Texas Praised for Prison Reform

Long known for its tough-on-crime image, Texas on Thursday was hailed nationally for a package of reforms designed to curb its wildly growing prison population. But even as lawmakers were lauded for innovative programs for drug and alcohol abusers, Texas pushed past California to become the nation's leader in putting people behind bars.

Texas, said the new Pew Center on the States report, had 171,790 prisoners on Jan. 1 — down 326 inmates from Dec. 31, 2006. California, which long had led the nation in inmates, reduced its prison rolls by 4,068 during that period.

Nationwide, the study found one in every 100 adults is locked up in state and federal prisons or local jails. Of the states with the largest prison systems — those with 50,000 or more inmates — Texas, California, New York and Michigan reduced their offender populations in the past year.

Houston Police Searching For Serial Rapist

The Houston Police Department's Sex Crimes unit are looking for a serial rapist who has committed at least four sexual assaults on Houston’s southwest side. The assaults began Sept. 27, 2007.

The suspect is described as a black male with a medium to dark complexion. They believe he is 24-30 years old and 150-180 pounds. He has a slender build.

Police say during the attacks he wore a dark hooded sweatshirt and dark pants. In one case, he wore a blue shirt, dark sweatpants and a beanie cap.

Poll Results

The following are the results of a recent poll here in Houston:

Among self-described white voters, Clinton holds an 11-point lead, 49 to 38 percent. She is also ahead among Hispanics, 63 to 30 percent. Among African Americans, Obama holds a commanding lead: 72 to 17 percent.

On the Republican side, Sen. John McCain is well ahead of former Governor Mike Huckabee, 59 to 29 percent. However, Huckabee and McCain are nearly tied among Texans who describe themselves as evangelical Christians, with McCain pulling ahead slightly – 47 to 42 percent.

L.A. Firms to get share of Houston Dynamos

Two Los Angeles firms anxious to focus on business opportunities in the Hispanic market have agreed to purchase 50 percent of the Houston Dynamo Major League Soccer team from its parent company, Anschutz Entertainment Group.

Sources close to the deal confirmed Monday that private equity firm Brener International Group LLC and Golden Boy Promotions Inc., headed by professional boxer Oscar De La Hoya, will each pick up 25 percent of the team.

Former Dallas DA Arranged for JFK Files to be given to Filmmakers

DALLAS — Longtime Dallas District Attorney Henry Wade agreed to give filmmakers exclusive access to legal documents connected to the assassination of President Kennedy, including some kept from the public for another four decades.

The Dallas Morning News reported in Sunday editions that new details about Wade's involvement in a movie venture about the JFK assassination and the trial of Jack Ruby were contained in long-hidden files.

Current Dallas County DA Craig Watkins announced discovery of the files at a news conference last Monday.

TSU Wants To Change School's Image

Texas Southern University's new president wants to end the school's long-standing practice of accepting all applicants, no matter their academic background, saying the policy contributes to its alarmingly low graduation rate.

President John Rudley said the change is necessary to remake the state's largest historically black university, which has been on the ropes recently because of management missteps, sliding enrollment and bad press.

Optimism Increases For Obama In Texas

Democrat Barack Obama's first foray into South Texas on Friday showed signs that rival Hillary Rodham Clinton may win the region's popular vote but that he may break even with her in securing delegates for the presidential nomination.

While Obama's noontime crowd of about 3,000 at the University of Texas-Pan American was mostly made up of students who showed little enthusiasm, Obama drew about 6,000 supporters to the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi.

Another troubling sign for Clinton's South Texas hopes is that one of her main South Texas supporters, state Rep. Aaron Peña of Edinburg, appeared backstage at Obama's Pan American event and told a local news organization that Clinton would win the popular vote but Obama was strong in the fight for delegates.

Nai Xin Xue Sighted In Houston

The first confirmed sighting of fugitive Nai Xin Xue has him in Houston, Texas - 2500 kilometres away from where he disappeared into Los Angeles' Chinatown.

US Marshals are now in Houston hunting Xue, who has been on the run since September 13, after allegedly killed An An Liu in Auckland and dumping their child Qian Xun Xue - nicknamed Pumpkin - in Melbourne on his way to the United States.

Brothers' Suit against Harris County To Proceed

A federal jury is being summoned back to court this morning to hear opening statements in a civil lawsuit filed by two brothers who claim that Harris County sheriff's deputies stormed their home without probable cause and wrongfully arrested them.

The lawsuit, filed by Sean Carlos Ibarra, 37, and Erik Adam Ibarra, 28, exposed embarrassing but unrelated e-mails sent and received by former Harris County District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal, who resigned Friday.

The Ibarras are suing Sheriff Tommy Thomas, four deputies involved in their arrests and Harris County, alleging their civil rights were violated when the deputies arrested them and destroyed film in their camera after one of them photographed an officer at a drug raid taking place at their next-door neighbor's house.

Schoolteacher faces sexual assault charges

A male teacher at a north Houston Christian academy is charged with sexually assaulting a 15-year-old student, and Houston police say the man was known for touching, hugging, kissing and even laying his head in female students' laps.

Christopher Evans, 26, a former New Heights Christian Academy teacher, faces two counts of sexual assault and one of indecency with a child. New Heights Principal Richard Walters, who is Evans' father-in-law, said he did not know Evans had been arrested and already posted $90,000 in bonds on the charges Monday. Walters acknowledged, however, turning over school records relating to Evans to police.

Where Is Leeloo?

Someone broke into Melissa Matsu's home and stole her poodle, Leeloo. As an animal lover myself, I know how Mrs. Matsu feel. If anyone knows where Leeloo is, please make sure the poodle is returned to her family. The family reside in Sugarland, Texas.


Leeloo weighs 11 pounds and she's about 18 months old. She is spayed, a mix of white and off-white and not professionally groomed. She was wearing a pink collar with tags and has a microchip. If you know anything about the case, please e-mail: MelissaMatsu@gmail.com.

New Offender Law Groups Teens With Adults

Texas officials may soon begin ignoring a new federal sex offender law that would require some juveniles as young as 14 to register on a national Web site.

A federal community notification act approved by Congress and signed by President Bush is so sweeping, it's raising concern among even those who traditionally have pushed for greater public sex offender disclosure.

Scores of prosecutors, victims' rights advocates and normally get-tough lawmakers say provisions of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 are Draconian and costly and may end up harming the victims they're supposed to protect.

Houston Chronicle Endorses Obama, McCain

The Houston Chronicle has endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama as its choice for the Democratic presidential candidate, citing his "message of inclusion and cooperation." The newspaper in the nation's fourth largest city also endorsed Arizona Sen. John McCain for the Republican nomination.

In its endorsement, the Chronicle said there was not much to separate Obama and his opponent, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, as both have similar views on such issues as ending the war in Iraq by withdrawing combat troops and pressing efforts to providing all Americans with health insurance.

"However, there is a decisive difference. Obama vows to reach out to independents and Republicans with a message of inclusion and cooperation," the Chronicle said. "He offers a historic opportunity to elevate national political dialogue to a higher ground. Those who insist on vitriol and obstructionism would be marginalized."

The newspaper said Obama is "best-qualified by life experience, skill and temperament to be the standard bearer for his party."

Chuck Rosenthal Resigns

Chuck Rosenthal stepped down as Harris County district attorney Friday after six weeks of mounting pressure and intense scrutiny brought by the exposure of embarrassing e-mails that prompted calls for his resignation from all but his closest allies.

His announcement came just hours after his political enemy, attorney Lloyd Kelley, filed a lawsuit seeking to remove Rosenthal from office on the grounds of official misconduct, incompetency or intoxication.

Houstonian claims he is JFK's Lovechild

A Houston businessman now living in Canada claims he's President John F. Kennedy's love child — and he wants the Kennedy clan to help him prove it.

Jack Worthington, 46, who bears a striking resemblance to the assassinated leader, has appealed to the Kennedys to provide DNA from the former president or from males directly related to JFK's father, Joe Kennedy.

Houston sex toy sellers hail court victory

Houston's adult bookstore backers Wednesday hailed a federal court's decision to overturn a 35-year-old state law that banned promotion or sale of sex toys. But the decision won't go into effect until the court issues its mandate in early March — long after the industry's lucrative pre-Valentine's Day season.

A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the law violates the privacy protections of the 14th Amendment.

Study Reveals health risks living near Refineries

New research just completed says people living near big chemical refineries in the Houston area could in fact be facing a higher risk of stress-related illnesses. At the University of Texas in Galveston, researchers have just completed work on a one-of-kind study.

They were able to compare the health of Texas City residents before and after the 2005 explosion. Before the explosion, researchers already had begun work to study the stress of living next to refineries. They’d surveyed 550 residents about their ailments and had taken samples of their blood. Then came the big explosion, so they redid everything. The new round of in-depth interviews showed people complained of far more stress-related ailments after the explosion.

And blood samples indicated that people who simply lived within about a mile of the plant had correspondingly higher levels of the chemical cortisol, which the body releases when stressed-out.

Results Roundup

Bois d'Arc Energy and PROS Holdings both reported fourth-quarter and annual results Monday.

* Bois d'Arc Energy Inc. reported net income of $28.1 million, or 42 cents a share, on revenue of $100.2 million for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2007, compared with net income of $11.9 million, or 18 cents a share, on revenue of $66.3 million for the same quarter in 2006.

The Houston-based independent oil and gas exploration and production company (NYSE: BDE) attributed the increase in profit to production growth and improved oil and gas prices.

For the year, net income was $78.7 million, or $1.17 a share, on revenue of $355.5 million, compared with net income of $55 million, or 84 cents a share, on revenue of $254.7 million in 2006.

* PROS Holdings Inc. reported net income of $3.5 million, or 13 cents a share, on record revenue of $17.8 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2007, compared with net income of $2.3 million, or 11 cents a share, on revenue of $13.2 million in the same quarter last year.

For the year, net income for the Houston-based provider of pricing and revenue optimization science and software (NYSE: PRO) was $10.5 million, or 45 cents a share, on revenue of $62.1 million, compared with net income of $7 million, or 32 cents a share, on revenue of $46 million in 2006.

Air Force officer Accused of crimes at Texas Base

An Air Force colonel is accused of rape, forcing himself on or sexually harassing two other women, stealing about $10,000 and other crimes — all while he was a training commander at Sheppard Air Force Base.

Col. Samuel Lofton III was to appear Monday at an Article 32 hearing, similar to a civilian grand jury, to determine if there is sufficient evidence to send the case to a court-martial.

Doubt Is Cast On McNamee's Story

A lawyer for Roger Clemens said Saturday the pitcher can prove he didn't attend a June 1998 party at Jose Canseco's home described by Brian McNamee in the Mitchell Report.

According to McNamee, Clemens first raised the subject of steroids not long after McNamee saw Canseco and Clemens meeting during the party.

Clemens' side has turned over evidence to congressional investigators, including an affidavit from Canseco, to support that the pitcher wasn't present at Canseco's home that day, the attorney, Rusty Hardin, said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press.

Hardin said video footage from telecasts of baseball games around the time of the party also were given to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. In the telecasts, Hardin said, TV announcers can be heard discussing Canseco's party and noting that Clemens wasn't there.

Are Brian McNamee Allegations True?

Brian McNamee told congressional investigators he injected Roger Clemens’ wife with human growth hormone as she prepared for a Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition photo session five years ago, the New York Daily News reported Friday.

McNamee testified during his Capitol Hill deposition on Thursday that he injected Debbie Clemens at her husband’s direction, the News said on its Web site, citing an unidentified Washington source.

The pitcher was in Washington to meet with congressmen for a second straight day, but his lawyer didn't waste any time responding.

Chuck Rosenthal's Legal Bills

Have you ever wondered who was paying DA's Chuck Rosenthal's legal bills for his contempt charges? Well, wonder no more; it's you.

District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal has hired former U.S. Attorney Ron Woods to represent him while the Texas attorney general investigates whether Rosenthal broke the law by using his county computer for political campaigning.

County taxpayers, meanwhile, are paying for other lawyers to defend Rosenthal from an effort to have him held in criminal contempt for deleting e-mail that had been subpoenaed for a civil lawsuit.

Woods' confirmation that he is now working for Rosenthal comes almost a week after attorneys for the county's top prosecutor halted a contempt hearing in which Rosenthal admitted making erroneous statements in a sworn affidavit about deleting several hundred e-mails.

What do you think about the taxpayers paying for Chuck Rosenthal's defense?

Kroger Offers Low Cost Generics

The grocery store chain Kroger has decided to offer low cost prescription drugs to its customers:

Kroger rolled out a program on Wednesday across the Southwest, including its 102 area stores with pharmacies, offering 30-day supplies of 300 generic medicines for $4. Generic versions of oral contraceptives Ortho Cyclen and Ortho Tri Cyclen, as well as one fertility drug, will cost $9.

Now Kroger will be more like Wal-mart and others in this highly competitive field of offering the lowest cost on prescription drugs.

Houston Agency Administer Housing Assistance

A small, Houston-based agency with 25 employees has been chosen to administer housing assistance for about 11,000 families around the country who were displaced by hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The Harris County Housing Authority will pay rent and provide social services to about 6,000 families in the Houston area, 4,000 in New Orleans and neighboring St. Bernard Parish and about 1,000 more families in 37 states, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development officials said Tuesday.

This represents more than one-third of the roughly 30,000 families enrolled nationally in HUD's Disaster Housing Assistance Program, or DHAP.

The HUD program, which began Dec. 1, will require participating families to make gradually escalating payments toward their rent starting in March until the program ends in March 2009. It will provide case management and counseling services to help evacuees find jobs and take other steps to rebuild their lives.

Siegler Wants Chuck Rosenthal To Resign

Kelly Siegler, an assistant prosecutor, has joined the go Chuck go bandwagon. Although she hopes to replace Chuck Rosenthal, she has recognized that he is bad for the district attorney's office. Here are some recent statements she made about old "Chucky Boy":

Rosenthal “has made a lot of serious mistakes. Everybody here knows that; everybody in my office knows that,”. It's sad. It's tragic. And it's time for Chuck to resign.

“He's also my friend. He's not a bad man. He needs to go.”

“But do you really think that Chuck Rosenthal is me?” she asked. “And if you could only know how many conversations I have had with him to try to get him to do things differently or to listen. The problem is, Chuck quit listening to all of us a long time ago.”

Perhaps the only thing Chuck Rosenthal would hear is being found guilty for tampering with evidence and perjury. Sometimes it takes a tough strong message of impending prison time to get someone like him to listen.

Let's Pray For Texas Investigators Who Will Question The 'Baby Killer'

Every time I hear or read about this story, it just makes me sick to my stomach. I cannot fathom the psyche of an individual who would kill their own infant son. My prayers are with those Texas investigators who will question Travis Mullis in Philadelphia. After all, they re human, and it will be such a daunting task to talk to this man:

Mullis, 21, known as “T.J.,” surrendered to Philadelphia police Friday, telling them he placed the 3-month-old baby on the ground and then stomped on his head three or four times until he felt the skull collapsing, Trevino said.

Mullis has been charged with capital murder in Galveston and his bond has been set at $1 million. He also has a felony charge out of nearby Brazoria County of enticing a child. Alvin police are investigating an allegation that Mullis took an 8-year-old girl from her bed in January, took her to a school or park and asked her to remove her pants.

I hope no one else was involved with this horrendous murder and my prayers go out to this precious child's family. May he rest in peace.

Texas Illegal Immigrant Problem

There is a huge number of illegal immigrants in the state of Texas. This large influx is due to tougher laws to curb illegal immigration in Oklahoma and Arizona.

The Oklahoma statute, which took effect in November, makes it a crime to transport, harbor or hire illegal immigrants. Effective Jan. 1, the Arizona law suspends the business license of employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers. On a second offense, the license is revoked.

If Texas enacted tougher laws, I am sure they would see illegal immigrants fleeing Texas.

Chuck Rosenthal Admits To Deleting Email Messages

The embattled Harris County district attorney admitted before a federal judge here Friday that in violation of two subpoenas and a court order, he deleted as many as 3,500 e-mail messages sought in a civil rights lawsuit. He said he thought the messages were available on backup files.

Appearing at a contempt hearing in Federal District Court, the district attorney, Charles A. Rosenthal Jr., appeared to open himself to possible perjury charges by acknowledging that in earlier sworn testimony he had provided false information about how he deleted some messages. He called his earlier testimony “an error.”

What Will Happen To Chuck Rosenthal?

Harris County District Attorney, Chuck Rosenthal could be fined or jailed if U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt finds him in contempt of court. He did not testify Thursday but was expected to take the stand when the hearing resumed Friday. He declined to comment as he left the courtroom.

An attorney handling a civil rights lawsuit against the Harris County Sheriff's Department had requested all the e-mails Rosenthal sent and received between July and mid-October.

Rosenthal has handed over more than 1,500 e-mails that remained on his computer or were recovered. Hoyt released a batch of them in early January, including messages that contained pornographic, racist and political messages. Love notes between the married prosecutor and his secretary also were mistakenly released and then resealed.