Legal

Public corruption: Feds allege bribery, kickbacks
Eleven people -- including the mayor of Socorro, two lawyers and several current and former elected officials -- used a scheme of bribes and kickbacks to obtain contracts for Access HealthSource, a local health-care provider, federal prosecutors allege. The workings of the enterprise were unveiled in a 27-page indictment that became public Thursday. The indictment charges all of them with six counts of bribery and fraud. Most of them are also charged with one count of violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations act, known as RICO. [ View Article ] Sep 3, 2010, 08:20

Seguin: Tackling Truancy
It’s two weeks into the start of school. Students are still learning their schedules and Matador Stadium has yet to see a home game. [ View Article ] Sep 3, 2010, 08:16

Mansfield High School softball coach arrested
A Mansfield High School softball coach was arrested Thursday on suspicion of online solicitation of a minor, according to police. [ View Article ] Sep 3, 2010, 08:10

Mexia: School District Investigates School Bus Sexual Assault Claim
The Mexia Independent School District confirms its investigating an allegation a 5-year-old girl was sexually assaulted last week by a fellow student on a district school bus. [ View Article ] Sep 3, 2010, 07:52

Waller: Ex-principal pleads guilty in theft case
Former Fields Store Elementary School principal Mary Davis pleaded guilty to theft on Aug. 19 and will soon be scheduled for sentencing. Davis was suspended from her job in February and later fired after she was charged with stealing more than $25,000 from a school activity fund. [ View Article ] Sep 3, 2010, 07:46

Lubbock police trying to identify suspect in purse theft at Monterey High School
Lubbock police are trying to identify a man caught on camera stealing a purse from an office at Monterey High School. Lubbock police said the man, possibly in his 20s, went into the unoccupied office and took a yellow leather purse from a desk. The theft occurred at about 1 p.m. Aug. 21 at the high school, 3211 47th St. [ View Article ] Sep 3, 2010, 07:45

Grapevine-Colleyville turns theft investigation over to DA
An investigation of theft and mismanagement in the Grapevine-Colleyville school district's facilities services department has been turned over to the Tarrant County district attorney's office, officials said. [ View Article ] Sep 1, 2010, 08:12

Midland: Former MISD secretary pleads not guilty
A former Midland Independent School District employee pleaded not guilty Tuesday to federal charges of embezzlement, bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. Anette Brewer Fitzhugh, 40, a former Midland Freshman High School secretary, is scheduled to stand trial Nov. 1. [ View Article ] Sep 1, 2010, 07:47

Attorney General Opinion (Nepotism Question)
Important! Opinion: GA-0794 Re: Whether section 11.1513 of the Education Code prohibits a school superintendent to whom final selection of personnel is delegated from employing persons related to trustees of his district Request for Opinion: RQ-0842-GA Summary: Aug 31, 2010, 08:31

Judge rules McAllen school district must pay scheduled raises
The McAllen school district violated state law when it failed to give required pay raises to many of its teachers and other employees last year, a Texas Education Agency judge ruled earlier this week. [ View Article ] Aug 30, 2010, 08:34

Rendon files whistleblower suit against BISD
Former Special Services administrator Art Rendon has filed a whistleblower lawsuit alleging that the Brownsville Independent School District fired him in retaliation for revelations he made about mismanagement and fraud in the district’s special education department. Attorneys for Rendon filed the suit on Monday in U.S. District Court in Brownsville against BISD, trustees Rolando Aguilar, Joe Colunga, Ruben Cortez and Rick Zayas, individually and in their official capacities, and Superintendent Brett Springston, individually and in his official capacity. [ View Article ] Aug 27, 2010, 08:28

Odessa: ECISD police make sex assault arrest
A man wanted in connection with aggravated sexual assaults of two children in East Texas was located more than 600 miles away — and just across the street from an Odessa school. [ View Article ] Aug 27, 2010, 06:45

Judge's ruling on low grades criticized
Minimum Grades: Area school administrators are disappointed in a judge’s ruling to support a truth-in-grading law sponsored by state Sen. Jane Nelson, a Republican from Flower Mound. [ View Article ] Aug 26, 2010, 08:36

Louisiana: Officer tases high school student
According to one Louisiana school system, a high school student was recently being disruptive and was eventually tased by an officer at the school. [ View Article ] Aug 26, 2010, 08:02

Ex-Sweetwater teacher faces more sexual charges
A former Sweetwater educator who was indicted in May for sexual assault of a child and indecency was arrested last week for sexual assault and indecency charges in a subsequent case. James Clayton Burns, 38, of Roscoe has been charged with one count of aggravated sexual assault of a child, a first-degree felony; indecency by contact, a second-degree felony; and indecency by exposure, a third-degree felony. [ View Article ] Aug 26, 2010, 06:30

School districts won't fight truth-in-grading ruling
Minimum Grades - AUSTIN – A group of school districts that sued the state over its truth-in-grading law will not appeal a court ruling in June that upheld the law and barred districts from requiring teachers to give minimum grades on student report cards. Representatives for the Texas AFT and other parties in the case said Tuesday that attorneys for the 11 school districts will not appeal the decision by state District Judge Gisela Triana-Doyle of Austin that rejected their arguments against the law. Eleven districts from the Houston area sued the state, asserting that the 2009 law applied only to class assignments and not to progress reports or semester report cards. They cited vague language in the law. [ View Article ] Aug 25, 2010, 08:38

School districts drop fight against Texas grading law
Minimum Grades The group of Texas school districts that lost a court battle in June over a new grading law has decided not to appeal the judge's decision that bars them from forcing teachers to give students grades they didn't earn. Attorneys representing the 11 districts notified a party to the lawsuit, the Texas chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, that they would not appeal State District Judge Gisela Triana-Doyal's ruling. The judge said the truth-in-grading law, sponsored by state Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, was "not ambiguous" and required districts to eliminate policies that forbid teachers from giving students lower than a certain grade on report cards, class assignments and exams. [ View Article ] Aug 25, 2010, 08:37

Attorney General Opinion
Opinion: GA-0790 Re: Combining real property and improvements on one parcel identification number or taxpayer account for appraisal district record purposes Request for Opinion: RQ-0827-GA Summary: The chief appraiser of an appraisal district determines whether land and improvements are combined into a single taxpayer account or parcel. A taxpayer's separate rendition of land and improvements does not change this conclusion. Aug 25, 2010, 08:22

Abilene: AISD truancy policy drafted
Students thinking about skipping school might want to reconsider. A plan is in the works that could lead to stricter enforcement of truancy laws in Abilene. “Instead of just throwing the attendance officers to the wolves and hoping and wishing for the best, we are providing them proven best practices, training, oversight and the support they need to get their jobs done.” [ View Article ] Aug 25, 2010, 07:45

Luling officials look into incident between student, coach
No names have been released, but the Luling Police Department is currently investigating an incident involving a 16-year-old boy and a high school coach. [ View Article ] Aug 25, 2010, 07:45

SCOTT v. ALPHONSO CRUTCH LSC CHARTER SCHOOL, INC.
This is an appeal from an order denying the Commissioner of Education's plea to the jurisdiction. Alphonso Crutch LSC Charter School, Inc. (the "School"), a charter school, filed suit against the Commissioner to challenge the Texas Education Agency's withholding of state funds from the School based on alleged overallocations previously received by the School. The School asserted that the Commissioner's actions violated the Texas Constitution and various state statutes. [ View Article ] Aug 23, 2010, 08:04

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