Tag Archives: DPS

Hemp ban remains in place

Posted on September 9, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Still no relief. A Texas judge has allowed a wide-ranging THC ban to stay in effect after a hearing last week. Delta-9 THC can generally be regarded as “regular THC.” When state and federal lawmakers legalized hemp, they defined it … Continue reading →

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It’s not easy to de-Flock

Posted on August 31, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This is the best illustration I’ve seen of why federal action will be needed. At a 9 a.m. Harris County Commissioners Court meeting Aug. 17, dozens of Houston residents filed into the courtroom. The commissioners were meeting to review the … Continue reading →

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A focus on Flock

Posted on August 11, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Good overview. A network of little black cameras on tall metal posts has sprouted up across Texas, in big cities and along remote country roads. The cameras, produced by Atlanta-based Flock Safety, use artificial intelligence to scan every vehicle that … Continue reading →

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Harris County allocates funds to investigate ICE shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo

Posted on August 10, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Super annoying that we have to do this, but given that we do it’s good that we’re doing it. Harris County commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to dedicate $2.5 million over the next three years to support a local investigation … Continue reading →

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A brief note on “non-citizen” voters

Posted on August 3, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

I’m just going to leave this here. Election officials across the state should immediately reinstate some voters who were incorrectly flagged as potential noncitizens through a federal program, the Texas Secretary of State’s Office told county officials Wednesday. Christina Adkins, … Continue reading →

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Say good-bye to smokable hemp

Posted on August 1, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

There it goes. Texans’ access to a variety of hemp-derived THC products will significantly narrow on Friday. Texas will ban several hemp-derived THC cannabis products, including those containing delta-8 and delta-10 THC variants, punishing people in possession of them with … Continue reading →

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Still waiting on the Rangers (who are now finally coming)

Posted on July 16, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

They don’t seem to be keen to get involved in the investigation of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s death at the hands of ICE. The Texas Rangers have denied a request by Houston-area Democrats to investigate the deadly shooting of Lorenzo Salgado … Continue reading →

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Where are the Rangers?

Posted on July 12, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

No one will say just yet. When a federal immigration officer shot and killed a 23-year-old on South Padre Island last year, the Department of Homeland Security asked the Texas Rangers to investigate. But as calls grow for an independent … Continue reading →

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Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was not ICE’s target

Posted on July 11, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Unbelievable. The 52-year-old Houston man fatally shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent earlier this week was not the target of the agency’s operation, said U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, who has called for release of any video … Continue reading →

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Lorenzo Salgado Araujo roundup

Posted on July 10, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

For 35 years, a Mexican father built homes in Houston. Then a morning drive ended in tragedy. For the last 35 years, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s day began the same way: He woke up at 5 a.m., kissed his wife goodbye, … Continue reading →

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ICE kills Houston man

Posted on July 9, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Bad. Very bad. An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot a Houston man after he tried to run over a federal officer conducting a vehicle stop Tuesday morning, according to an agency statement issued hours after the incident. Federal … Continue reading →

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Judge blocks DHS from using citizenship database to purge voters

Posted on June 29, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

One of many lawsuits over many attempts by the Trump administration to put a big thumb on the scale. A federal judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration’s overhaul of an immigration verification system to check voter eligibility across the … Continue reading →

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Smokable hemp is off the shelves again

Posted on June 11, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Swinging back and forth. After weeks of back-and-forth court rulings over the future of the Texas hemp market, new rules that target smokable hemp products and charge sharply higher fees on retailers and manufacturers can take effect again. But it’s … Continue reading →

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Waiting for the next SOS

Posted on June 10, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Hoping they’re not terrible. Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson’s unexpected departure only a few months before the November midterm election, which includes one of the most hotly contested U.S. Senate races the state has seen in years, has some local election officials and voting … Continue reading →

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Jane Nelson stepping down as Secretary of State

Posted on June 4, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

She was pretty mid at the job, and yet she was almost certainly the best we could have hoped for as long as Greg Abbott gets to pick. Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson announced Tuesday she will resign effective … Continue reading →

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The Fifth Circuit keeps on doing its thing

Posted on June 1, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Item one: Texas’ app age verification law allowed to go into effect for now. Texas’ law requiring app marketplace operators like Google and Apple to verify all users’ ages and seek parental permission before minors can download apps or make … Continue reading →

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Texas’ 2023 anti-immigrant law blocked again

Posted on May 17, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s hope this injunction lasts longer. A Texas law that would allow state and local police to arrest people suspected of having crossed the southern border illegally is once again halted, a day before it was supposed to take effect. … Continue reading →

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Smokable hemp is off and then on the shelves again

Posted on May 10, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Pending the current appeal. Smokeable hemp products, such as flower buds and rolled joints, are allowed back on shelves until the state’s appeal of a statewide ban on the sale of the drug is heard in court next Thursday. The … Continue reading →

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ACLU files another lawsuit against 2023 Texas anti-immigrant law

Posted on May 5, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, ACLU, and the Texas Civil Rights Project have filed a class-action lawsuit seeking a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction to block several provisions of Senate Bill 4 (88-4) from going into effect May … Continue reading →

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Smokable hemp ban remains blocked

Posted on May 3, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

The reprieve has been extended. Texas hemp businesses can keep selling cannabis flower and concentrates for now after a Travis County judge blocked key parts of the state’s new hemp regulations while a lawsuit plays out. Judge Daniella DeSeta Lyttle … Continue reading →

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Camp Mystic will not reopen this summer

Posted on May 1, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Probably for the best. Camp Mystic on Thursday said it has withdrawn its application for an operating license, a decision that means it will not reopen to campers this summer. The decision follows a grueling hearing earlier this week when Texas lawmakers … Continue reading →

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Smokable hemp ban paused

Posted on April 12, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

For now. A Travis County district judge has temporarily lifted a statewide ban on the sale of natural smokeable hemp products, such as flower buds and rolled joints, until at least April 23. Judge Maya Guerra Gamble granted the Texas … Continue reading →

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Feds aim to screw Colony Ridge residents in their settlement

Posted on April 12, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Totally on brand. In December 2023, the U.S. Justice Department sued a Texas land developer it accused of duping tens of thousands of Hispanic residents into predatory mortgages, a landmark case for the Biden administration. Colony Ridge, which sold plots … Continue reading →

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DPS and Rangers investigating Camp Mystic

Posted on April 12, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Okay. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Tuesday that the Texas Rangers have launched a criminal investigation into Camp Mystic, where 25 campers and two counselors were killed during a catastrophic flash flood on July 4. And the Texas Department of … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over ban on smokable hemp

Posted on April 9, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

To be expected. Texas hemp industry leaders and advocacy groups have sued the state to block new regulations that eliminate natural smokeable hemp products and increase licensing fees. The Texas Hemp Business Council, Hemp Industry & Farmers of America, and … Continue reading →

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No more smokable hemp

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

You can still smoke what you already have, though. Smokable hemp products are effectively illegal in Texas starting today as new rules on cannabis compounds take effect. The rules, adopted by the Department of State Health Services, mark the most sweeping change … Continue reading →

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Ruben Ray Martinez

Posted on February 23, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Remember his name. Three months into President Donald Trump’s mass deportation undertaking, an ICE officer shot and killed a U.S. citizen in South Padre Island, long before immigration agents killed another American in Minnesota that prompted outrage across the nation, … Continue reading →

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Colony Ridge developers settle with the state

Posted on February 14, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This more or less wraps up the story. The owners of Colony Ridge, a Houston-area developer accused of running a predatory lending scheme that deceived Latinos, agreed to a sweeping legal settlement that will require them to invest in law … Continue reading →

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Full Fifth Circuit hears SB4 appeal

Posted on January 25, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

As always, brace yourselves. Three years ago, Texas lawmakers passed a landmark law that would let state police arrest people suspected of having entered the country illegally by crossing the border. Such authority has long been the sole responsibility of the federal … Continue reading →

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Former Uvalde officer acquitted

Posted on January 23, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. A former police officer was acquitted Wednesday evening of charges he failed in his duties to confront the gunman at an Uvalde, Texas, elementary school during the critical opening minutes of what would become one of the deadliest school … Continue reading →

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First trial over Uvalde law enforcement response to begin

Posted on January 7, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

First of two, assuming no plea deals or late-in-the-day dismissals. Former Uvalde schools police Officer Adrian Gonzales was among the first officers to arrive at Robb Elementary in 2022 after a gunman opened fire on students and teachers. Gonzales’ criminal … Continue reading →

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DPS investigating Flock

Posted on January 3, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

More of an administrative matter than anything else, but potentially with real consequences. State troopers are investigating the company behind thousands of license plate-reading cameras used by police agencies and private groups across the Houston region, over claims the company … Continue reading →

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Feds settle lawsuit with Colony Ridge developers

Posted on December 28, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Noted for the record. Federal authorities and the Houston-area developer Colony Ridge have agreed to settle a lawsuit in which the government accused the company of duping Latino homebuyers into seller-financed mortgages that many defaulted on in a scheme that … Continue reading →

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The SOS still can’t figure out citizenship

Posted on December 4, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Same song, different verse. County election officials investigating the eligibility of 2,724 Texas voters flagged as potential noncitizens have so far found that hundreds of the voters registered through the state Department of Public Safety, which requires proof of citizenship … Continue reading →

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