AUSTIN — Joanna Leyva delivered a heart-wrenching 18-minute testimony at the Capitol Thursday, offering a glimpse into the pain she has carried since losing her daughter in the 2019 shooting spree across Midland-Odessa that killed seven and injured 25 more. “You always grow up thinking your kids will bury you,” Leyva said during her testimony before the Homeland Security and …

Since recording its first cases of coronavirus on March 10, 2020, Dallas County has seen more than 3,000 deaths. It was a year where we moved to working from home and ordering groceries online. Bars and restaurants closed, thousands lost jobs and businesses shuttered. Masks became mandatory in indoor settings. Travel ground to a halt and sporting events were canceled. …

A man is behind bars in connection with the fatal shooting of a woman early Tuesday in Old East Dallas. Charles Leonard Parker Jr., 32, faces a murder charge in the death of Rachel Witcher. His bail is set at $500,000, and his attorney could not immediately be reached for comment. Witcher, 21, was found with a gunshot wound around …

AUSTIN — Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Thursday night pressured to state officials to act onreversing $16 billion in charges racked up for wholesale electricity during last month’s winter storm and criticized the thoroughness of hearings in the House. During a highly unusual appearance at a Senate committee hearing Thursday night, Patrick, who leads the Senate, walked on to the …

It seemed like a routine traffic stop, so Neco Bonham asked the officer why he wanted him out of the pickup truck. Instead of an answer, the 18-year-old received an electric jolt from a Taser, punches to the head and handcuffs during the December 2018 incident, court records show. It took the Richardson police officer about 15 seconds to escalate …

WASHINGTON — One year after the nation was brought to a near-standstill by the coronavirus, President Joe Biden pledged in his first prime-time address Thursday night to make all adults eligible for vaccines by May 1 and raised the possibility of beginning to “mark our independence from this virus” by the Fourth of July. He offered Americans fresh hope and …

Health authorities are closely watching an outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a new strain of coronavirus known as COVID-19. Here are the answers to key questions about the outbreak: What is the virus? Scientists have identified the virus as a novel, or new, coronavirus. The name comes from the Latin word for crowns or halos, which coronaviruses resemble under …

HOUSTON, Texas — Speaking for the first time since his introductory news conference, Houston Texans head coach David Culley reiterated in a video conference on Thursday that the team is committed to quarterback Deshaun Watson. “We are very committed to Deshaun as our quarterback,” Culley said. “He is our quarterback. He’s the only guy we got under contract at this time, right …

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Memorial Hermann will have a COVID-19 vaccine drive-thru clinic specifically dedicated to teachers, as well as others who work in schools or child care services, starting this Sunday. The drive-thru will be held Sunday, March 14 and Monday, March 15 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land. Those eligible will …

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Harris County leaders say the Texas Department of Transportation failed to consider environmental impacts on neighborhoods and businesses in its I-45 expansion project. On Thursday, Harris County Attorney Christian D. Menefee filed a lawsuit against the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) in order to stop the North Houston Highway Improvement Project, which expands I-45, until changes …