Law Enforcement

KUT Morning Newscast for January 31, 2025

Central Texas top stories for January 31, 2025.  The City of Austin will look into changing the way it responds to mental health emergencies. The Mexican Consul General says at least 39 people from Mexico who are in the U.S. without legal status were detained in the Austin area over the last week. $42 million were approved for more affordable housing in Austin.

Could Texas’ electric grid finally connect to other states?

A grand jury in Uvalde will consider possible charges over law enforcement’s failed response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary.

An Air Force general who was stationed at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph faces a court-martial over charges of sexually assaulting a subordinate.

The Texas power grid is famously separate from the rest of the country – but a plan has been quietly moving forward to connect it to a grid operating in the southeastern U.S.

And: Shipping lanes are shifting routes amid attacks in the Red Sea. What are the ripple effects in Texas?

KUT Morning Newscast for October 5, 2023

Central Texas top stories for October 5, 2023. Rain comes to Central Texas with flood advisories. New police oversight chief has questions from Austin City Council. Narcan will be distributed at Austin City Limits.

KUT Morning Newscast for October 3, 2023

KUT Morning Newscast for October 3, 2023. Eanes ISD looks to buy Teslas for new law enforcement. Austin Justice Collation shows frustration with police oversight hire. ECROT expanding energy reserves

KUT Morning Newscast for August 24, 2023

Central Texas top stories for August 24, 2023. Excessive heat warning returns for Travis County. Austin Community College and Round Rock ISD eye property tax proposals. Hays County debates a new police force.

KUT Morning Newscast for July 6, 2023

Central Texas top stories for July 6, 2023. Major building developments halted downtown. Saharan dust on its way. New police officers for Lake Travis ISD

KUT Morning Newscast for May 5, 2023

Central Texas top stories for May 4, 2023. Election day roundup. League of Women Voters. City of Austin less-than-lethal force settlement. Lance Blanks. Jacobs Well remains closed. Severe weather.

Texas Standard: November 21, 2022

‘Tis the season for bill filing; a quick look at what filing season in the Texas legislature tells us about lawmaker priorities for the coming session. Other stories we’re watching: an earthquake recorded in west Texas last week, the third biggest ever recorded in the state, what it could mean for the oil and gas industry. And a nuclear reactor taking shape on the campus of Abilene Christian University, we’ll hear why. Also how military families are trying to deal with the search for suitable housing. These stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Uvalde: What’s Next? – A Texas Standard Special

Texans are still reeling from the stories from Uvalde. Are schools any safer now? We take a look today on a special edition of the Texas Standard. We will hear form Texans, students, educators, and experts in crime and mental health, but also victims and survivors. We’ll sort through going back to class in the wake of the states deadliest school shooting, today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: July 2 , 2021

There’s outings and get-togethers planned. The weekend mood for many is celebratory. But doctors worry about COVID-19 variants, we’ll have details. Also, COVID-19 may have been the biggest work-place hazard to our health in 2020 but there are other things affecting workers then and now, we’ll tell you more. We’ll also talk about the when, the who, the what… every question you may have about why are other Republican Governors are sending their law enforcement to the Texas-Mexico border? And trees are much more than a marker for a healthy environment, they can also signal class and even race if you look at which neighborhoods can have trees and which ones cannot. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 25, 2021

Redistricting: it’s a complicated process that doesn’t seem all that exciting to most folks. But its ramifications are huge. We’ll take a look at the details. Also, it’s been exactly a year since the murder of George Floyd. What it revealed about the country. And what Texas lawmakers have just done in the wake of huge protests and calls to “defund” the police. We’ll break it down. Plus what an analysis shows about who a Texas voting bill would affect the most. And music venues are among the businesses opening up as the risks of the pandemic lesson. But are all musicians ready to play? That and more on today’s Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 5, 2021

Supporters call it constitutional carry, some law enforcement officials call it dangerous policy. As the Texas senate appears poised to pass a rule allowing Texans to carry handguns without a permit, Austin’s top police official weighs in on why he’s opposing such a change. Also, if you’re a renter should you be told you’re living in a flood zone? A proposed state law may make that mandatory. And the race to get more Texans vaccinated reaches a tipping point, and some wonder whether herd immunity is still do-able. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: December 1, 2020

A downturn in travel. Layoffs in the energy industry, struggling small businesses, what’s it all add up to? Comptroller Glenn Hegar delivers some grim news about the Texas budget to lawmakers. But there’s a bit of a surprise, too: the news is not as bad as some feared. We’ll talk with him. Also, the after effects of COVID-19: could they linger even after the pandemic has passed? What known and isn’t about longer term health effects. And decades after they took off from Texas bases during WWII, the women with silver wings get overdue recognition…their story and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 29, 2020

A Texas county sheriff has turned himself in to the county jail he oversees after an investigation of evidence tampering in the death of a Black motorist. The sheriff of Williamson county indicted on felony charges stemming from the destruction of video evidence in death of Javier Ambler. This after a police chase filmed for a so-called reality TV show, we’ll have the latest. Also, where’s the beef? For many in this pandemic, its being shipped to the front door, causing ripple effects across the supply chain, we’ll explain. Plus disappearing Coronavirus data for schools and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

The Provability Gap, Part 4: The Public

Should all the responsibility for the poor track record of getting justice for rape survivors fall on police and prosecutors? Or should city leaders … and the community at large, also carry some of the blame? 

The Provability Gap, Part 2: The Police

Hundreds of adult sexual assaults are reported to the Austin Police Department each year, but only a tiny fraction of these cases will make it before a jury. 

The question is: why

It’s something we’re exploring in our series, The Provability Gap. 

In the second part of the series, KUT’s Nadia Hamdan looks at some of the ways police may be failing sexual assault victims.

Texas Standard: May 23, 2019

A border detention facility in McAllen shutdown, this in the wake of the death of a detained 16 year old migrant. We’ll have the latest. Also, the U.S. is blacklisting Huawei, the China-based phone maker. And the effects of that decision is hitting home harder than you might think. Plus a new investigation shows police in Texas accused of serious crimes and possible jail time using their badges as bargaining chips. Plus one of Texas’ biggest counties trying to make it easier for voters to do their thing…but will it work? Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: February 28, 2019

A key provision of the Texas open meetings act struck down by the state’s highest criminal court. We’ll look at what it means for government transparency. Also, the state’s school librarians read the fine print of a bill to hike teacher salaries, and they’re pushing back. We’ll hear from the state’s top librarian. Plus the timeless voice of tejano superstar Selena. Was it one voice, or two? All those stores and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: December 28, 2018

The border remains the top issue in national politics, but in Texas it’s also a local issue. We’ll hear from a state representative on the latest in her district. Plus, Texas is once again one of the deadliest states for law enforcement officers. We’ll break down the numbers including a disturbing trend involving firearm deaths. And if one Texas lawmaker has his way the severance tax could get a bit of a makeover in the next legislative session. What it is and why you should care. Also, the Texan believed to be the country’s oldest man has died at 112. We’ll take a look back at his life. All of that and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Dr. Christine Nix (Ep. 39, 2018)

In Black America producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. speaks with Dr. Christine Nix, Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator of Criminal Justice at the University of Mary Hardin-Taylor, about her experience as the first African American female Texas Ranger, and her two and a half decades in law enforcement.