
The new year opened not all that differently than 2015 closed, marred by accusations of Texas teachers who crossed the line to engage in improper sexual misconduct with their students. The unfortunate trend means this shocking behavior continues to violate the trust placed in educators to protect pre-K to 12th grade public school children.
by Merrill Hope7 Jan 2016, 8:11 AM PST0

The U.S. Marshals Service arrested Eric Jamal Johnson, 20, on Tuesday at a Yuma, Arizona military base. Johnson, an active duty U.S. Marine, is accused of the murder of a North Texas college co-ed in the early morning hours of New Year’s Day.
by Merrill Hope6 Jan 2016, 6:16 AM PST0

Charles Butt, the Texas billionaire magnate behind the H-E-B supermarket chain which forbid the open carry of firearms law that went into effect January 1, 2016, opposes school choice, funds anti-school choice lobbyists, and is even credited for his role in killing a 2011 state bill banning “sanctuary cities.”
by Merrill Hope3 Jan 2016, 7:51 AM PST0

Fernando Benítez, the Tijuana-based attorney dubbed a “rock star” for a stellar track record in winning high-profile cases, confirmed for U.S. media Friday his representation of “affluenza” teen Ethan Couch. He insists his client’s constitutional and civil rights may have been violated.
by Merrill Hope2 Jan 2016, 10:52 AM PST0

Tonya Couch, the mother of fugitive “affluenza” teen Ethan Couch, was formally charged with allegedly hindering the apprehension of her son, yet her attorneys insist she did not do anything wrong, breaking no Texas laws. Breitbart Texas reported the charge, a third-degree felony, carries a 2-10 year prison sentence. Her bail was set at $1 million. The charge stems from Couch purportedly helping her son flee the country to Mexico.
by Merrill Hope1 Jan 2016, 10:14 AM PST0

Texas and U.S. officials released details of the capture of “Affluenza” teen Ethan Couch, 18, and his mother, Tonya, 48, who will be charged with allegedly “hindering” the apprehension of her fugitive son.
by Merrill Hope30 Dec 2015, 7:27 AM PST0

The Department of Homeland Security reports a 101 percent increase of illegal immigrant minors crossing into the U.S. through the Texas border.
by Merrill Hope29 Dec 2015, 7:05 AM PST0

A group claiming to be pro-Islamic State allegedly hacked into a Texas facial rejuvenation boutique’s website last week. The hack temporarily shut down the business’ online presence and posted the image of the Islamic State flag along with a message.
by Merrill Hope28 Dec 2015, 7:30 AM PST0

The federal government filed a second superseding indictment against Abdul Malik Abdul Kareem, a.k.a. Decarus Thomas, the Arizona “third man” connected with May’s foiled Garland, Texas, terrorist attack, alleging a direct link between Kareem and the Islamic State.
by Merrill Hope27 Dec 2015, 7:28 AM PST0

Texas public universities cannot ban guns in dormitories because it violates Senate Bill 11, said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a nonbinding opinion Monday about the new state law known as “campus carry.” This came in response to a request (RQ-0076-KP) filed by state Sen. Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury), the bill’s author.
by Merrill Hope24 Dec 2015, 5:31 AM PST0

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings insisted,“We’ve got to be a new America,” during a public radio show interview Monday in which he posited “xenophobia,” the fear of outsiders, would grip the nation unless citizens welcomed Syrian refugees and Central American illegal immigrants.
by Merrill Hope24 Dec 2015, 4:58 AM PST0

Two popular churches in the same downtown North Texas city received anonymous bomb threat letters warning them to cancel their Christmas Eve services, although both refuse to be intimidated and plan to worship with added police protection.
by Merrill Hope23 Dec 2015, 10:18 AM PST0

Local officials in one North Texas county may have been the last to learn that the U.S. Health and Human Services Department is sending them approximately 300 illegal immigrant minors to temporarily house before the end of December.
by Merrill Hope22 Dec 2015, 6:40 AM PST0

A Texas middle school-aged boy was arrested on Friday, Dec. 11 for allegedly threatening to blow up his suburban Dallas public school in Arlington. The incident is now bubbling up with conflicting stories, a comparison to “Clock Boy” Ahmed Mohamed, and no mention of school zero tolerance policies behind these situations.
by Merrill Hope21 Dec 2015, 7:39 AM PST0

The Dallas Independent School District released the electronic mail threat received by staff on two of its campuses, revealing the hideous terror threat sent to schools across Texas this week, including the state’s largest school district in Houston. It was similar to the ones received by the Los Angeles Unified School District and New York schools.
by Merrill Hope19 Dec 2015, 7:04 AM PST0

Controversy erupted over one of the songs students performed during a Minnesota public high school’s Thursday night holiday concert, “Eid un Sa’Eid – Zain Bhikha.” This Ramadan-inspired song included the phrase “Allahu Akbar,” Arabic for “God is Great.”
by Merrill Hope18 Dec 2015, 11:43 AM PST0

Federal authorities have joined Texas officials in the search to find and apprehend missing “affluenza” teen Ethan Couch, who went missing this week.
by Merrill Hope18 Dec 2015, 5:00 AM PST0

Mayor Mike Rawlings said “Someone’s trying to scare Dallas,” following the Dallas Independent School District receipt of a terroristic threat last night. The threat was similar to the ones received by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and New York schools earlier this week. Determined to be “non-credible,” the second largest school district in Texas will remain open today.
by Merrill Hope17 Dec 2015, 8:24 AM PST0

The federal government will funnel as much as $12.9 million into North Texas to cover costs for short term lodging, 21 days, to accommodate the latest wave of mainly Central American minors who crossed illegally into the United States at the Texas border. The unaccompanied alien children (UAC) serviced by these facilities are between ages 12 and 17. The North Texas camps arose because of shelter overcrowding in South Texas, which Breitbart Texas reported.
by Merrill Hope16 Dec 2015, 12:23 PM PST0

Gov. Greg Abbott tapped longtime Dallas Independent School District Board of Trustee Mike Morath as the state’s next Education Commissioner to oversee the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for the state’s 1,200 school districts and charters, a decision already receiving mixed reviews.
by Merrill Hope16 Dec 2015, 5:29 AM PST0

Bucking the national trend to dump its historic Confederate past, a Texas school board voted to keep Gen. Robert E. Lee’s moniker on one of its district’s high schools. The move comes despite the prodding to rename it from former San Antonio mayor, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julian Castro.
by Merrill Hope15 Dec 2015, 4:11 AM PST0

A Texas mosque told its supporters on Friday not to come when armed protesters rally on Saturday, Dec. 12.
by Merrill Hope12 Dec 2015, 8:39 AM PST0

The pro-Muslim United Against Racism | Hate rally made an unexpected last minute venue change. The event miraculously morphed into a march and a rally less than two days before the Dec. 12 event date. No longer will the event be an Irving mosque-held event. Instead, it will be held in Southeast Dallas at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center on Dec. 12 from 1-3 p.m.
by Merrill Hope12 Dec 2015, 6:31 AM PST0

Texas lawmakers held a hearing this week on the rampant number of educators who cross the line and engage in improper sexual relationships with their students. The abhorrent conduct violates the trust placed in them to protect pre-K to 12th grade school children.
by Merrill Hope11 Dec 2015, 8:58 AM PST0

FBI investigators are still unable to read 109 encrypted messages sent by one of the two men who opened fire outside the Muhammad Art Exhibit in Garland, Texas, that took place in May.
by Merrill Hope11 Dec 2015, 5:17 AM PST0