Texas Supreme Court upholds ban on transition-related care for minors
Parents and medical providers of transgender adolescents sued Texas, challenging the constitutionality of a restriction on puberty blockers and hormone therapy. Full Story
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William Melhado
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William Melhado was an Austin-based general assignment reporter until 2024. He originally joined the Tribune in 2022 as a Poynter-Koch fellow. Before his time at the Tribune, William worked as a staff writer at the Santa Fe Reporter, an alt-weekly newspaper in New Mexico, and he also worked as an educator for five years at a public high school in the Bronx, New York and 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.
Past Contributions
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![The Texas Supreme Court on Jan. 15, 2020.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas executes Ramiro Gonzales for 2001 murder
Gonzales, who was on death row for the rape and murder of Bridget Townsend in Medina County, is the second person to be executed in Texas this year. Full Story
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![Interior of Death Chamber in Texas.]()
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U.S. Supreme Court allows gun restrictions for domestic violence suspects
Justices ruled that the federal government did not violate a Texas man’s Second Amendment rights when barring him from possessing firearms. Full Story
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![The United States Supreme Court is seen on Saturday, May 18, 2024 in Washington, D.C..]()
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Travis County DA wants to overturn Abbott’s pardon of convicted murderer
Daniel Perry was pardoned more than a year after a jury convicted him of murdering police brutality demonstrator Garrett Foster in 2020. Full Story
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![Daniel Perry at his trial for the murder of Garrett Foster at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center in Austin on April 5, 2023.]()
Credit: Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via REUTERS -
Texas officials compromised ballot secrecy as they increased election transparency
In limited instances, the choices some Texas voters make can later be identified using public, legally available data. Full Story
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![Super Tuesday voting lines at the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center near downtown Houston on March 3, 2020.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott pardons Daniel Perry, veteran who killed police brutality protester in 2020
A Travis County jury sentenced Perry to 25 years in prison last year, prompting Abbott to ask the state parole board to review his case. Full Story
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![Daniel Perry leaves the courtroom after he was sentenced to 25 years for the murder of Garrett Foster, at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center on Wednesday, May 10, 2023.]()
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Two years later, judge orders new election for Harris County judicial seat
Democratic Judge DaSean Jones beat out Tami Pierce by 449 votes in 2022, prompting one of several election challenges filed by unsuccessful Republican candidates. Many other election challenges were dismissed. Full Story
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![Voters cast their ballots at the West Gray Multiservice Center during Election Day on Nov. 7, 2023, in Houston.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Galveston County redistricting case draws divide among federal appeals court judges
The 5th Circuit expressed skepticism about arguments from both sides in considering whether a coalition of Black and Latino voters should be granted the same protections as a single racial group under the Voting Rights Act. Full Story
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![A statue of a returning Confederate soldier on Thursday, April 21, 2022 in Galveston, TX. Known as The “Dignified Resignation,” the monument has stood in front of the Galveston County Courthouse since 1911. Commissioner Stephen Holmes made a motion to have the statue removed in 2020 but it was not supported by any other commissioners.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Houston woman is third guilty plea in Henry Cuellar bribery case
Irada Akhoundova pleaded guilty to facilitating a $60,000 payment to Imelda Cuellar, the congressman’s wife, that she believed would benefit Azerbaijan and its state-run oil company. Full Story
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![Sandi Villarreal, deputy editor for digital at Texas Monthly, moderates a panel with US Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, and former speaker of the Texas House Joe Straus at The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 24, 2022 in Austin, TX.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Feds accuse Texas prison agency of discriminating against employee for wearing a headscarf
A federal lawsuit asserts that the Texas agency terminated a state prison clerk who refused to remove a head covering in line with her Ifa faith. Full Story
Credit: Martin do Nascimento for The Texas Tribune
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