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Parents from Webb Middle School, one of the failing schools putting the Austin district at risk of a takeover, met with the superintendent to discuss their future. But many questions remain surrounding an option to petition for closure of the school to avoid state intervention.
Wilber Garces Perez was quickly discharged from an Austin hospital after he was shot by an ICE agent. It’s raised questions about medical standards for detainees.
Shane James, accused of killing six people in 2023 in a shooting spree that started in San Antonio and ended in Austin,intends to file an insanity plea, according to court filings.
A federal judge has ruled in UT Austin’s favor in a court case that arose from the university’s handling of pro-Palestinian protests in 2024.
The full transcript of this episode of Austin Signal is available on the KUT & KUTX Studio website. The transcript is also available as subtitles or captions on some podcast apps.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:08] Parents from one of the failing middle schools put in the Austin School District at risk of a state takeover met with the superintendent this week to discuss their future, the questions they brought to that discussion, and what we know about the upcoming trial of a man accused of killing six people in 2023 in a shooting spree that started in San Antonio and ended in Austin. Plus, a federal judge has ruled in UT Austin’s favor in a court case that arose from the university’s handling of pro-Palestine demonstrations a couple years ago. More about those stories coming up on today’s show.
KUT Announcer: Laurie Gallardo [00:00:38] The Austin Signal is a production of KUT News, hosted by Jerry Quijano.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:43] It is a 9-2-5 kind of day here at KUT and KUTX. We are going to chat with the executive producer of Austin City Limits and reflect on Dolly Parton’s appearance on the show a quarter of a century ago. That and more, up next, right here on Austin Signal. This is Austin Signal. I’m your host Jerry Kikano. It is Friday, September 25th. Thank you for tuning in. This week’s shooting of a man by an ICE officer in Austin has led to questions about the legal obligations of doctors and hospitals. 28-Year-old Wilbur Garces Perez was shot in the back and taken to Delcetan Medical Center for treatment, but he and his lawyers have said they don’t feel he received adequate care. Nearly one week later, he still has that bullet lodged in his back. KUT’s Ben Philpott spoke live on Morning Edition today with our health care reporter Olivia Aldridge about these questions.
Ben Philpott [00:01:44] All right, so let’s start with what do Garces Perez and his lawyer say happened at Del Cidin?
Olivia Aldridge [00:01:50] So they’ve said he spent around four hours at Delceiton before being discharged to a detention facility in Pearsall. And yes, that the bullet was not removed before he was discharged. While he was there, Garces Perez has said he doesn’t feel that he was kept informed about his condition, that he frequently saw medical personnel stepping out to talk with agents, and that he told by someone that ICE was in a hurry to get him out. And then his lawyer, Kate Lincoln Goldfinch, said that she and Garces Perez’s wife weren’t allowed to visit him, nor were they given any information about his condition. And in fact, that security personnel told them no one by his name was even there. So they were worried about his conditions, and even if he was alive at that time, eventually the mayor showed up, Mayor Kirk Watson, and said that they would hear from a hospital attorney, and that attorney let them know that he’d been released.
Ben Philpott [00:02:39] You and I talked about this a little bit yesterday and I wanted to jump on it real quickly. So the bullet is still in his back. You talked to some medical experts who talked a little about, you know, is that a red flag? Like, do you just let people leave an emergency room with a bullet in their back? What did you hear about that?
Olivia Aldridge [00:02:56] Yeah, an ER physician and who’s kind of an expert in caring for detained immigrants as well told me that it is actually not necessarily a red flag that he was discharged with the bullet still in his body as wild as that may sound. This happens not infrequently when, for instance, a bullet is close to the spine because surgery could be really dangerous. It could leave you paralyzed. It’s also not uncommon for a patient to be stabilized and then referred to another specialist to decide if surgery is a good idea.
Ben Philpott [00:03:22] So then beyond that, what is the hospital saying about the care that he received?
Olivia Aldridge [00:03:26] Ascension Seaton, which owns and operates Dell Seaton did release a statement basically just saying we followed our policies regarding interactions with law enforcement and patient privacy here, but they declined to share what those policies are. So not a lot of detail. And of course, they can’t share Garces Perez’s private medical information due to privacy laws. So there are a lot of specifics that we just don’t have at this point.
Ben Philpott [00:03:49] You know, overall, what is a hospital’s obligation in a situation like this?
Olivia Aldridge [00:03:53] Because of a law known as EMTALA, hospitals in emergency rooms that receive Medicare funding are required to give stabilizing care to anyone that shows up with an emergency condition. They can’t discharge them before that’s happened. And that doesn’t change because someone is in ICE custody. I did talk to some medical and legal experts about this, and again, they say we can’t sure if there were any issues in the hospitals. On the hospital’s end without being able to review those medical records. And his lawyer has said that they are in the process of trying to get those records.
Ben Philpott [00:04:26] And again, as you said, stabilizing care, as surprising as it might sound to the rest of us, stabilizing care can include at times, depending on the situation that the bullet is left in.
Olivia Aldridge [00:04:37] It can, it can. It’s hard to know what the case was here, but that does happen.
Ben Philpott [00:04:42] So now again, as of this morning, that bullet is still there, and Garces Perez says that he is still in pain and does not have access to pain medication. That’s of course what we’re hearing from him and his lawyer. Is there a concern in general that he’s just not receiving the care that he needs?
Olivia Aldridge [00:04:58] Yeah, I mean, DHS is saying, of course, basically nothing to see here, that he’s getting good medical care. But there’s been a lot of reporting about medical neglect in ICE detention facilities this year. The doctor I spoke to told me she would be worried about a patient in that setting who has had any kind of medical concern getting appropriate follow-up care. We do know that Garces Perez has been to another hospital since being taken to the detention center, received some morphine, although he says he’s only gotten over-the-counter at the detention center. And Congressman Greg Kazar also said this week that Garces Perez has seen a specialist who has recommended surgery.
Ben Philpott [00:05:35] Now, it’s early in the morning, you haven’t had a chance to make all your calls yet. Do you know of a next step, of a thing that’s coming for him in this medical care?
Olivia Aldridge [00:05:43] We don’t know. I think the fact that we’ve heard that surgery is recommended means, you know, something could be coming.
Jerry Quijano [00:05:51] That was KUT’s healthcare reporter Olivia Aldridge talking on Morning Edition with host Ben Philpott. Parents of two middle schools have three weeks to decide if they will sacrifice their schools to save the Austin Independent School District from a state takeover. To help answer any questions, Superintendent Matias Segura met with families at Webb Middle School on Thursday night. KUT’s education reporter, Greta Diaz-Gonzalez-Vasquez was there.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:06:21] After Burnett and Webb middle schools got five consecutive F-ratings from the Texas Education Agency, Texas law says the state must intervene in the district. Education Commissioner Mike Morath could appoint a new superintendent at board of trustees. But there’s a chance to avoid that if a majority of parents from the two middle schools ask the state to close their campuses. Superintendent Matias Segura explained to Parents Thursday that at this point, the He said their input would be heard if they asked to close the campuses.
Matias Segura [00:06:53] One of the only voices you have is the petition. I mean, that’s really, in the day, one of the things that you have.
Parent [00:06:59] Okay, but what if we don’t want to sign the petition?
Matias Segura [00:07:01] That is you all’s decision.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:07:04] Earlier this month, Mayor Kirk Watson urged parents to close their schools and said kids from both schools would be placed in a new campus currently under construction. Segura said he would not be involved in gathering signatures because the district is focused on improving academic outcomes.
Matias Segura [00:07:20] And whatever happens next, this year matters. But I can’t, I’m not gonna sit here and tell you something that is untrue. Webb is going to go through a change. It will not be the same next year. And what I want to do is to protect our students, make sure they are educated and get the supports that they need and that your voice is in the process.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:07:40] Segura explained that even if a board of managers takes over, Webb could face big changes, changes that could include shuttering the campus anyways. Georgina Chavez, who has two girls at Webb, says it breaks her heart to know her options. She says a lot of parents don’t have the right information to make a decision. Chavez says families have no idea that this is the last school year for Webb as they know it. Parents have until October 15th to gather signatures and submit a petition to the superintendent who would submit the petition to state. Segura is expected to meet with parents again on Monday at Burnett Middle School and online on Tuesday morning. I’m Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vazquez in Austin.
Jerry Quijano [00:08:29] A federal judge has ruled in favor of UT Austin in a court case stemming from the university’s handling of pro-Palestine demonstrations in 2024. As KUT’s Mo’s Bouchel reports, the lawsuit brought by a former student alleged the university had violated protesters’ First Amendment rights.
Mose Buchele [00:08:46] In 2024, campuses across the country filled with students opposed to Israeli actions in Gaza. At UT Austin, police shut down demonstrations and arrested over 100 people, though most of those charges were quickly dropped. The First Amendment lawsuit was brought by Amir Kadoumi, a protest organizer who was arrested and later suspended by UT. It alleged that the university’s crackdown happened not to maintain safety, but because of what protesters were saying. In his ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Pittman found no evidence of free speech violation, finding that UT administration reasonably suspected the protests would disrupt campus. While he sided with UT on the First Amendment question, Judge Pittman did criticize the university’s handling of the protests and said he understood why Kadoumi would suspect his rights had been violated. I’m Mose Buchel in Austin.
Jerry Quijano [00:09:41] A man accused of killing six people in 2023 in a shooting spree that started in San Antonio and ended in Austin is going to trial next month. As KUT’s Andrew Weber reports, filings this week suggest he may enter an insanity plea.
Andrew Weber [00:09:56] Shane James allegedly killed his parents in San Antonio before driving to Austin and fatally shooting four people. He’s also accused of injuring two police officers and a cyclist. He faces four counts of capital murder, along with counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and attempted murder of a police officer. His jury trial in Travis County is set for next month, and his attorney indicated this week that he will use an insanity defense at trial. The accused shooter was deemed unfit to stand trial in October 2024. He was committed to a mental health facility until July 2025. James pleaded not guilty on all charges shortly after that. James previously served in the army and had a history of mental health issues. The jury trial is scheduled to start October 26th in a Travis County court. James also faces capital murder charges in Bexar County. I’m Andrew Weber in Austin.
Jerry Quijano [00:10:47] Lots of people are talking about it. Some want to stay far, far away from it, and for others, it’s already a part of their everyday life. We’re talking about artificial intelligence and especially generative AI. Texas Standard is gearing up for a special Digging Deeper into AI here in Texas. Joining us now is Laura Rice, managing editor at Texas Standard. Laura, thanks for talking with us.
Laura Rice [00:11:10] Absolutely happy to
Jerry Quijano [00:11:11] Okay, so we have been hearing a lot about AI on the radio So what did you want to learn specifically about how Texans are using AI?
Laura Rice [00:11:18] Really, I think, Jerry, what we wanted to do was examine this moment that feels like kind of a turning point in history. I will admit readily that this is a fool’s errand trying to do a show about AI because not only is it affecting life in so many different ways that it would be impossible to explore everything, but also It’s such a moving target, right? Like what we’re talking about AI today will be different than what we are talking about literally tomorrow. It’s moving that quickly. So we wanted to put something together that captures a moment, that captures perspectives, tries to answer some questions about what we think is a turning point, maybe a pivotal moment in Texas.
Jerry Quijano [00:11:56] When you take a little bit of time to focus on a big topic like this, how much work goes into putting something together like this?
Laura Rice [00:12:02] I’m glad you asked here. I mean, it’s a lot because we’re still feeding the beast quote-unquote, right, of the daily program But you know, we’re also just just carving out a little bit of time every day to kind of make this effort This has been something we started talking about before the summer We we knew that data centers were a big thing We were thinking about KUT’s big project and our question was what is all this infrastructure going to support? And so that’s what we’re digging into in the program There are questions that we have that we want answers to and we assume, you know, our listeners do too.
Jerry Quijano [00:12:34] Absolutely, and you can hear the entire special coming up on Monday, but give us a little preview right now. Who are some of the people that you spoke with?
Laura Rice [00:12:40] A lot of Texans, so you’ll hear a lot of regular Texas voices, a lot of Texas experts because there are people at our universities that are really pushing AI to its limits, testing that. We took a trip down to San Antonio where we met with some AI researchers working with robotics in their lab, but we also brought in some outside voices including Shaoran Sun who is studying how teenagers are reliant on AI companions.
Sharon Sun [00:13:07] When their parents don’t have time to have a lot of conversations with them or to spend time with them, and they feel like they don’t have many friends or their friends are quote unquote busy, like don’t wanna listen to them, that’s usually what motivates them to use AI.
Laura Rice [00:13:24] Which brings up some really interesting questions about developmental things that might be happening with teenagers and whether they might have ungrounded expectations for human relationships going forward based on these AI companions. But we also asked some really big questions about AI consciousness, right? Which is this idea of we’re developing these incredible systems. Are they aware of themselves? That’s something that Cameron Berg is studying.
Cameron Berg [00:13:57] That’s my goal, is in general to understand what’s going on cognitively for these systems, if anything, and in particular, is it, are these systems having any kind of experience subjectively and how would we even go about knowing such a thing?
Laura Rice [00:14:09] So we get a little bit woo woo, we get a little big grounded, we explore the what happens when you type in a query to chat GPT or Gemini. And we’re also exploring some of the really nice things about it. I mean, AI has literally been life changing for some people with disabilities. And we take a deep dive into that, as well as the flip side of that coin, which is privacy issues.
Jerry Quijano [00:14:35] As you said, AI is an ever-changing entity. It feels like every day we learn something new. So during this journey of making this special episode, were you surprised by anything? Was there anything that really jumped out to you that you didn’t expect to learn?
Laura Rice [00:14:48] Well, I think the AI consciousness is a really big part of it. And spoiler alert, there are, there is evidence that AI is more conscious than say this table that we’re leaning on right here. It’s not hugely conscious, but it’s also changing quickly. Like we said, that moving target. So that’s something that I was really excited to explore. And, and yeah, just about how regular everyday Texans feel about it. There’s a lot of measured. A measured anticipation about what’s happening, but then when you ask the experts, they see this potential and they some of them have some some warning flags that we should pay attention to.
Jerry Quijano [00:15:28] All right. Well, you can hear those experts and hear from Everyday Texans on the Texas Standards AI special that is airing Monday at 10 a.m. Right here on KUT. And you can also listen on the TeXa Standard podcast if you can’t tune in live. We have been speaking with Texas Standards’ Laura Rice. Laura, thank you for your time. Thank you. And we’re coming up on a break here on Austin Signal, but we got more coming up for you. Thank you for tuning in right here, on listener-supported public radio. This is KUT News. Welcome back, this is Austin Signal. It’s been one month since the world lost Dolly Parton and today KUT and KUTX have been taking time to honor both her music and her spirit. Here to shine some light on one particular visit Dolly made to Austin is Terry Lacona, executive producer of Austin City Limits. Terry, thanks for being here. Happy to be here. Okay, well, Austin was lucky to host Dolly a number of times over the year, but Dolly didn’t make it to the Austin City limits stage until 2000. How long had you been working to bring her to the stage?
Terry Lickona [00:16:31] Oh, man, well, since, you know, ACL started in 1974, and back in those days, Dolly didn’t really tour a whole lot on her own. I mean, in her early days, she did with Porter Wagoner when she’d been here in the 60s. And the only time she really came through Austin after ACL had been up and running was back in the 90s when she played at Austin Aquafest. And that’s a story in itself, it was the end of Aquafes, and we didn’t have a chance to get Dolly in the studio to do a show that week. BUTT So she finally came in 2000 after a long stretch of trying hard to get her here, and it was a great tour. She was out on tour with members of Nickel Creek, you know, the Bluegrass Acoustic Band. And so they were her backup and it made for a totally different show. Normally her live shows were very Nashville-ish, even almost Las Vegas-ish at times. So with an acoustic band, it really made it feel more Bluegrass-y and Roots-y, which is where she’s from originally. So that was on January 18th There’s some debate about the date. Some people have it as December 5, but I know that it was January 18 because it was the night before her birthday. So we were celebrating that at the same time.
Jerry Quijano [00:17:41] And I actually watched that performance last night and it’s very, very striking. And speaking of the Austin AquaFest, I read a little bit about that and the kind of debacle that it became, but one columnist wrote that Dolly Still was putting the show in show business. So when she made it to the ACL stage, what do you remember particularly about her
Terry Lickona [00:18:01] It was less of that showiness, you know, because, like I said, it was with an acoustic bluegrass band. So although, of course, Dolly came out in fringe and sort of like a leather outfit because it’s Dolly, but it was very down to earth, even a little more down to Earth than you would think of from Dolly Parton. So, and she did some new bluegrass songs that she was promoting at the time. Then of course, she did Coat of Any Colors and she ended the show with I Will Always Love You. So of course she had the whole audience in tears at that point. And you know, I’ll never forget the words she said at the end of the night, this might be the most fun time I’ve ever had doing TV. And you now, she does a lot of TV in her career, all those years with Porter Wagoner, among many other television shows she was on. And I think she genuinely did have a lot fun doing it. But man, she was exactly the same offstage as she was onstage or anywhere. That was just her personality. There was no pretense, nothing fake about her. It was really, the other part was very genuine.
Jerry Quijano [00:19:05] Had you met her before, prior to that, 2000?
Terry Lickona [00:19:08] No, to be honest, I was the first time I’d had a chance to actually meet her in person. A footnote to that story. I saw her again two weeks later, because as you may know, I’m one of the producers of the Grammy Awards show. And although I forget exactly what she was doing, she performed on the Grammys that same year, which was like a Sunday in early February. So I remember finding where she was in her dressing room right before her Grammy Rehearsal And I’m back there again, just to say hello and to thank her once again for having come to do Austin City Limits. And she said, oh honey, I was so happy to be there. And she gave me a big hug. And I got to say, you never forget a hug from Dolly Parton. It is a special feeling.
Jerry Quijano [00:19:52] I’m sure that you had expectations of what it might be like to meet her, did she meet every expectation, exceed even?
Terry Lickona [00:19:58] I would say I see it. I mean, you know, you just never know what to expect when it comes to any of the artists who come through to do our show, because you don’t know if their persona is the same offstage or backstage as it is on the stage in front of the cameras and so forth. But again, like I said, in her case, it’s pretty much all the same. It’s that genuine. So I just I didn’t know whether she was going to come across as a diva in any way, shape or form or have a long list of special demands in the dressing room afterwards and no, no, none of that stuff.
Jerry Quijano [00:20:29] Dolly came back to Austin a few years ago for a SXSW performance. Were you at that performance?
Terry Lickona [00:20:35] I was, and of course it was in our venue at ACO Live. And yeah, I tried to get her to come back and to do the show again after 2000. But like I said, she didn’t really tour that much. She stayed close to home in Nashville and she just did special things, not so much on the road.
Jerry Quijano [00:20:50] Did she still have that same swagger, that same personality 20 years on from her first ACO performance?
Terry Lickona [00:20:57] Always. I really don’t think, I mean, again, she was a genuine person, so there were no other sides to Dolly Parton, and it really didn’t change over time, even right up until the end, literally days before she passed. She was still out there doing her thing, meeting people and making people feel good.
Jerry Quijano [00:21:17] We have been speaking with Terry Lacona, the executive producer of Austin City Limits. Terry, thank you for your time. Bye, Terry. Thank you. All right. It has been a very busy week of news. So now we’re going to talk about some ways for you to get out and relax yourself this weekend for our Where the Art is segment. We are joined by art beat editor Stephanie Federico. Welcome back, Steph.
Stephanie Federico [00:21:47] Hi Jerry and happy 9 to 5 day!
Jerry Quijano [00:21:49] Happy nine to five day to you. The spirit is flowing here at KUT and KUTX and we want to continue to go with those good vibes. So tell us what’s happening this weekend. What’s the first item on your list?
Stephanie Federico [00:21:59] Well, it actually started last night. It’s the Big Queer Weekend. There was a big red carpet last night, it’s a four-day celebration of Austin’s queer creative community. And it’s presented by the LGBT Chamber of Commerce as well as Aglif, that’s LGBTQ Film Festival, in collaboration with South By. There’s films, there’s filmmaker Q&As, there is music, there’s gonna be a marketplace, there’s drag shows, there are arts. It’s an opportunity to connect with queer folks from all over the world and that’s happening. The films are over at Galaxy Theater, there’s stuff happening at Drinks Backyard and over at Hotel Indigo and that, like I said, started last night and it runs through Sunday.
Jerry Quijano [00:22:43] Okay, I saw this story on the KUT Artbeat from our intern, Caroline McConnico, with some really cool visuals and it sounds like a really cool non-traditional gallery experience. Where is this taking place?
Stephanie Federico [00:22:54] Yeah, this is the water work exhibit. It’s taking place tonight and tomorrow at 830 at the Seaholm Intake Facility. This is this old facility along Lady Bird Lake that used to pump water into the power plant over there. Anyway, they’re projecting these videos and art onto the side of the building. It looks super cool. It’s an art show that’s produced by the cultural nonprofit Design Austin. They partnered with the Trail Conservancy. And there’s going to be art from 22 different artists that are going to be projected on the building. And the theme is transformation. It looks super cool. And if you have like a kayak, a canoe, a boat, anything, they recommend that you like view it from the water from Ladybird Lake, but there are also some viewing spots over at Auditorium Shores and the Fluger pedestrian bridge. Um, so it looks super.
Jerry Quijano [00:23:43] It does really look cool if you can enjoy some art from the water. Why not do it? Okay, so tell us now about still here now. What is that?
Stephanie Federico [00:23:52] That’s also happening tonight and tomorrow at the Boyd Vance Theater that’s inside the Carver Museum. It is a dance show with the Andrea Ariel Dance Theater. They’re premiering a new performance called Still Here Now. It’s gonna bring together some diverse Austin artists in an evening of dance and live music and storytelling. And the idea is exploring identity and how it’s shaped by community, memory and family.
Jerry Quijano [00:24:18] Okay, only about 30 seconds left here. This last event is something, it’s a continuation of something you told us about a couple of weeks ago. What is that?
Stephanie Federico [00:24:25] Yeah, Gray Duck Gallery over on Cesar Chavez Street is closing, and we talked about this exhibit from a multimedia artist named Yuliya Lenina, and she has the closing exhibit there. But they’re going to have a wake party on Saturday afternoon at like five to eight. So they’re closing out the show. They’re going have this party. They’re closing. And it’s not one of these issues of the rent is too high and they’re getting pushed out or anything like that. Owner Jill Schroeder. She’s owned the gallery for the past 16 years or so. She just decided to retire. So this is a big last hurrah and it should be really nice.
Jerry Quijano [00:25:04] All right, just a few of the events happening around town this weekend. Thank you to our Art B editor, Stephanie Federico. Appreciate you. Thanks, Jerry. And thank you out there for spending the week with us. It’s been a busy one. So keep up with what’s going on here at kut.org slash signal. Our signal team is Caroline Fial, Alexandra Hart, Kristen Cabrera, and I’m your host, Jerry Kihannel. We’ll be back on Monday. Have a great weekend.
This transcript was transcribed by AI, and lightly edited by a human. Accuracy may vary. This text may be revised in the future.
