The Texas Tribune: Perla Trevizohttps://www.texastribune.org/about/staff/perla-trevizo/The latest news by Perla Trevizo.enWed, 01 May 2024 05:00:00 -0500How shifting U.S. policies led to one of the deadliest incidents involving immigrants in Mexico’s historyhttps://www.texastribune.org/2024/05/01/us-immigration-asylum-policy-juarez-fire/A year ago, 40 men died in a detention center fire in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. An examination by The Texas Tribune and ProPublica shows that it was the foreseeable result of landmark shifts in U.S. border policies.By Perla Trevizo and Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaWed, 01 May 2024 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2024/05/01/us-immigration-asylum-policy-juarez-fire/Bodies of those who died during the fire inside a Mexican detention facility were laid in a parking lot outside the offices of the National Migration Institute near the U.S.-Mexico border in Ciudad Juárez on March 27, 2023. The fire killed 40 immigrants and injured more than two dozen.Bodies of those who died during the fire inside a Mexican detention facility were laid in a parking lot outside the offices of the National Migration Institute near the U.S.-Mexico border in Ciudad Juárez on March 27, 2023. The fire killed 40 immigrants and injured more than two dozen.Paul RatjeFeds advance portable generator safety rule to prevent carbon monoxide poisoninghttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/04/06/portable-generators-carbon-monoxide-cpsc-safety-shutoff/Saying that manufacturers failed to make generators safer, the Consumer Product Safety Commission is moving forward with proposed regulations to bolster protections. The proposal comes after reporting by ProPublica, The Texas Tribune and NBC News.By Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Suzy Khimm, NBC NewsThu, 06 Apr 2023 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/04/06/portable-generators-carbon-monoxide-cpsc-safety-shutoff/Photo illustration by NBC NewsGov. Greg Abbott says most gun crimes involve illegally owned weapons. That’s not true in mass shootings.https://www.texastribune.org/2023/02/23/mass-shootings-guns-obtained-legally/Most of the state’s 19 mass shootings over the past six decades were carried out by men who legally possessed firearms, an investigation by ProPublica and The Texas Tribune found.By Jessica Priest and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaThu, 23 Feb 2023 12:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/02/23/mass-shootings-guns-obtained-legally/Gov. Greg Abbott speaks in Uvalde three days after a man used legally purchased firearms to kill 19 children and two adults at Robb Elementary School.Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a presser at Uvalde High School on May 27, 2022.Evan L'Roy for The Texas TribuneDespite decades of mass shootings in Texas, legislators have failed to pass meaningful gun control lawshttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/02/16/mass-shootings-texas-gun-control/State lawmakers have rejected dozens of bills that would have prevented people from legally obtaining weapons used in many mass shootings. Instead, they’ve made it easier for residents to get guns and harder for local governments to regulate them.By Jessica Priest and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaThu, 16 Feb 2023 12:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/02/16/mass-shootings-texas-gun-control/A group of men embrace during a vigil on Aug. 4, 2019, one day after a mass shooting at a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas.A group of men embrace during a vigil a day after a mass shooting at a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas, U.S. August 4, 2019. REUTERS/Callaghan O'Hare TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1E05433300Callaghan O’Hare/ReutersJustice Department tried to hide report warning that private border wall in Texas could collapsehttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/12/02/border-wall-texas-doj-arcadis-webuildthewall/The report confirms a ProPublica and Texas Tribune investigation that found the privately built fencing could collapse during major flooding. The federal government resisted making the findings public for more than a year.By Jeremy Schwartz and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaFri, 02 Dec 2022 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2022/12/02/border-wall-texas-doj-arcadis-webuildthewall/Erosion can be seen along a privately funded border wall in Mission in June 2020.Erosion can be seen along the privately funded border wall that was built less than a year ago on June 19, 2020 in Mission, Texas. Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune/ProPublicaVerónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune/ProPublicaTexas churches violated tax law ahead of Tuesday’s election, experts sayhttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/11/06/texas-churches-johnson-amendment-election/Churches in Texas invited Beto O’Rourke and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to speak to their congregations before the 2022 midterms, raising questions about the effectiveness of the Johnson Amendment.By Jeremy Schwartz, Jessica Priest and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaSun, 06 Nov 2022 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2022/11/06/texas-churches-johnson-amendment-election/Juanjo Gasull for ProPublica/The Texas TribuneGreg Abbott ran as a small-government conservative. But the governor’s office now has more power than ever.https://www.texastribune.org/2022/10/25/greg-abbott-texas-governor/Abbott has consolidated power like none before him, at times circumventing the GOP-controlled Legislature and overriding local officials. A flurry of executive measures has solidified his base and raised his national profile.By Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Marilyn W. Thompson, ProPublicaTue, 25 Oct 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/10/25/greg-abbott-texas-governor/Gov. Greg Abbott after a Houston press conference in 2017.Pu Ying Huang for The Texas TribuneD.C. attorney general opens investigation into Republican governors’ relocating migrants to the capitalhttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/10/14/abbott-migrants-washington-investigation/Gov. Greg Abbott and others have been sending thousands of migrants to Washington. D.C. District Attorney General Karl Racine is investigating whether migrants have been deceived.By Marilyn W. Thompson, ProPublica, and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaFri, 14 Oct 2022 11:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/10/14/abbott-migrants-washington-investigation/Two buses from Texas transporting immigrants arrive at Washington D.C.’s Union Station on April 21.Union Station, Washington, DC - Activists line up to impede journalists from photographing as two buses of migrants arrive near Union Station as part of Gov. Greg Abbott’s new plan in response to the end of Title 42, a pandemic-era emergency health order to that allowed immigration authorities at the border to deny entry to migrants in Washington, DC, on Thursday, April 21, 2022.Shuran Huang for The Texas TribuneA shut-off switch was supposed to prevent 99% of generator-related deaths. It failed a family of three.https://www.texastribune.org/2022/09/21/generators-carbon-monoxide-shutoff-switch-texas-cpsc/The generator industry has touted automatic shut-off switches as a lifesaving fix for carbon monoxide poisoning. But the voluntary standard falls short of what federal regulators say is necessary to eliminate deaths.By Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC NewsWed, 21 Sep 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/09/21/generators-carbon-monoxide-shutoff-switch-texas-cpsc/An automatic shut-off switch on a 6,250-watt Briggs & Stratton Storm Responder generator was not enough to prevent the carbon monoxide poisoning of a family of three.An automatic shut-off switch on a 6,250-watt Briggs & Stratton Storm Responder generator was not enough to prevent the carbon monoxide poisoning of a family of three.Briggs & StrattonA year before Uvalde shooting, gunman had threatened women, carried around a dead cat and been nicknamed “school shooter”https://www.texastribune.org/2022/07/17/uvalde-shooter-warnings-background/Identified as at-risk, he never received special education services and ultimately flunked out, according to a Texas House committee report.By Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaSun, 17 Jul 2022 12:01:12 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/07/17/uvalde-shooter-warnings-background/School chairs sit outside a store on June 2, 2022, in remembrance of the victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting.Storefronts around downtown were painted in memorial of the 21 people who died in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde on June 2, 2022.Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas TribuneJustice Department is investigating Texas’ Operation Lone Star for alleged civil rights violationshttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/07/06/operation-lone-star-doj-investigation-abbott/Emails obtained by The Texas Tribune and ProPublica confirm that federal authorities are probing discrimination claims involving Gov. Greg Abbott’s multibillion-dollar border initiative.By Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaWed, 06 Jul 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/07/06/operation-lone-star-doj-investigation-abbott/Texas Department of Public Safety special agents apprehend a group of five men from Honduras who were caught on private property as part of Operation Lone Star in Kinney County near Brackettville in November 2021.Texas DPS special agents apprehend a group of five undocumented migrants from Honduras that were caught in private property as part of Operation Lone Star in Kinney County near Brackettville, Texas on Nov. 8, 2021. The owner of the property did not sign an affidavit for arrests of undocumented migrants to be taking place at their property so the group of Hondurans will be processed by Border Patrol instead. Verónica G. Cárdenas for ProPublica/The Texas TribuneVerónica G. Cárdenas for ProPublica/The Texas TribuneCongress investigates portable generator manufacturers following carbon monoxide deaths in Texas and other stateshttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/06/29/texas-winter-storm-carbon-monoxide-deaths-generators/Many generators on the market have not received potentially lifesaving safety upgrades. Citing an investigation by The Texas Tribune, ProPublica and NBC News after the February 2021 winter storm, a House committee wants to know why.By Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC News, and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaWed, 29 Jun 2022 14:30:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/06/29/texas-winter-storm-carbon-monoxide-deaths-generators/Laila Milevski/ProPublicaSettlement reached over private border wall, but experts say it won’t stop the environmental damagehttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/06/04/texas-private-border-wall-environmental-damage/Federal authorities have reached a deal that gives builders of the privately funded fence control over where to inspect for damage and leeway over which issues they choose to repair.By Perla Trevizo and Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaSat, 04 Jun 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/06/04/texas-private-border-wall-environmental-damage/The 2020 storm Hurricane Hanna left waist-deep cracks on the banks of the Rio Grande along parts of a private border fence, which threatened the structural integrity of the project, experts said.The 2020 storm Hurricane Hanna left waist-deep cracks on the banks of the Rio Grande along parts of a private border fence, which threatened the structural integrity of the project, experts said.James Hord for The Texas TribuneProblems remain for We Build the Wall group after founder’s guilty pleahttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/05/02/texas-border-wall-kolfage-plea/Air Force veteran Brian Kolfage faces more than five years in prison after pleading guilty to defrauding donors to the private wall effort.By Jeremy Schwartz and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaMon, 02 May 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/05/02/texas-border-wall-kolfage-plea/Brian Kolfage faces more than five years in prison after pleading guilty to federal fraud charges last month.Devon Ravine/Northwest Florida Daily News via APFact-checking Texas leaders’ claims about Operation Lone Starhttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/04/27/texas-operation-lone-star-greg-abbott-border/As reporters investigated Gov. Greg Abbott’s border initiative, they repeatedly found situations in which Abbott and Department of Public Safety officials cited accomplishments that lacked crucial context or did not match reality. Here are a few examples.By Perla Trevizo and Lomi Kriel, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, Kengo Tsutsumi, ProPublica, and Andrew Rodriguez Calderón, The Marshall ProjectWed, 27 Apr 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/04/27/texas-operation-lone-star-greg-abbott-border/Photo Illustration by John Whitlock for ProPublica/Texas Tribune/The Marshall Project. Source images: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune; Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune, Jordan Vondehaar for The Texas TribuneTexas has spent billions of dollars on border security. But what taxpayers got in return is a mystery.https://www.texastribune.org/2022/04/18/texas-border-security-spending/Since 2005, Texas Govs. Rick Perry and Greg Abbott have launched a multitude of widely publicized and costly border initiatives, which usually kicked off during their reelection campaigns or while they were considering bids for higher office.By Lomi Kriel and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Andrew Rodriguez Calderón, The Marshall ProjectMon, 18 Apr 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/04/18/texas-border-security-spending/Photo illustration by John Whitlock for The Texas Tribune/ProPublica/The Marshall ProjectGov. Greg Abbott brags about his border initiative. The evidence doesn’t back him up.https://www.texastribune.org/2022/03/21/operation-lone-star-lacks-clear-metrics-measure-accomplishments/Arrests of U.S. citizens hundreds of miles from the border. Claiming drug busts from across the state. Changing statistics. The data that Texas leaders use to boast about Operation Lone Star raise more questions than answers.By Lomi Kriel and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Andrew Rodriguez Calderón and Keri Blakinger, The Marshall ProjectMon, 21 Mar 2022 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2022/03/21/operation-lone-star-lacks-clear-metrics-measure-accomplishments/A photo collage a map of the Texas-Mexico border, images of the border fence, a handcuffed pair of hands and Operation Lone Star paperwork.Photo illustration by John WhitlockCarbon monoxide killed a Texas mother and daughter. A firefighter was reprimanded after a delayed 911 response.https://www.texastribune.org/2022/03/04/texas-winter-storm-carbon-monoxide-firefighter/After half of a Houston family was found dead from carbon monoxide poisoning, reporting by ProPublica, The Texas Tribune and NBC News revealed that a fire crew had failed to enter the house to check on them. A firefighter has now been disciplined.By Perla Trevizo and Lexi Churchill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC NewsFri, 04 Mar 2022 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2022/03/04/texas-winter-storm-carbon-monoxide-firefighter/Laila Milevski/ProPublicaU.S. plans new safety rules to crack down on carbon monoxide poisoning from portable generatorshttps://www.texastribune.org/2022/02/25/generators-carbon-monoxide-safety-rules/The announcement comes two months after an investigation by ProPublica, The Texas Tribune and NBC News detailed the deadly cost of the government’s failure to regulate portable generators.By Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC News, and Perla Trevizo and Lexi Churchill, The Texas Tribune and ProPublicaFri, 25 Feb 2022 14:30:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2022/02/25/generators-carbon-monoxide-safety-rules/Laila Milevski/ProPublicaGenerators can cause deadly carbon monoxide poisoning. But the industry resists rules to make them safer.https://www.texastribune.org/2021/12/17/texas-generators-winter-storm-carbon-monoxide-deaths/Portable generators are among the deadliest consumer products. Two decades after the government identified the danger, and as climate change leads to more power outages, people are left vulnerable by a system that lets the industry regulate itself.By Lexi Churchill, Perla Trevizo and Ren Larson, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Mike Hixenbaugh and Suzy Khimm, NBC NewsFri, 17 Dec 2021 05:00:00 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2021/12/17/texas-generators-winter-storm-carbon-monoxide-deaths/Laila Milevski/ProPublica