administration proposal under consideration to mobilize as many as 100,000 National Guard troops to round up unauthorized immigrants. Millions of those who would be affected in 11 states live nowhere near the Mexico border.
  The 11-page document calls for the unprecedented militarization of immigration enforcement as far north as Portland, Oregon, and as far east as New Orleans, Louisiana. If the proposal is im
  
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• Trump administration says National Guard plan not seriously considered

  17-02-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP/KXAN) — The Trump administration denies it’s considering a proposal to mobilize as many as 100,000 National Guard troops to round up unauthorized immigrants in 11 states. A draft memo obtained by The Associated Press calls for the militarization of immigration enforcement as far north as Portland, Oregon, and as far east as Lousiana. Staffers in the Department of Homeland Security say the proposal was discussed as recently a week ago. But an official with the depa
  
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• American Airlines flight reroutes back to Austin airport

  17-02-2017 15:42 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An American Airlines flight that was headed to Chicago from Austin had to turn back around due to a mechanical issue.
  A spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport says the flight was about 20 miles out from the airport when they rerouted back around 8:15 a.m. The pilot landed the plane safely and they’re currently making their way back to the gate as of 8:35 a.m.
  American Airlines says there was an odor in the cabin; maintenance crews are currently checki
  
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• Austin mayor addresses local vs. state issues, including rideshare regulations

  17-02-2017 14:56 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Mayor Steve Adler addressed several legislative items that could have an impact on city operations this year.
  Austin has been in the national news as of late when the topic of Sanctuary Cities is brought up. Gov. Greg Abbott has already cut grant funding to Travis County due to Sheriff Sally Hernandez’s stance on ICE detainer policies.
  “We’ll follow whatever law the legislature passes,” said Adler in an interview with Sally Hernandez on KXAN N
  
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• Austin mayor addresses local vs. state issues

  17-02-2017 14:56 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Mayor Steve Adler addressed several legislative items that could have an impact on city operations this year.
  Austin has been in the national news as of late when the topic of Sanctuary Cities is brought up. Gov. Greg Abbott has already cut grant funding to Travis County due to Sheriff Sally Hernandez’s stance on ICE detainer policies.
  “We’ll follow whatever law the legislature passes,” said Adler in an interview with KXAN’s Sally Hernan
  
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• AT&T trumpets its own new unlimited plan

  17-02-2017 14:09 via kxan.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — AT&T says any cellphone customer can sign up for unlimited data plans starting Friday. That option had been limited to customers of AT&T-owned DirecTV.
  The change comes just days after Verizon announced an unlimited plan without such restrictions.
  All four major cellphone providers now offer unlimited plans, a major reversal from a few years ago. AT&T’s version costs the same as Verizon’s — $180 — for a family of four but is pricier for a
  
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• Breaking down the heated exchange over immigration at Austin City Council

  17-02-2017 14:01 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The hot-button issue of immigration is also keeping Austin council members at odds with each other.
  At Thursday’s city council meeting, Council Members Ellen Troxclair and Greg Casar got into a heated exchange about funding emergency funds for immigration legal services. After much back and forth, city leaders agreed to expand a year-old $100,000 program offering mental health and legal aid to new arrivals by another $200,000 in an emergency, one-time funding.
  Ca
  
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• Attorney General Ken Paxton may face 2 trials

  17-02-2017 13:38 via kxan.com
  
  MCKINNEY, Texas (AP) – The judge overseeing the felony securities fraud charges against Texas’ Republican attorney general says he’ll attempt to seat a jury without changing where the case will be tried.
  Special prosecutors have asked that the proceedings be moved out of Paxton’s home county, blaming a tainted jury pool.
  But the Dallas Morning News reports that during a pretrial hearing Thursday, Judge George Gallagher said he planned to “at least try to choose a ju
  
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• Family dogs maul 5-year-old Tennessee boy to death

  17-02-2017 12:58 via kxan.com
  
  CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – A little boy died after being attacked by his family’s dogs in Tennessee Thursday morning.
  The 5-year-old child reportedly suffered extensive injuries after being mauled by the dogs, both English Mastiffs under one year old.
  2-month-old baby mauled to death by family dog in San Marcos
  The boy was taken to Tennova Medical Center where he died a short time later. His identity was not immediately known.
  Police say the dogs have been placed in the custody of
  
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• More people stepping up to pay off lunch balances at Pflugerville schools

  17-02-2017 12:48 via kxan.com
  
  PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — A random act of kindness from a couple in the Pflugerville area triggered other people to pay it forward as well.
  Earlier this month, a couple walked into Pflugerville Independent School District’s Rowe Elementary School and offered to write a check to pay off all the students’ lunch balances. They had seen a story on the news about someone who paid off student lunch balances and wanted to do the same for the campus of 960 students. “I wa
  
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• Police looking for drivers on cellphones in downtown Austin

  17-02-2017 12:33 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Starting Friday morning, Austin police will be looking for drivers who are using their cellphones while behind the wheel. It’s all part of a new stepped up enforcement by the department to crack down on drivers who are violating the hands-free ordinance. The department is targeting the downtown core because that’s where it’s congested and drivers are often distracted by their phones.
  Since the ordinance began in January 2015, citations have gone down. Duri
  
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• Police conducting hands-free driving stings in downtown Austin

  17-02-2017 12:33 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Starting Friday morning, Austin police will be looking for drivers who are using their cellphones while behind the wheel. It’s all part of a new stepped up enforcement by the department to crack down on drivers who are violating the hands-free ordinance. The department is targeting the downtown core because that’s where it’s congested and drivers are often distracted by their phones.
  Since the ordinance began in January 2015, citations have gone down. Duri
  
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• Marathon to close Austin roads Sunday

  17-02-2017 11:23 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Some of the best runners from around the world and across the country are in Austin this weekend. It’s for the Austin Marathon this Sunday.
  This February tradition is now in its 26th year. Proceeds go to several local charities.
  If you’re familiar with this race, you know the 26.2-mile course will disrupt your Sunday routine. Runners are going to be making their way from North Austin at Anderson Lane down south to Ben White. All roads should reopen by 2 p.m.
  
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• Eight displaced from fire in south Austin apartment complex

  17-02-2017 05:46 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A fire that displaced eight people from the Reserve Apartments in south Austin was ruled accidental by the fire department.
  Firefighters say the fire was caused by an electrical short in a wall. In all, six apartments were damaged at the complex located at 1016 W. Stassney, near the South First Street intersection.
  Damage has been estimated by the department as $75,000 for the structure and $25,000 for the apartment contents. No one was injured in the fire.
  The Red Cross is
  
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• Capitol view corridors radiating through east Austin considered by Council

  17-02-2017 05:41 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — We’re all familiar with the iconic view of the Capitol from South Congress, the building serving as a “beacon” for Texas. The view from parts of east Austin is something the Austin City Council is now considering preserving as well.
  The potential corridors run on Juniper Street, Huston-Tillotson University, the Texas State Cemetery, Lott Park and Rosewood Park.
  Council Member Ora Houston reflected on fond memories, seeing the Capitol in full view
  
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• Business owner highlights long wait for siblings to acquire U.S. residency

  17-02-2017 05:33 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — This is always the craziest week of the year at Mercedes Flowers, a local flower shop near the “Y” in Oak Hill.
  Owner Mercedes Anderson says the closed sign on the front door is not a sign of exhaustion after Valentine’s Day. She decided to take part in “A Day Without Immigrants.”
  “I come from an immigrant family,”said Anderson. “I have to stand with them. I stand with those who [come to the U.S.] legally, but I
  
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• With final approval, Round Rock ISD voters will decide fate of $572M bond

  17-02-2017 04:52 via kxan.com
  
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — Round Rock ISD has finalized its plans for a $572 million bond package that is now in the hands of voters this May.
  The bond will include the building of the district’s 35th elementary school, a high school, an indoor aquatics center, a third outdoor athletic facility and designs for a permanent Early College and Health Professionals High School.
  During Thursday’s board discussions, deductions were made to reduce the size of the overall package. The b
  
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• Dustin McComas talking UT Baseball and Basketball on More Than the Score

  17-02-2017 04:49 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Orangebloods.com’s Dustin McComas joined Roger Wallace on More than the Score to talk UT Baseball on the eve of their season opener.
  
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• 4 days after inmate’s slaying, his rape conviction is tossed

  17-02-2017 03:29 via kxan.com
  
  HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) — Roger Largent will never get a chance to clear his name in the rape of a disabled woman: He was found beaten to death in his prison cell four days before a court tossed his conviction.
  Authorities suspect Largent’s cellmate in the slaying, but they have not cited a motive or filed charges in the Saturday attack.
  On Wednesday, a Maryland appeals court threw out Largent’s conviction and said he should get a new trial because the jury verdict last year hinge
  
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• Border patrol seizes 42 pounds of horse meat and genitals

  17-02-2017 03:25 via kxan.com
  
  CHANTILLY, Va. (AP) – Customs and Border Protection agents have seized 42 pounds of horse meat, including 13 pounds of horse genitals, from two women arriving from Mongolia at Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
  The horse meat was hidden in juice boxes. One of the women said the horse genitals were for medicinal purposes.
  CBP announced the seizures Thursday; the meat was seized on Jan. 29.
  Neither woman was criminally charged.
  Three liters of yak milk was also seized and incinerated,
  
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• Man accused of sexually assaulting child family member in Pflugerville

  17-02-2017 02:59 via kxan.com
  
  PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — A man is accused of sexually assaulting a child in his family in Pflugerville.
  Officers were called at around 4:45 p.m. Wednesday for a reported sexual assault of a child.
  The Pflugerville Criminal Investigations Division immediately began an investigation, police say. Officers interviewed the juvenile who reported the sexual assault by a family member.
  Ivan Hernandez, 32, was arrested and charged with indecency with a child by contact, a second degree felony.
  
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• Texas first responders should get workers’ comp for PTSD, lawmaker argues

  17-02-2017 02:41 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (NEXSTAR) — State Rep. John Wray, R-Waxahachie, filed legislation Thursday morning to allow workers’ compensation benefits for first responders who suffer post-traumatic stress disorder.
  “PTSD can destroy careers, family relationships, and the lives of those impacted,” Wray said. “Currently the only way that a first responder who is suffering from PTSD can receive coverage through workers’ compensation is to assert that he or she suffers from a mental i
  
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• ‘Lawlessness’ in front of Leander school creates growing traffic danger

  17-02-2017 02:27 via kxan.com
  
  LEANDER, Texas (KXAN) — Suzi Simmons says she knows it’s illegal to park in front of Whitestone Elementary School in Leander to pick up her daughter.
  “I like to pick her up where she can walk out and see me and this is really the only option,” Simmons says.
  Sgt. Ryan Doyle with the Leander Police Department says parents have been parking illegally in front of the school — in a lane of traffic on Crystal Falls Parkway — for as long as he can remember. While it&
  
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• Harward turns Trump down for national security adviser job

  17-02-2017 02:27 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice Admiral Robert Harward has turned down an offer to be President Donald Trump’s new national security adviser, the latest blow to a new administration struggling to find its footing.
  Harward told The Associated Press that the Trump administration was “very accommodating to my needs, both professionally and personally.”
  “It’s purely a personal issue,” Harward said Thursday evening. “I’m in a unique position finally after
  
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• Two Austin police officers’ act of kindness helps teen

  17-02-2017 01:54 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — When two Austin police officers noticed a teen stranded and broke down on the side of the road, they did what they say any officer would do — they pulled over to help. It’s what the pair did next that has people talking and giving.
  Senior police officers Jason Borne and Tommy Sewin work highway patrol.
  “He works MoPac, I work 183,” Borne said.
  On February 7, the two got a call of a potential crash on the southbound flyover of Mopac and 183. Borne was
  
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• APD officers buy brand new tires for stranded teen

  17-02-2017 01:54 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — When two Austin police officers noticed a teen stranded and broke down on the side of the road, they did what they say any officer would do — they pulled over to help. It’s what the pair did next that has people talking and giving.
  Senior police officers Jason Borne and Tommy Sawin work highway patrol.
  “He works MoPac, I work 183,” Borne said.
  On Feb. 7, the two got a call of a potential crash on the southbound flyover of MoPac and 183. Borne was the
  
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• Motorcyclist killed in crash with pickup truck on FM 1431

  17-02-2017 01:53 via kxan.com
  
  MARBLE FALLS, Texas (KXAN) — A motorcyclist was killed Wednesday evening in a crash with a pickup truck in Burnet County.
  At around 8 p.m., a pickup was backing out of a driveway when the motorcyclist riding on FM 1431 at Faith Academy — just east of Marble Falls — crashed into the truck.
  The Department of Public Safety says the rider died at the scene.
  Additional details on the crash and the victim’s identity were not immediately available.
  
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• Idaho police: Joey the indoor pet squirrel stops a burglary

  17-02-2017 01:43 via kxan.com
  
  MERIDIAN, Idaho (AP) — A pet squirrel named Joey prevented a burglary attempt in Idaho last week by scratching the teen suspect when he tried to break into a gun safe, police said.
  The unidentified teenager told officers that the squirrel’s attack “scared him, obviously, because he wasn’t expecting to have, you know, a squirrel come flying out of nowhere at him,” said Officer Ashley Turner of the police department in Meridian, a Boise suburb. “So basically he
  
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• Harris County no longer arresting for small amounts of pot

  17-02-2017 00:33 via kxan.com
  
  HOUSTON (AP) — The district attorney in the most populous Texas county has announced a new program in which law enforcement agencies will not arrest individuals caught with four ounces or less of marijuana.
  Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced in Houston on Thursday that her office will offer those possessing misdemeanor amounts of marijuana an opportunity to participate in the program starting March 1.
  Individuals won’t be jailed or have to appear in court, but they wil
  
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• Richard Moya, first Mexican-American on Travis Co. Commissioners’ Court, dies

  17-02-2017 00:17 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Richard Moya, the first Mexican-American elected to the Travis County Commissioners’ Court, has died.
  Judge Sarah Eckhardt said his death is a huge loss for the community and public servants in the county. “All of Travis County is richer for his service in office and in his private capacity,” she said.
  Born in Austin in 1932, Moya served as a county commissioner from 1970 to 1986, according to a 2013 interview with the University of Texas at Arlington&rsqu
  
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• Trump seeks pause in legal fight with revised travel ban

  17-02-2017 00:15 via kxan.com
  
  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Trump administration said in court documents on Thursday it wants a pause in the legal fight over its ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations, so it can issue a replacement ban as it strives to protect the nation from terrorism.
  Details of the new proposal were not provided in the filing or at a wide-ranging news conference by Trump. But lawyers for the administration said in the filing that a ban that focuses solely on foreigners who have never en
  
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