How plans for a West Texas drag show turned into a war over the First Amendment
In the staunchly conservative Panhandle, LGBTQ+ Texans say political and legal battles overlook their humanity. Full Story
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William Melhado
Night General Assignment Reporter
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William Melhado is an Austin-based general assignment reporter. He originally joined the Tribune in 2022 as a Poynter-Koch fellow. He previously worked as a staff writer at the Santa Fe Reporter, an alt-weekly newspaper in New Mexico. Before pursuing a career in journalism, William worked as an educator for five years and taught science at a public high school in the Bronx, New York and taught at international schools in Tanzania and Nepal. A native of Boulder, Colorado, William graduated from Middlebury College with a bachelor's degree in chemistry and earned a master’s in secondary science education at CUNY Lehman College.
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![From left, Marcus Stovall and Bear Bright stand of the sidewalk across the street from the courthouse Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023 in Canyon, Tx.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Supreme Court hears Texas case on politically motivated arrests
Former Castle Hills Council Member Sylvia Gonzalez sued the city after police arrested her for tampering with government records, which she said was in retaliation for her criticism of the city manager. Full Story
![Supreme Court police officers walk alongside protective barriers in Washington D.C., on Nov. 1, 2021.]()
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U.S. Supreme Court declines to intervene in lawsuit over West Texas A&M drag shows
The decision means university President Walter Wendler could cancel an on-campus drag show next week. He canceled a previous show last year. Full Story
![Students rallied against the university president’s decision to cancel a drag performance at West Texas A&M University on March 23, 2023.]()
Credit: David Bowser for The Texas Tribune -
Pornhub suspends site in Texas due to state’s age-verification law
Legal experts say a 5th Circuit decision to uphold part of a Texas law regulating adult entertainment websites conflicts with U.S. Supreme Court precedent regarding minors’ access to obscene material online. Full Story
![Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks during a reception for Jared Woodfill at the Federal American Grill on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in Houston.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Helicopter crashes along U.S.-Mexico border, killing three
Two National Guard members and a U.S. Border Patrol agent died in the crash in Starr County Friday afternoon. Full Story
![Emergency vehicles and personnel at the site where a Texas National Guard helicopter crashed near La Grulla on March 8, 2024.]()
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“The families deserve more”: Uvalde city report clears local officers of wrongdoing
Families were infuriated by praise for local law enforcement in a report on the Robb Elementary School shooting released Thursday by a private investigator. Full Story
![A mural in memory of Makenna Lee Elrod, one of the 21 Robb Elementary school shooting victims in Uvalde on Oct. 22, 2022.]()
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A petition to recall Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson fails
The former Democratic state lawmaker announced he was switching party affiliations last year — prompting the recall by community activist Davante Peters. Full Story
![Dallas mayor Eric Johnson speaks with Chad Hasty about his second-term agenda and partisanship at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Sept. 22, 2023.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton successfully ousts three Republican criminal appeal court judges
Three incumbent judges with nearly a century of criminal law experience fell victim to Paxton’s political revenge tour after they ruled against the attorney general in a 2021 voter fraud case. Full Story
![The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Jan. 15, 2020.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Two law enforcement officials criticized in DOJ report for Uvalde response advance in reelection efforts
Sheriff Ruben Nolasco and Uvalde County Constable Emmanuel Zamora were named in the Justice Department’s blistering criticism of responding officers in its January report. Full Story
![Copy of the Department of Justice's Critical Incident Review Active Shooter at Robb Elementary School, at the Herby Ham Activity Centerin Uvalde on Jan. 18, 2024.]()
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Supreme Court continues blocking Texas immigration law
Senate Bill 4 would allow Texas police to arrest people suspected of illegally crossing the border. Full Story
![National Guard members tell migrants that they cannot cross through that area and that they need to walk until the end of the property to turn themselves in Eagle Pass, Texas on July 29, 2023. As there is concertina wire installed along the Urbina’s property, migrants are told to walk to the end of the property. Many make that walk which can be difficult to do through slippery rocks in the water, the current and the inclined river bank, while some find spots through the concertina wire and manage to get through. Some will be sent back after being arrested for trespassing private property without allowing them to go through the immigration process in the U.S.
Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Verónica Gabriela Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune
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