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• Man gets 20 years in prison for murder following fatal 2021 shooting

  09-04-2025 20:33 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A man was convicted and sentenced March 19 after pleading guilty to a first-degree murder charge related to a February 2021 fatal shooting. RELATED | 4 face capital murder charges in connection with deadly February shootingAccording to Travis County court documents, 28-year-old Sammie Spencer received a 20-year prison sentence for the murder charge, which was related to the death of 27-year-old Marcel Pimpton.Three others were also arrested and charged related to Pimpton's
  
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• Texas senator extends record after casting 75,000 consecutive votes

  16-05-2025 16:05 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Thursday, Dean Senator Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, cast her 75,000th consecutive vote in the Texas Senate—extending her record.Zaffirini previously broke the state and national record of most consecutive votes cast by a legislator in 2023 when she cast her 70,000th consecutive vote. Senator breaks records after casting 70,000th consecutive vote in Texas Senate“Her votes span nearly four decades of policymaking and reflect decisions about major issues affectin
  
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• Georgetown man faces murder charge in April shooting

  16-05-2025 15:05 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The U.S. Marshals Service arrested a Georgetown man Thursday related to an April homicide investigation just outside of Georgetown.According to the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office, 20-year-old Bradley Stone Puckett was charged with murder related to the death of 22-year-old Johnathon Cruz.WCSO said Puckett was taken to the Williamson County Jail, where he remains on a $1 million bond. PAST COVERAGE | WCSO: 22-year-old dead after shooting just outside Georgetown cit
  
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• Man sentenced to 18 years in prison for 2023 homicide

  16-05-2025 15:04 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A man was sentenced on April 23 in connection with a 2023 homicide investigation, according to Travis County court documents.
  The documents said David Mejia-Villagran, 44, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to 18 years in prison. He received 492 days of jail credit toward his sentence. RELATED | Affidavit: Man arrested, charged with murder after admitting to shooting man he found with wifeVillegran's sentencing was related to the death of 28-year-old Jorge O
  
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• Inside the Investigation: How more ICE, TX sheriff partnerships impact communities

  16-05-2025 15:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A KXAN investigation found the federal government’s use of immigration enforcement law focuses far more on migrants than the bosses who hire and pay them. This week on Inside the Investigation, Senior Investigative Producer David Barer and Investigative Reporter Matt Grant explain how mass deportations impact the workforce and how law enforcement is increasingly partnering with the federal government to enforce immigration laws through what they call 287G agreements.Relate
  
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• 2 arrested, accused of impersonating nurses at Buda senior living community

  16-05-2025 05:43 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Two women accused of impersonating nurses were arrested in Travis County connected to thefts happening at a senior living community in Buda, according to the Hays County Sheriff's Office.Those women were identified as 32-year-old Gina Hernandez and 30-year-old Elsa Vasquez, both of Austin, according to HCSO.From left to right: Gina Hernandez, 32; Elsa Vasquez, 30 (Photos: Hays County Sheriff's Office)Hernandez and Vasquez were arrested by the Austin Police Department on May 8 an
  
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• Belyeu's blast lifts Texas to win over OU, SEC regular season title

  16-05-2025 05:37 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — What a return to action for Texas outfielder Max Belyeu.Back in the lineup for the first time since March 28, Belyeu belted a go-ahead, 3-run home run in the top of the ninth inning off of Oklahoma closer Dylan Crooks, lifting the Longhorns to a 7-4 win Thursday over the Sooners at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman, Oklahoma.AUSTIN, TX - APRIL 06: Texas Longhorns outfielder Max Belyeu (44) looks to the dugout and is about to toss his bat after walking during the Big 12 baseba
  
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• Belyeu's blast lifts Texas to win over OU, at least share of SEC regular season title

  16-05-2025 05:37 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — What a return to action for Texas outfielder Max Belyeu.Back in the lineup for the first time since March 28, Belyeu belted a go-ahead, 3-run home run in the top of the ninth inning off of Oklahoma closer Dylan Crooks, lifting the Longhorns to a 7-4 win Thursday over the Sooners at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman, Oklahoma.AUSTIN, TX - APRIL 06: Texas Longhorns outfielder Max Belyeu (44) looks to the dugout and is about to toss his bat after walking during the Big 12 baseba
  
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• Boy discovers shipwreck from 2 centuries ago in Canada

  16-05-2025 04:23 via kxan.com
  
  Related video: Wreck of ship that sank in 1940 found in Lake Superior(NewsNation) — A boy in Canada made an amazing discovery of a shipwreck from nearly two centuries ago, reports say.Back in 2023, Lucas Atchison, age 8 at the time, was on a family trip to Point Farms Provincial Park in Ontario when he found a small steel spike with his metal detector, a birthday gift.The spike was found attached to a piece of wood and had several more spikes on it. Further inspection revealed that the spi
  
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• These are the most popular baby names in every state, birth records reveal

  16-05-2025 04:12 via kxan.com
  
  (NEXSTAR) – There were lots of Liams and Olivias born last year — but there were far more in Colorado and Florida than there were in Wisconsin and Wyoming.Liam and Olivia were the two most popular names nationally, but that trend didn't hold true in all 50 states. Each U.S. state had its own trendy and popular names in 2024, according to new data released by the Social Security Administration, which tracks every birth in the U.S.In California, for example, every single girl's na
  
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• Chris Brown arrested in England over alleged bottle attack in 2023: reports

  16-05-2025 04:05 via kxan.com
  
  (NEXSTAR) – Chris Brown was arrested on Thursday in Manchester, England, in connection with an alleged incident at a nightclub in 2023, according to multiple reports.London's Metropolitan Police confirmed to Nexstar that they had taken a 36-year-old into custody early on Thursday morning on suspicion of "grievous bodily harm."The Metropolitan Police did not identify the name of the arrestee, but reports from outlets including TMZ and The Independent identified Brown as the 36-year-old poli
  
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• 5-star recruit Jermaine Bishop commits to Texas Longhorns

  16-05-2025 02:14 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas landed a big-time in-state recruit for the Class of 2026 in Willis' Jermaine Bishop.Bishop, rated a 5-star recruit by 247Sports, verbally committed to the Longhorns on Wednesday. The recruiting site ranks Bishop as the country's No. 1 overall "athlete," meaning he could play several positions at the college level, and the No. 3 overall recruit in Texas. FOX says it will broadcast Texas-Ohio State in Week 1 of 2025 season. Fans do not approveBishop chose the Longhorns
  
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• Mike White channels Longhorns legend Augie Garrido with motivational speech ahead of NCAA tournament

  16-05-2025 01:15 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The regional tournament round of the NCAA softball tournament is always a tricky one. The host schools, Texas, for example, are expected to steamroll through the double-elimination bracket because other teams are playing in their yard and they've had the best season to this point.
  But sometimes, it doesn't work out that way, and that's what the Longhorns are trying to avoid. After a 14-2 humbling loss at the hands of rivals Texas A&M in the Southeastern Conference tourn
  
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• House approves bill to remove Texas ‘homosexual conduct’ ban

  16-05-2025 00:35 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – In a 72-55 vote Thursday, the Texas House approved a proposal to remove a law criminalizing "homosexual conduct" from the state’s penal code.“I'm asking you to vote for a law that upholds the principles that Texans should have the freedom and ability to make their own private decisions without unwarranted government interference,” the bill’s author, Rep. Venton Jones, D-Dallas, said when laying out the bill on the House floor. “I'm proud to ack
  
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• Suspect admits to CapMetro bus stabbing due to resemblance to his uncle, per APD

  16-05-2025 00:32 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – A man was stabbed on a bus Wednesday night without provocation, police say. The Austin Police Department and Austin-Travis County EMS responded to a call saying someone had been stabbed on a CapMetro bus near the intersection of Barton Springs Road and South Lamar Boulevard at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.Officers learned that the victim, Akshay Gupta, 30, had been stabbed in the neck. Responders administered life-saving measures, but he was pronounced deceased at 7:30 p.m.&nbs
  
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• Thousands of Texas House bills 'die' at key midnight deadline

  16-05-2025 00:16 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (Nexstar) — At 12 a.m. Friday, thousands of bills in the Texas House of Representatives will meet their end.As of 5 p.m. Thursday, the House passed 1,067 bills, with each passing three rounds of voting. House representatives filed 5,852 bills this session, which puts the House's "death toll" at around 81.7% of its bills.Some of the bills that could die at midnight include:
  HB 1375, which would have prohibited books with certain contentHB 1449, which would have eased food truck permi
  
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• Austin band cancels European tour after drummer arrested by CBP at Dallas airport

  16-05-2025 00:07 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- An Austin-based band went viral online this week after posting on social media that it had to cancel a European tour because its drummer was "forcibly removed" by Customs and Border Patrol from a flight out of the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.The band, Lord Buffalo, said in the post, "We are heartbroken to announce we have to cancel our upcoming European tour. Our drummer, who is a Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident of the United States (green card holder)
  
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• Sen. Cornyn announces $11.1B federal reimbursement plan toward Texas border efforts

  15-05-2025 23:49 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Sen. John Cornyn announced that he will introduce legislation in the U.S. Senate to reimburse the Texas government for its spending on border security efforts.Cornyn's legislation seeks $11.1 billion to reimburse costs of Gov. Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star initiative, which deployed the Texas National Guard and Texas Department of Public Safety to the border for enforcement. Using the budget reconciliation process, he aims to adopt this reimbursement change in the
  
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• Man accepts plea deal, gets 15 years in prison for February 2023 deadly shooting

  15-05-2025 23:33 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A man accepted a plea deal in exchange for a 15-year prison sentence connected to a February 2023 deadly shooting, according to Travis County court records.Tomas Torres, who was 23 years old when the shooting occurred, pled guilty and was convicted on a murder charge.
  On Feb. 11, 2023, the Austin Police Department responded to a shooting at a home in the 1300 block of Bonnie Brae Street in northeast Austin.PREVIOUS | 1 dead, 1 arrested after north Austin shootingWhen officers ar
  
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• Cedar Park bat tests positive for rabies, police urge caution

  15-05-2025 22:49 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- On Thursday, the Cedar Park Police Department said a bat tested positive for rabies at The View apartments located at 1430 Main Street.CPD said that at this time, there are no known individuals who have come into direct contact with the bat.Officials also highlighted that if you know someone who has come into contact with the bat, call Cedar Park Animal Control at 512-260-4600 ext. 0.CPD reminded people to make sure to have their pets' rabies vaccines up to date. They also said
  
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• Wheatsville Co-Op, South Congress are filming locations this week in Austin

  15-05-2025 22:26 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- It may be no surprise, at this point, that certain locations in Austin this week are currently filming locations -- including Wheatsville Co-Op and South Congress.While it is not immediately clear what the filming is for, actors Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson were seen filming on South Congress on Wednesday, according to a user on TikTok."We just saw behind the scenes of the Apple comedy series 'Brothers' on Congress St in Austin this morning," the TikTok user said.A Ri
  
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• House bill could let SXSW get state funding for event costs

  15-05-2025 22:24 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- South by Southwest could get state funding to help pay costs associated with planning and conducting its annual conferences and festivals if a bill passed by the Texas House on Wednesday makes it all the way through the legislature and off the governor's desk with his signature.House Bill 4811, introduced by Rep. Sheryl Cole, D-Austin, would extend the eligibility for the Major Events Reimbursement Program (MERP) to include South by Southwest.
  This comes as the Austin Convention
  
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• Abbott asks USDA to prohibit 'unhealthy foods' from SNAP benefits

  15-05-2025 21:52 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- On Thursday, Gov. Greg Abbott sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins asking for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service to prohibit the purchase of "unhealthy foods" with SNAP benefits.
  In the letter, Abbott said that now, under the Trump administration, states can take steps to "eliminate the opportunity to buy junk food with SNAP benefits and assure that taxpayer dollars are used only to purchase healthy, nutritious food.
  
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• TxLege data: How many bills have state lawmakers passed?

  15-05-2025 21:12 via kxan.com
  
  This story is part of the KXAN Data Hub, where numbers help tell the whole story.
  We've created several data-driven stories and databases on topics including weather and climate, politics, education, sports and growth in Texas. Each story in the KXAN Data Hub is updated as new data becomes available.AUSTIN (KXAN) — Each legislative session, thousands of bills are filed by state lawmakers, but how many actually become law? And how long does each session typically last?KXAN dug through the
  
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• Austin metro in top 10 for areas where homeownership rates are lowest

  15-05-2025 20:44 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A recent study ranked the Austin-Round Rock metro as tenth in the nation for where homeownership rates were the lowest.SmartAsset, a financial technology company, said it ranked 75 U.S. metro areas based on where homeownership is most and least prevalent. That ranking placed the Austin-Round Rock metro at No. 66 overall. What a roommate can save you in Austin in 2025When compared to 2024, the study found the Austin-Round Rock metro had a change in homeownership of 1.7% by 2
  
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• Man sentenced to 35 years in prison after 2023 homicide

  15-05-2025 20:35 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A man was sentenced on April 1 in connection with a February 2023 homicide, according to Travis County court documents.
  The documents showed that 25-year-old Tamorian Moore pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Toward his sentence, Moore received 774 days of jail time credit. RELATED | Man charged with murder after neighbor’s body found in his apartmentMoore's sentencing was in connection with the murder of his neighbor, 81-year-old Leonard Fost
  
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• San Marcos PD: 6 injured by truck hitting group in crosswalk near downtown area

  15-05-2025 19:23 via kxan.com
  
  SAN MARCOS, Texas (KXAN) --- Six people were injured after a truck crashed into a group of pedestrians in a crosswalk, according to the San Marcos Police Department. SMPD said just after 1 a.m. on Thursday, May 15, officers responded to the intersection of Hopkins Street and LBJ Drive.The department said when they arrived, officers determined multiple people were struck by a pickup truck in the intersection. SMPD said according to its initial investigation, the truck was speeding on LBJ Drive be
  
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• Army dad returns home to Round Rock to surprise son for kindergarten graduation

  15-05-2025 19:20 via kxan.com
  
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) -- More than 80 young students in Round Rock celebrated a milestone on Wednesday morning: kindergarten graduation.But for one boy, Ryder, the day was extra special.
  When his name was called during Union Hill Elementary's Kindergarten Graduation, Ryder walked onto the stage and came face-to-face with his dad, whom he hadn't seen since last fall.
  Ryder's dad, Andrew, has been on deployment with the Army since October. He said he was given a pass to return home for a few da
  
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• 'So many questions' says family of man allegedly killed by 12 and 13 year old

  15-05-2025 19:19 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Austin Police Department has arrested two minors - a 12-year-old boy and a 13-year-old boy - in connection with the death of 20-year-old Anthony Salas.Anthony Salas, 20, was killed in May. Two minors were arrested in connection.
  "Anthony could always light up a room, he was his mom's first born," said Hazel Roland, a long-time family friend. "Born on Christmas Day. Probably the best Christmas present a mom could ever have."A GoFundMe has been created for Salas' family.In the
  
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• Border Report Live: Trump's efforts to limit asylum, birth rights face legal challenges

  15-05-2025 19:15 via kxan.com
  
  EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) -- The Trump administration is challenging longstanding tenets on the right to flee oppression abroad and find a safe haven in the United States, as well as the right of all persons born in the U.S. to call themselves an American. This week on Border Report Live, correspondents Julian Resendiz, Salvador Rivera and Sandra Sanchez examine how millions of people showed up at the U.S.-Mexico border in recent years seeking entry based on American asylum law. This l
  
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