Law

A Dallas Inventor Is Suing Nintendo for Stealing His Idea for Wii U's Motion Sensors

Airport Freeway in Bedford is not a likely source of breakthroughs in consumer electronics and medical technology. But there, in a nondescript office building overlooking a Twin Peaks and Super 8 motel, is the world headquarters of iLife Technologies and Solutions. So far, the company has solved sle ... More >>

Dallas' Most Tabloid-Worthy Hedge Fund Wants it Known: Its President Owned His Wife in Court

Surely you recall James Dondero, the high-powered Dallas hedge fund manager who spends his leisure time dining on giraffe, jamming to Steve Winwood, and becoming embroiled in ridiculously messy legal feuds. Last we checked some 17 months ago, Dondero was legal-feuding with two people. One was his w ... More >>

As the Obama Administration Sues Texas Over Voter ID, Craig Watkins and Clay Jenkins Take to MSNBC

Update at 11:43 a.m.: Attorney General Eric Holder officially has Dallas County's back: Holder statement on new Texas voter ID lawsuit: pic.twitter.com/YhdZstRCLF— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) August 22, 2013 Original post: On Tuesday, Dallas County Commissioners voted 3-2 to join Congress ... More >>

The Supreme Court's Voting Rights Act Ruling Declares Racism Dead. Long Live Racism!

Ever heard the quotation, "Past is prologue"? The U.S. Supreme Court apparently hasn't, and its ruling Tuesday on the Voting Rights Act virtually assured that we're doomed to repeat history. In an incredible sweep, the majority chucked the nearly unanimous, bipartisan will of Congress and dismantled ... More >>

Neiman Marcus is Fighting Back Against a Notorious Dallas-Based Patent Troll

In the decade since it was founded in Dallas, IP Nav has established itself as a global leader in the increasingly lucrative business of "patent assertion," offering clients the ability to "maximize the value of their IP assets." Put more bluntly, it's a patent troll, shaking down companies by threa ... More >>

Patent Trolls and the War on Innovation

On the front line of the costliest battle in the high-tech world.

Liberty Institute: Assault on Religious Liberty is at All-Time High (and That's Just Counting Christians)

You know the Liberty Institute as the group that has steered Plano's infamous Candy Cane Case through the courts. More recently, it's championed the cause of Angela Hildenbrand, the Texas high school student who wanted to pray during her valedictory speech. As part of its work, in 2004 the nonprofi ... More >>

While Awaiting Trial, Teens in Dallas County Jail Being Kept in Their Cells 23 Hours a Day

Each year, a handful of Dallas county teenagers accused of crimes are "certified," meaning they're being charged as adults and will appear in adult criminal court. While they await trial, they sit in Dallas county jail. We've learned that while in jail, these teens are kept in their cells for 23 hou ... More >>

Did Marc Veasey Call a Civil Rights Icon Senile? Domingo Garcia Says Yes.

There are 11 candidates in the crowded Democratic primary for the new congressional district spanning from Oak Cliff to Fort Worth, but the race is quickly sinking into a political pissing match involving just two as the May 29 primary approaches. Marc Veasey, a state representative from Fort Wort ... More >>

This is Why The Voter ID Debate is Not Going Away

Is Texas still racist enough to warrant hand-holding by the federal government? That's the essence of where the voter ID debate stands now and where it's headed. Though it may seem like a straightforward question, and one that many politicos have reduced to a "yes" or "no" sound bite, the issue is a ... More >>

New Council Map Now Out of City's Hands and In the Possession of the Department of Justice

The council-approved map​City Hall just sent word: At long last the city has submitted to the Department of Justice the new council districts map approved by the council on October 5. But that is hardly the entirety of the package sent to the DoJ yesterday: If you click here you'll find the massiv ... More >>

Fifth Circuit Judges Spend 100 Pages Debating Plano "Candy Cane" Case, First Amendment

​When last we checked in on the nearly 8-year-old (!) case involving those Plano ISD students (and their parents, more to the point) suing the district over those "Jesus is the Reason for the Season" pencils and candy canes they weren't allowed to distribute during winter-break parties, one of the ... More >>

State Rep. Giddings Wants School Districts to Stop Treating Students Like Criminals

​A couple of weeks back Texas Appleseed and ACLU of Texas reps were down in Austin asking why oh why do state school districts feel the need to write class C misdemeanor tickets to students, some as young as 6, in the case of the Dallas Independent School District back in '06-'07. John Whitmire's ... More >>

Council Candidate MacLeod Takes Concerns Over Polling Place to the Justice Department

​A couple of weeks back, Sam mentioned that Billy MacLeod, who's running for the District 2 city council seat against incumbent Pauline Medrano, has a few problems with the coming elections. Chief among them: Votes will be cast at Esperanza "Hope" Medrano Elementary School -- which so happens to b ... More >>

Fit For A King

The Feds Bury Border Patrol Abuses of Immigrants, But What's Been Unearthed Reveals a Culture of Cruelty

Operation Streamline costs taxpayers millions, tramples on the Constitution, treats immigrants like cattle and doesn't work. So why are the feds so committed to it?

Running on "bubble gum and duct tape," a new court aims to keep damaged vets out of jail.

A Fighter Reflects

King For A Day

Last Night in Oak Lawn, a Call "to Forge a Proud and Dignified Civil Rights Movement"

Alexa SchirtzingerAt last night's "Day of Decision Rally," timed to coincide with the California Supreme Court's ruling on Proposition 8, the cries of "We're here! We're queer! Get used to it!" rang out above the roar of traffic at the corner of Cedar Springs Road and Oak Lawn Avenue. "Se-pa-rate, c ... More >>

Craig Watkins is ready for his closeup

No One Disputes Bob Sambol Took $300,000. The Question Is: What Did He Do With It?

I just spoke with Nicholas Cariotis, chief of the Check Division/Task Force on Identity Fraud at the Dallas County District Attorney's Office -- and the man charged with prosecuting Bob Sambol, who, as we mentioned this morning, has been accused in an indictment of stealing $300,000 from investor an ... More >>

If You're Feeling Supressed, Feel Free to Contact Sarah Saldaña

If, come Election Day, you've got a problem at the polls, look no further than Sarah Saldaña, an Assistant United States Attorney in the Northern District of Texas. Today, U.S. Attorney Richard Roper announced that Saldaña will be the Northern District's election officer, meaning she'll be respons ... More >>

So, The State Will Have an Integrity Unit. Which Will Do What, Exactly?

Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins wants to address "the bigger picture" concerning wrongful convictions. One month ago, hundreds of law-enforcement officials from around the state gathered under the dome in Texas’s Senate chamber at the behest of Sen. Rodney Ellis of Houston. They came ... More >>

Bushwhacked

Let's just say Bush gets charged with war crimes. Will Dallas be guilty by association with his library?

In Austin Yesterday, Talk About Creating Texas' First "Innocence Commission"

44 After The 28

Remembering a trade of blue plates for civil rights

Haggling Over Who Collects Late Child Support Payments Could Leave Some Kids Without

Never Have Kids

Hard-Hearted AG|Sober Judgment

Family Court Judge Sheds Light on Unfair Child Support Practices in Texas

Judge David Hanschen lets men challenge whether the kids they support are theirs. And the Texas Attorney General's Office is pissed.

Priorities, Priorities

A Devil's Deal in Dallas Court

A terrible crime plus skaky evidence tempts prosecutors to play a secret game of "let's make a deal"

Of Note

Sloppy record keeping causing headaches in criminal appeals

Meet Unfair Park's Newest Contributor: Craig Watkins

Mark Graham Craig Watkins would like a word with the Friends of Unfair Park. Wow, it must be Guest Contributor Day around Unfair Park. Because next up to the virtual podium is none other than Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins, who sent Unfair Park this morning an "opinion editorial" con ... More >>

Chains of Evidence

How did Dallas convict so many innocents? With faulty eyewitnesses, sloppy police work and overzealous prosecutors.

Witness for the Prosecution

Did lack of manpower leave a felon on bail free to kill? Maybe. Sort of.

Membership Has Privileges

Lost in Transition

Mud Wrestling

Denton County's new district attorney challenged on his claims to be Mr. Clean

Jailhouse Rocked

The exonerations just keep on coming

Man, They Really Want to Make Sure Craig Watkins Doesn't Screw This Up

Zac Attack | Out in the Cold | Give It Up, Manny | Born Blue

An Open Letter to Craig Watkins

Accidental Victors

Wait...we voted for who?

Does This Mean a New Trial for Emily Dowdy?

Can I Get a Witness?

The District Attorney's Office gets the right guy for the wrong reason.

Follywood

A B-actress, computer mayhem and families feudin'! Making a movie with your rich friends is just courting disaster.

Craig's List

Debtors like Craig Watkins used to end up in jail. Now they run for district attorney.