"Texas court voids Tom DeLay conviction" by Paul J. Weber | Associated Press, September 20, 2013
AUSTIN, Texas — A Texas appeals court threw out the criminal conviction of former US House majority leader Tom DeLay on Thursday, saying there was insufficient evidence for a jury in 2010 to have found him guilty of illegally funneling money to Republican candidates.
The Texas Third Court of Appeals said prosecutors failed to prove that the money being laundered was illegally obtained, which the court said was required for a money laundering conviction. Prosecutors alleged that DeLay illegally channeled $190,000 in corporate donations though his political action committee and into Texas legislative races, where corporate money is barred.
The appeals court justices suggested that even jurors appeared confused during deliberations, based on questions they asked about whether the charge required that the money be illegally obtained in the first place.
DeLay was meeting with religious conservatives in Washington when he learned of the court’s ruling.
‘‘We were all basically on our knees praying and my lawyer calls and says, ‘You’re a free man,’ ’’ DeLay said. ‘‘It’s a really happy day for me and I just thank the Lord for carrying me through all of this.’’
Prosecutors said they would appeal to Texas’s highest criminal court.
DeLay was found guilty of money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Prosecutors said the money he funneled to local candidates helped Republicans take control of the Texas House, enabling them to push through a DeLay-engineered congressional redistricting plan.
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The me$$age is that no one from the elite or Party will be held accountable or go to jail. What is most offen$ive is the judge overriding the verdict of a jury.
Who was the judge?
"Former judge gets six years in graft case" by CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN | Associated Press, August 22, 2013
BROWNSVILLE, Texas — A former judge who turned his South Texas courtroom into a money-making operation was sentenced on Wednesday to six years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
Delay didn't get a day.
US District Judge Andrew Hanen sentenced former state district Judge Abel Limas, 59, on one count of racketeering.
In a tearful statement, Limas said that he willingly cooperated with authorities after his arrest because as a former police officer, lawyer, and judge, he knew the ‘‘writing was on the wall.’’
Limas drew the FBI’s attention in 2007 as he neared the end of his second term. Investigators intercepted 40,000 phone calls and collected surveillance photos documenting how Limas had converted his courtroom into a criminal enterprise, collecting bribes and kickbacks totaling $257,000....
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If you fall of the horse you get right back on it:
"TEX BACK IN SADDLE -- The State Fair of Texas in Dallas unveiled a rebuilt Big Tex statue Thursday. The original 52-foot-tall landmark caught fire in October 2012 and burned down to its metal frame. The new Tex is 3 feet taller and comes with a fire suppression system (Boston Globe September 27 2013)."
It is an amazing photograph of photographs in my printed paper. The big new guy on top with a photo of the blaze of 2012 and then the skeleton of the old one next to it underneath the new one. What I can't understand is how that metal didn't melt. Blazes can melt steel towers but not a thin steel frame.
Related:
"The Environmental Protection Agency has displayed a lack of urgency in the aftermath of a deadly Texas fertilizer plant explosion and must regulate potentially explosive chemicals immediately, legislators said Thursday."
Related: Slow Saturday Special: The Jewell of the Texas Fertilizer Plant Explosion
What was it doing so close to a school went you can't sell drugs near one?
"Texas town will receive federal aid after FEMA reverses disaster ruling" by Will Weissert | Associated Press, August 03, 2013
AUSTIN, Texas — The Federal Emergency Management Agency reversed its previous decision and approved more funding Friday to help rebuild the small Texas town where in April a fertilizer plant explosion leveled homes, damaged buildings, and killed 15 people.
President Obama issued a ‘‘major disaster declaration’’ for the community of West, just north of Waco, freeing up federal support to supplement state and local reconstruction efforts that are already underway.
Even before the decision, FEMA had provided West and its residents millions of dollars in aid, but in June denied Texas’ original application for major disaster funding, preventing the town from accessing widespread assistance money typically available to victims of tornadoes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters.
In its original letter to the state, FEMA said the explosion was ‘‘not of the severity and magnitude that warrants a major disaster declaration.’’ That ruling affected both public assistance aid — which provides funding to the city to rebuild — and further individual aid, which provides crisis counseling and other services.
Governor Rick Perry had vowed to appeal the decision and released a statement Friday calling the reversal ‘‘great and welcome news for the people of West.’’
‘‘It’s going to throw open the door to federal funding,’’ West Mayor Tommy Muska said, later adding, ‘‘I know that they didn’t make the right decision, but I’m glad they changed that decision.’’
A fire at the West Fertilizer Co. the evening of April 17 triggered an explosion that smashed homes, businesses, and municipal buildings and emitted waves of energy so fierce it registered as a small earthquake. Fifteen people, 10 of them first responders rushing to fight the initial blaze, were killed, and about 200 others injured.
The cause of the fire remains unclear, and a criminal investigation is still open. But investigators say the heat of the blaze destabilized tons of ammonium nitrate, a potentially explosive fertilizer, being stored at the plant. The incident highlighted how loosely regulated storage of potentially dangerous chemicals are statewide, and critics say the state government needs to tighten its oversight of such plants.
West Independent School District Superintendent Marty Crawford said the additional funding will be used to replace the destroyed school facilities.
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Also see:
Senator who filibustered on abortion to run for governor
The Birth of the Perry Presidency
Texas sued over abortion law
Drug used in Texas executions runs low
Speaking of death:
"Texas man sentenced to die for killing sons" Associated Press, May 24, 2013
DALLAS — A father who told two of his sons to pretend they were swimming as he drowned them in a creek was sentenced to death Thursday.
The Dallas County jury took about 3½ hours to sentence Naim Rasool Muhammad, 34. The same jury had taken less than 10 minutes to find him guilty of capital murder last week, after testimony by the mother of the boys, Naim, 5, and Elijah, 3.
He killed them in August 2011 because he was angry their mother broke up with him, officials said. He forced the boys and their mother into a car and began driving.
Defense attorney Paul Johnson had sought a life sentence without parole.
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"Family shot to death in Texas home" Associated Press, September 24, 2013
CORSICANA, Texas — A couple and their three children were found shot to death in their North Texas home in what authorities believe was a murder-suicide, a sheriff said Monday....
The father of Israel Alvarez, 33, called 911 on Sunday night after discovering the bodies of his son, 33-year-old daughter-in-law Guadalupe Ronquillo-Ovalle and their children with gunshot wounds to their torsos, Navarro County Sheriff Elmer Tanner said....
Alvarez was arrested Sept. 11 on a misdemeanor family violence charge for pushing Ronquillo-Ovalle and taking away her phone because he thought she was talking to another man, she told deputies....
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Related:
"A mother fatally shot her husband and three sons in their North Texas home before killing herself with a single shot to the head, the county sheriff announced Tuesday.
Investigators were still trying to determine why 33-year-old Guadalupe Ronquillo-Ovalle killed her family late Thursday or early Friday in Rice, 40 miles southeast of Dallas....
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"Student dies in fight at Houston high school" by MANNY FERNANDEZ | New York Times Syndicate, September 05, 2013
SPRING, Texas — A fight, possibly gang-related, broke out at a suburban Houston high school Wednesday, leaving one student dead of stab wounds and three other students injured, authorities said.
The confrontation unfolded shortly after 7 a.m., a few minutes before classes began at Spring High School....
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Related: Taking a Stab at This Post From Texas
"Texas girl allegedly raped by group" Associated Press, July 19, 2013
AUSTIN, Texas — As many as 10 men allegedly took turns sexually assaulting a 13-year-old runaway Texas girl in an apartment where some cheered and filmed the attacks with their cellphone cameras, according to court records released Thursday....
I can't read anymore of that barbarity.
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"Virus kills 7th big cat at sanctuary" Associated Press, August 27, 2013
WYLIE, Texas — A Siberian tiger described as the ‘‘soul’’ of a North Texas animal sanctuary became the seventh big cat to die during an outbreak of a fatal virus, a spokeswoman for the refuge said Monday.
Tacoma, who was 13 years old and weighed in excess of 400 pounds, died Sunday night at In-Sync Exotics Wildlife Rescue and Education Center in the Dallas suburb of Wylie. Spokeswoman Lisa Williams said Tacoma was the sixth tiger killed by canine distemper. A lioness also has died.
More than a dozen other big cats also have the virus. Experts believe raccoons probably started the outbreak by crawling around the large outdoor cages that house more than 50 lions, tigers, cougars, bobcats, and other cats.
An emotional Williams said the death of Tacoma is difficult because he had been with the sanctuary for more than a dozen years and had bonded with founder Vicky Keahey and other workers.
He was recovering from surgery to both hips in March when the outbreak was discovered in May.
‘‘This is a particularly devastating loss,’’ Williams said.
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"Marine archeologists discover shipwreck in Gulf of Mexico" by Michael Graczyk | Associated Press, July 26, 2013
GALVESTON, Texas — Marine archeologists are excited about the discovery of what may be a well-preserved 200-year-old shipwreck more than three-quarters of a mile below the Gulf of Mexico....
The wreck is so deep that divers can’t explore it. So, this week, researchers have used remote-controlled undersea vehicles to examine the remains and recover items with its robot-like arms — such as ceramics, liquor bottles and an octant, a navigational tool. Other items spotted among the wreckage are muskets, swords, cannons, and clothing....
A Shell Oil Co. survey crew notified federal Interior Department officials in 2011 that its sonar had detected something resembling a shipwreck. A year later, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration vessel examining seafloor habitat and naturally occurring gas seepage used a remote-controlled vehicle to briefly look at the wreck....
Yes, the Gulf gusher that rendered the place lifeless and toxic is nearly forgotten by my paper these days except for a few certain intereSts.
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