Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Thursday that he and a 10-state coalition will sue the federal government over Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals protections if the U.S. Department of Homeland Security refuses to phase out the program. DACA, established by President Barack Obama in 2012, protects certain undocumented individuals…
One of the most interesting things about the Dallas Police Department’s blog, DPDBeat.com, is that it provides action-packed photos and videos, which the department posts to crow about big arrests or seek help with unsolved crimes. So far in 2017, DPD Beat has featured a woman running a man down…
Tonya Couch managed to stay out of jail Thursday morning. The mother of Ethan Couch, the teen who got 10 years probation for killing four people in a drunken-driving crash in 2013, is awaiting trial for helping her son flee to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The two headed south of the border…
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced late Wednesday afternoon that he and his office will assist Dallas County in the ongoing investigation into potential mail-in ballot fraud during May’s Dallas City Council election. Paxton, like Dallas District Attorney Faith Johnson, a Republican, has prioritized fighting voter fraud. “Nothing is more sacred to our…
The Dallas City Council turned over the city’s seats on DART’s board of directors Wednesday, dumping three board members who defied the City Council in 2016. The council move is in direct defiance of the stated goal of DART’s leadership to build the suburb-friendly Cotton Belt rail line from Plano…
Unlike Sean Spicer and Sarah Hauckabee Sanders, the usual suspects sent to the White House Press Room podium, Energy Secretary Rick Perry, the former Texas governor, looked like he was having fun, at least. Perry, given the mic to promote the Trump administration’s energy week, regaled the press corps for…
Dallas Cowboys legend and NFL Hall-of-Famer Emmitt Smith announced Tuesday that he’s leaving the real estate brokerage he helped start in order to start — get this — a new real estate company. Four years ago, Smith founded E Smith Realty Partners with partners Sharon Morrison and Brant Landry. Landry left the…
Just after 3:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon, a caller reported that a sailboat had capsized on White Rock Lake, near Garland Road and E. Lawther Drive. The boat tipped after being hit by a strong gust of wind, dumping a man and a woman into the water. A nearby boat pulled…
It’s that time of year again. Early July brings with it one of the deepest lulls on the sports calendar — the days surrounding the MLB All-Star Game are the most barren of the year for sports fans. The only relief is ESPN revealing the athletes they chose for their…
On Thursday afternoon, the Observer had the chance to sit down for the better part of an hour with Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings. Rawlings, fresh off losses by several of his allies in this spring’s City Council election, talked with us about the changing council, a changing city and the challenges…
After the Dallas Mavericks’ worst season in 19 years, the team had a top 10 pick in the NBA Draft on Thursday night. The Mavericks didn’t get cute with their selection, either, opting to stay at No. 9 and select the best player available rather than trading their pick, as…
Dallas’ next police chief, no matter who he or she might be, faces a tough task right off the bat. Rank-and-file Dallas police officers are frustrated with pension cuts and ongoing attrition issues, crime rates have ticked up slightly after reaching historic lows earlier this decade and the Dallas Police…
A Dallas County grand jury indicted former Balch Springs police officer Roy Oliver on Thursday on two counts of aggravated assault by a public servant. The new charges for Oliver, the fired officer who shot and killed Jordan Edwards earlier this year, are not related to the events that led to…
A Dallas County grand jury has indicted Christopher Hess, an officer for the Dallas Police Department, in the January death of Genevive Ann Dawes. Hess is charged with aggravated assault by a public servant, a first-degree felony. Hess, a 10-year DPD veteran, killed Dawes, 21, in January at the Five Trees…
Following months of complaints from employees, Dallas-based American Airlines announced in a letter to employees Wednesday that it is seeking a new uniform vendor for flight attendants. Since the new uniforms debuted last September, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants received more than 3,500 complaints from American employees, blaming the uniforms for…
On Wednesday Jerry Jones met the Pope. He was one of a group of NFL Hall of Famers who met Pope Francis in what the Pro Football Hall of Fame is calling The Vatican Huddle. The photos and social media coments are vintage Jones. “Teamwork, fair play and the pursuit of…
Tuesday night, nearly three days after a woman reported being sexually assaulted near the Baylor Medical Center DART station in Deep Ellum, Dallas police released a photo of a man they’ve identified as a person of interest in the assault. Police say the man in the photo is Latino, about…
Tonya Couch’s freedom may be short lived. The Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office filed a motion Tuesday seeking to revoke the “affluenza” mom’s probation on hindering apprehension and money laundering charges. Prosecutors say Couch drank alcohol June 16. Couch gained notoriety after her son, Ethan Couch, received 10 years probation…
This week’s National Geographic features a fascinating deep dive into the horrifying 2011 massacre in Allende, Mexico, a small town just across the U.S.-Mexican border. As the magazine painstakingly reports with help from ProPublica, the destruction of the town, carried out by a Zeta cartel bent on revenge, wouldn’t have…
Just before 5 p.m. Monday afternoon, Dallas police responded to an “active shooter” call in Pleasant Grove. Soon the suspected shooter would be killed by police and a woman in his house had been taken to the hospital with multiple injuries. Assistant Dallas Police Chief Randy Blankenbaker said Monday night…
Dallas state Representative Victoria Neave’s month just went from bad to worse. Court documents released Monday afternoon reveal that the freshman Democrat, fresh off the completion of her first regular session in Austin, had a blood alcohol level of at least .15 when Dallas police arrested her just before 11:30…
As is ordained in the city charter, the first Monday following the 30th calendar day after the final canvass of the general election is Dallas’ inauguration day. The city’s 14 City Council members and mayor each took an oath of office at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in the morning…
