Austin news

• Hays CISD laptops damaged due to social media challenge

  09-05-2025 22:48 via kxan.com
  
  HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) -- School district officials across the country are warning students against a social media trend directing them to short-circuit their school-issued laptops.Officials said students record themselves short-circuiting their laptops or puncturing the lithium batteries, which causes the battery's temperature to rise uncontrollably.RELATED STORY: Students deliberately short-circuiting school laptops as part of social media trendThe trend made its way to Central Texas and im
  
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• How to manage mental health on Mother's Day

  09-05-2025 22:33 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Some may be scrambling to get those last-minute gifts or make plans with Mother's Day right around the corner.However, that day can also bring up mixed feelings for those who have a strained relationship with a parent or someone dealing with the loss of one.Kate Carmichael, a licensed professional counselor supervisor with ATX Counseling, spoke with KXAN's Will DuPree and Sally Hernandez to expand on how those experiencing these feelings can cope.Read a transcription of the inte
  
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• Hail in super slow motion could help us better understand extreme weather

  09-05-2025 21:43 via kxan.com
  
  A hailstone hurdles towards its destruction. This footage was captured by a special rig built by Sean Waugh, a research scientist with NOAA's National Severe Storms Laboratory (Credit: Sean Waugh)
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — While hot weather is in the forecast, a recent string of severe weather events has left its mark across parts of Central Texas. A couple of tornadoes, plus hail storms, have ramped up a quiet severe weather season.Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrati
  
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• Abbott signs bill to close 'Do Not Hire' loopholes, another advances

  09-05-2025 21:03 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two bills that could close loopholes in Texas' "Do Not Hire" registry advanced this week, but one is still up against the clock of sine die.Sen. Paul Bettencourt, who authored Senate Bill 571 and Senate Bill 1437, said that he introduced SB 571 "after a contractor in Austin was found working around students despite a history of misconduct." Previous: Texas senators consider $10,000 fine for superintendents who don’t report suspected sexual misconduct"These bills make
  
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• Mexico's head of public safety says 3 out of 4 guns seized came from US

  09-05-2025 20:36 via kxan.com
  
  SAN DIEGO (Border Report) -- Mexico's head of public safety said of the more than 10,000 guns seized from October of last year through April, 75 percent came from the U.S.Omar García Harfuch made those comments earlier this week during the daily presidential briefing in Mexico City, adding that since 2019, the Mexican government has been asking U.S. officials to put a stop to the "transfer of weapons that nourish organized crime in Mexico.""It's worth mentioning that about 75 percent of w
  
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• DHS says patriarch of Austin family ICE sent to Mexico was deported three times before

  09-05-2025 20:32 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Department of Homeland Security said on Friday that the patriarch of the Austin family that ICE transported to Mexico, along with their two U.S.-born children, had illegally entered the country three times before and was convicted of multiple crimes while living in Texas.Omar Gallardo-Rodriguez, 43, and his partner Denisse Parra-Vargas were pulled over outside Dobie Middle School in north Austin last Wednesday over expired tags, according to the Texas Department of Publ
  
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• Suspects plead guilty in two separate deadly fentanyl cases in Travis County

  09-05-2025 20:27 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The 167th District Courtroom at the Travis County Courthouse saw two guilty pleas Friday related to deadly fentanyl cases.In the case of 67-year-old Curtis Habbit, prosecutors and defense attorneys reached a plea deal for 10 years of probation with conditions.
  Habbit was arrested last year in connection with a 2023 case where police believe he sold suspected fentanyl pills to a woman, who was later found dead in her southeast Austin apartment. Further details about his punishmen
  
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• Man faces murder charge after 50-year-old shot 12 times in southeast Austin

  09-05-2025 20:02 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Police arrested a man Wednesday related to an October 2023 fatal shooting that occurred in southeast Austin.According to an arrest warrant affidavit, 21-year-old Jalen Alexander Hemphill was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of 50-year-old Feliciano Alvarado-Lajuj, who medical examiners said was shot 12 times. RELATED | APD identifies victim in Saturday homicide investigationKXAN has reached out to Hemphill’s attorney. This article will be
  
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• 'Yes, and approach': Council members combing through alternate funding options for I-35 covers

  09-05-2025 19:31 via kxan.com
  
  Editor's Note: A previous version of this story identified an incorrect member of the city council as being one of those behind the new funding plan. This story has been updated to reflect the accurate list of council members involved with the plan.AUSTIN (KXAN) -- In a final scramble to fund park decks over the Texas Department of Transportation's I-35 expansion project, some Austin city council members are combing through possible funding options that wouldn't take away from the city's borrowi
  
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• Police affidavit details events leading to Philomena Street shooting in April

  09-05-2025 18:46 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An Austin Police detective's affidavit details the events leading up to an April 27 murder outside of an apartment complex near Mueller, including information from CCTV footage and an interview with a witness. PAST COVERAGE | Woman shot, killed outside Mueller-area apartment complexThe detective said that surveillance camera footage shows the victim, Samantha Fernandez, approach a red pickup truck before being shot in the head. The truck left the scene immediately after, ac
  
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• TCSO: Suspect shot himself in leg during struggle with deputy in grocery store parking lot

  09-05-2025 18:18 via kxan.com
  
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A man was injured after shooting himself in the leg during a struggle with a Travis County Sheriff's Office deputy Friday morning, TCSO said.It happened around 9:30 a.m. in the parking lot of Randall's on FM 620, near Lake Travis. TCSO Dispatch received a notification from the Austin Police Department about an allegedly stolen vehicle that was expected to move out of Austin and into the sheriff's office jurisdiction.Within 30 minutes, a TCSO deputy spotted the
  
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• TCSO: Person injured, deputy unharmed after grocery store parking lot shooting

  09-05-2025 18:18 via kxan.com
  
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) -- The Travis County Sheriff's Office said a shot was fired and a person was injured during an altercation with a deputy, but it's unclear whose weapon was fired.It happened around 9:30 a.m. in the parking lot of Randall's on FM 620, near Lake Travis.TCSO Public Information Officer Kristen Dark said during a noon press conference Friday, the Austin Police Department contacted the sheriff's office about a potentially stolen vehicle they expected to move out of Austin a
  
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• 'Quite a privilege'; Diocese of Austin celebrates election of first American Pope

  09-05-2025 17:38 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Catholic Church on Thursday experienced a moment of history when cardinals elected the first-ever U.S. pope.
  Chicago-born missionary Robert Prevost, a 69-year-old member of the Augustinian religious order who spent his career ministering in Peru, was named the 267th pontiff. He took the name Leo XIV.Robert Prevost, first pope from US in history of the Catholic Church, takes the name Leo XIVCatholic communities across the world celebrated the news of the new leader of the Cat
  
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• Woman shot by off-duty APD officer in 2021 reaches settlement with City of Austin

  09-05-2025 17:22 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Following a January 2023 lawsuit, the Austin City Council approved a $550,000 settlement with Jessica Arellano, who was shot in January 2021 by an off-duty Austin Police officer while riding as a passenger in a car. RELATED | Wrongful death lawsuits filed against 2 APD officers, City of AustinEdwards Law, the firm that handled Arellano’s “use of excessive force” lawsuit, provided a statement regarding the settlement:“While Austin police found a gun i
  
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• Texas lawmakers want to spend millions on Child ID kits. Experts say there’s no evidence they work.

  09-05-2025 16:58 via kxan.com
  
  (The Texas Tribune/ProPublica) — Two years ago, Texas lawmakers quietly cut millions of dollars in funding for kits intended to help track down missing kids, after ProPublica and The Texas Tribune revealed there was no evidence they had aided law enforcement in finding lost children.The company that made the kits had used outdated and exaggerated statistics on missing children to bolster their sales and charged for the materials when similar products were available for
  
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• House considers bills aimed at transgender life, legal documents; advocates respond with rally

  09-05-2025 15:35 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas House of Representatives will meet Friday to consider a number of bills, and could vote on two bills aimed at transgender life in Texas, according to the chamber's calendar for the day.House Bill 229 and House Bill 778 drew attention from a coalition of LGBTQ+ advocacy groups, who will rally Friday in opposition to the bills, according to a joint press release issued by Equality Texas on Thursday.The rally will include civil rights nonprofits and LGBTQ+ advocacy g
  
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• Inside the Investigation: Is a musician's payout worth the prestige of playing SXSW?

  09-05-2025 15:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — While SXSW claims to pump hundreds of millions into Austin’s economy each year, a KXAN investigation found a striking gap between the event’s financial impact and the paychecks of those who help make it happen.This week on Inside the Investigation, Digital Reporter Abigail Jones explains the movement to increase pay for SX musicians.Related reading
  SXSW Musician Pay Highlights Industry Struggle‘People can die of exposure.’ Is musician payout worth th
  
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• Solar scams? Texas to consider cracking down on deceptive solar panel sales tactics, fraud

  09-05-2025 14:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Texas lawmakers are considering cracking down on a growing problem of scams and fraud related to solar panels.In recent years, Texas has led the country in installing more new solar capacity than nearly every other state. However, Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, told her colleagues she believes that "positive development is being overshadowed by a rise in fraudulent and predatory residential solar panel sales practices."A recent report from Texas Appleseed reviewed co
  
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• I-35 lanes reopen after multi-vehicle crash involving 18-wheeler near Woodland Avenue

  09-05-2025 13:45 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A multi-vehicle crash involving an 18-wheeler blocked lanes on the southbound side of Interstate 35 for a few hours early Friday morning.The Austin Police Department posted on X just before 6:30 a.m. that officers were investigating a crash in the 1800 block of I-35 southbound. That's near Woodland Avenue.
  APD told KXAN over the phone that a call for the crash came in at 5:49 a.m., and that the crash involved at least four vehicles and an 18-wheeler.The Texas Department of Publi
  
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• Spotty showers today and Saturday before summer heat

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- We're still watching radar closely this afternoon with very spotty showers possible into the evening. Rain coverage will only get around 10% of the area rain, so count yourself lucky if you feel a shower today!Rain chances drop back to near zero by 10 p.m. with a mostly clear to partly cloudy night ahead.Low pressure just to our east may pivot a few more showers from north to south through the area on Saturday with slightly higher rain coverage. Chances look highest from noon-7p
  
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• Spotty showers Saturday before summer heat builds

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Rain chances drop to near zero overnight with a mostly clear to partly cloudy night ahead.Low pressure just to our east may pivot a few more showers from north to south through the area on Saturday with slightly higher rain coverage. Chances look highest from noon-7pm on Saturday with 20% rain coverage.Spotty showers possible on SaturdayMother's Day still looks dry with morning clouds revealing afternoon sun and highs in the low 80s.Weekend forecastNext weekThe story next week w
  
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• Showers winding down this evening, sunny Sunday

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A few more rounds of showers and thunderstorms will move through Central Texas this evening, with partly cloudy skies overnight. Sunset tonight is at 8:15 pm.
  Mother's Day will be mostly sunny with no rain expected. High temperatures will be in the low to mid 80s, with northwesterly winds gusting up to 25 mph at times.
  Rain chances stay minimal through the workweek as a strong high pressure ridge brings several days of record heat and mostly sunny skies, with temperatures runnin
  
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• Rain chances remain minimal through Saturday

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Cooler than average temperatures today through the weekend.. but enjoy 'em while they're here. We're in for rude jump in the numbers next week.The majority of the day will favor a mix of sun and clouds and mainly dry skies. Given the leftover moisture interacting with daytime heat, it's possible a few isolated spots of rain develop.... but coverage and intensity will be very limited.Rain chancesSlightly higher rain chances develop Saturday afternoon with widely scattered showers
  
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• Pleasant Mother's Day, heat returns on Monday

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A few more rounds of showers and thunderstorms will move through Central Texas this evening, with partly cloudy skies overnight. Sunset tonight is at 8:15 pm.
  Mother's Day will be mostly sunny with no rain expected. High temperatures will be in the low to mid 80s, with northwesterly winds gusting up to 25 mph at times.
  Rain chances stay minimal through the workweek as a strong high pressure ridge brings several days of record heat and mostly sunny skies, with temperatures runnin
  
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• Heat wave set to break record highs this week

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A strong high-pressure ridge will deliver abundant sunshine and hot temperatures through the workweek.
  Overnight, temperatures will cool down to the upper 40s to the 50s with clear skies. Monday will start pleasant, with lunchtime temperatures in the upper 70s and low 80s. Afternoon high temperatures forecast to reach the low 90s with light northwesterly winds.
  BLOG: Why temps will rise nearly 20° by TuesdayTriple-digit heat will scorch our area on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Th
  
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• A mild weekend ahead of a hot week

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Mother's Day weekend will have mild temperatures along with north winds that lead to lower humidity. Most highs today will be in the low 80s.There will be a 20% chance of afternoon showers and isolated thunderstorms. An upper-level low over Louisiana will send that rain into the area. The rain will move from north to south on the west side of the upper low. Most measurements will be only a few hundredths of an inch.Mother's Day is going to be nice with a partly cloudy sky and mo
  
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• A mild Mother's Day ... but summer's heat is coming

  09-05-2025 12:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Happy Mother's Day.
  The day dawned with apartly cloudy to mostly sunny sky. The air was dry with low dew points thanks to a continued north wind. Lows were in the 50s in much of the Hill Country increasing to low 60s in many areas from I-35 eastward.
  The low at Camp Mabry was 61°. The low at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport was 59°. Both were five degrees below their respective normals.Today will be rain-free. The upper-level low responsible for Saturday's rain is
  
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• Cruise ship passengers must pay fee upon arriving in Mexico starting July 1

  09-05-2025 05:40 via kxan.com
  
  SAN DIEGO (Border Report) -- Starting July 1, cruise-ship passengers arriving in any Mexican port will have to pay a $5 visitor fee.The Mexican government and the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association arrived at a compromise this week to implement the tariff on visitors.The FCCA represents 95% of cruise ships that make ports of call in Mexico.Mexico postpones cruise ship passenger fee for six months
  Six months ago, the Mexican government wanted to institute a $42 tariff on each passenger.After co
  
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• NBA Hall-of-Famer Paul Pierce says he walked 20 miles in robe to pay off on-air bet

  09-05-2025 05:07 via kxan.com
  
  (KTLA) – Don't let anyone ever tell you Paul Pierce isn't a man of his word.On Thursday, the Boston Celtics legend and former Los Angeles Clippers player appeared to make good on a promise to walk to work in his robe from his home somewhere in the San Fernando Valley to the Fox Sports studio in Century City.The reason? Pierce's overconfidence in his former team.After the Celtics blew a 20-point lead in Game 1 against the underdog New York Knicks earlier this week, Pierce proudly proclaimed
  
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• Liberty Hill's Kent Walker taking over as head football coach at Blanco

  09-05-2025 04:55 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Liberty Hill head football coach Kent Walker is moving on.Walker is expected to be named the athletic director and head football coach at Blanco following the school district's board meeting Friday. The meeting agenda indicates that it will be discussed in executive session.Longhorns star, Austin native Andrew Mukuba honored by high schoolMatt Stepp of Dave Campbell's Texas Football magazine first reported the hire.Walker will take over for Jamie Dixon, who left Blanco for
  
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• Abbott names Cedar Park fire chief to Texas Commission on Fire Protection

  09-05-2025 04:36 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Cedar Park's fire chief will now to get to help enforce statewide fire services after he was appointed to the Texas Commission on Fire Protection by Gov. Greg Abbott, the city of Cedar Park said in a news release Thursday.Cedar Park Fire Chief James Mallinger is part of the commission that "will help shape and uphold statewide fire service standards while offering guidance and support to fire departments across Texas, reinforcing his longstanding dedication to advancing fire saf
  
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• Mia Scott delivers to lift Texas over Ole Miss in SEC softball tourney quarters 7-6

  09-05-2025 03:08 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Mia Scott smacked a double off the center field fence to give Texas a walk-off 7-6 win over Ole Miss in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference softball tournament Thursday in Athens, Georgia.The Longhorns (46-9), seeded third in the tournament, now advance to the semifinals Friday to face either Texas A&M or South Carolina. The start time is dependent on the preceding game but could be around 5:30 p.m. CDT and will be on ESPN2. Lone Star Showdown to be played
  
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• AISD says expert teachers could improve failing schools

  09-05-2025 02:37 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – In an effort to turn around low performing schools in Austin Independent School District, it is launching a campaign to hire the best teachers they can get.The district is looking for teachers who have track records of improving students' grades, and they want them in schools that are not meeting standards.The move comes after Dobie, Webb and Burnet middle schools are all facing a critical school year ahead where they must show signs of improvement or face a state intervent
  
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• Longhorns star, Austin native Andrew Mukuba honored by high school

  09-05-2025 02:15 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Andrew Mukuba had a decision to make after three years at Clemson when he entered the transfer portal. The Austinite decided to come home and play for Texas in his final season in college football.Mukuba's roots have always been important to him. An alumnus of LBJ High School, he loved his year at Texas. Lone Star Showdown to be played on Black Friday for first time since 2007Texas defensive back Andrew Mukuba celebrates a defensive stop during the second half against Clems
  
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• UT Austin invests $100M in permanent home for School of Civic Leadership

  09-05-2025 00:42 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (Nexstar) — The inaugural class of 100 Civics Honors freshman starting at the University of Texas at Austin this fall should have a full-time home by the time they're seniors. On Thursday, the Board of Regents announced a $100 million investment to renovate the school's Biological Laboratories building to host the upstart School of Civic Leadership."We have needed a place where civic education is focused on the foundational principles of our constitutional democracy," Board of Regen
  
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• Austin-based company doubles office space in downtown

  09-05-2025 00:37 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- There's more than a million square feet of office space under construction in Austin, according to commercial real estate company CoStar. Much of it is not leased at the moment, which is contributing to the city's office vacancy rate. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Austin office vacancy rate at an all-time high, among highest in the countryCoStar Senior Market Analyst Israel Linares said the vacancy rate rose to 17.1% at the start of this year. Linares said leasing volume remains below hist
  
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• Funeral, procession Friday for APD Detective Israel Garcia

  09-05-2025 00:28 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A procession and funeral is set to take place Friday for Israel Garcia, an Austin Police Department detective who APD said died in an off-duty motorcycle crash over the weekend."People loved him. The community loved him. He was kind. The officers loved him," said Chief Lisa Davis. "He was the officer that I would certainly want everyone to be. An officer who loved to talk. Loved to be in the community. He had a wonderful family. He will be greatly missed. Officers are devastated
  
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• President Trump to sign Take It Down Act to help victims of deepfake porn

  09-05-2025 00:11 via kxan.com
  
  ALEDO, Texas (Nexstar) -- Elliston Berry's life changed just a couple of months into her high school career when a classmate decided to take photos from her social media page and generate fake pornographic images of her, known as deepfakes.
  Elliston's mom, Anna McAdams, recalls the moment her 14-year-old daughter discovered the images were circulating around social media.
  "Coming to our room crying going, 'Mom you won't believe what's happening,'" McAdams said. "We really watched her go into a s
  
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