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Federal judge blocks Houston from ticketing Food Not Bombs volunteers

The order was handed down late Wednesday afternoon, just hours before Houston Food Not Bombs was set to commence its regular food-sharing service at Downtown's Central Library. Wednesday marked the first time in nearly a year that FNB volunteers were not ticketed for violating the law.

The loosely affiliated volunteer group sued the city in January, arguing that the decade-old anti-feeding ordinance was a violation of the group's First Amendment rights. The lawsuit claimed that FNB's four-times

VIDEO: Violent arrest, tasing mar Houston Food Not Bombs event

The incident happened outside the Central Library in Downtown Houston on Jan. 3 during one of FNB's regular outreach events for unhoused Houstonians. According to FNB volunteer Nick Cooper, a group of Harris County constables—"four cars worth"—showed up at the library to serve a warrant on an FNB volunteer. During the arrest, another volunteer was tased and also brought into custody. Cooper said Houston Police, who have been regularly ticketing FNB volunteers for violating Houston's decade-old f

Tilman Fertitta buys key property on Houston's Memorial Drive

Billionaire businessman Tilman Fertitta has purchased a plot of land just outside Memorial Park in an apparent bid to expand his dining and entertainment empire, according to the Houston Chronicle.

The 1.63-acre site at 5757 Memorial Drive is mere meters away from the restaurant Brenner's on the Bayou and its event space White House, both of which are owned by Fertitta's hospitality company, Landry's. A Comerica Bank branch currently occupies the property, which is two stories high and 17,829 s

Pride Houston 365 to host fall festival in addition to summer parade

Pride Houston 365, which will host the 46th annual Houston Pride Celebration in summer 2024, has announced a new event to its lineup—a fall pride festival scheduled for next October.

The announcement comes after the group decided to cancel the 2023 Pride Festival this past June due to excessive heat and funding issues. According to Pride Houston 365, the 2022 festival, which typically takes place during the daytime, before the annual Pride Parade, was beset with heat injuries and other medical

Groom of $59M viral wedding faces prison for shooting at Texas police

The groom of a $59 million mega-wedding that went viral on social media last month is now facing charges that could put him in prison for life after pulling a gun on North Texas police officers earlier this year.

Jacob LaGrone, 29, who lives near Fort Worth in the small community of Westworth Village, made a court appearance in the case on Nov. 30, according to the Dallas Morning News. The incident happened in March, and LaGrone was indicted in August.

After the indictment, but before the Nov.

Grinch terrorizes Texas schoolchildren with ‘Santa is fake’ sign

A Texas man has drawn the ire of parents recently after dressing up as the Grinch and standing outside an Amarillo elementary school with a sign that read, "Santa is fake, Jesus is real."

David Harold Grisham, who refers to himself on Facebook as a "street preacher," was accosted by parents of Sleepy Hollow Elementary School in Amarillo on Nov. 27 after what he calls his "Grinch preach." Video filmed by Grisham and uploaded to YouTube shows at least two parents accosting the man during what app

Two Houston Pride groups come to agreement in trademark dispute

Pride Houston 365 originally sued New Faces of Pride on Oct. 23, accusing the newly formed non-profit of intentionally creating confusion among advertisers, vendors, sponsors and attendees by using a similar name and logo to Pride Houston 365 to promote its events. The lawsuit asked for an injunction preventing New Faces from marketing their events until the lawsuit was heard. New Faces of Pride Houston is also planning a pride parade for 2024.

During a hearing in district court on Nov. 3, Judg

Woman sues Toyota Center for injuries sustained during concert

A Texas woman is suing the owners of the Toyota Center after she says she was injured when an allegedly drunk concertgoer fell on her during a Karol G performance in September of last year.

The lawsuit, filed in Harris Count on Oct. 25, names Clutch City Sports & Entertainment, L.P.; Pritchard Sports & Entertainment Group Ltd., and Levy Premium Foodservice, L.L.C., and alleges that they failed to provide a safe environment, failed to warn of or eliminate dangerous conditions at the venue, and t

Houston teens perform plays bearing witness to gun violence

Cotey had already been inspired by the student movement that emerged after the Parkland, Florida, shooting, with survivors like David Hogg and Emma González becoming more politically active in the effort to prevent future mass shootings. Cotey decided to offer his own resources—knowledge of the theater, and a literal stage—to help amplify the voices of other student activists. Thus was born Enough! Plays to End Gun Violence, a reading series featuring short plays written by preteens and teens fr

Houston receives grant to address homelessness with art

This is the third time Bloomberg has offered the grants as part of its Public Art Challenge, which is meant to address important civic issues in cities across the country. In the previous round, in 2018, five cities were chosen, and the initiative generated more than $100 million in economic benefits for those cities' economies. Houston's project is the first proposal in three rounds to address the issue of homelessness.

Cynthia Alvarado, director of operations for the Midtown Management Distri

Pride v. Pride: Longtime Houston LGBTQ organization sues upstart

The suit, which was filed Oct. 25 in Harris County, accuses the newly formed nonprofit New Faces of Pride Houston of intentionally creating confusion among advertisers, vendors, sponsors and attendees by using a similar name and logo to Pride Houston 365 to promote its events. New Faces of Pride Houston is also planning a pride parade for 2024.

The suit requests a temporary restraining order and injunctions against New Faces of Pride, preventing them from marketing their events until the case i

Zach Bryan fans angry after 'poorly ran' College Station festival

"We understand attendees’ frustration concerning traffic flow in and out of the venue and acknowledge we have some work to do and have already started on new ways to alleviate traffic congestion," event organizers said in a statement, according to KBTX. "We take pride in delivering a great consumer experience and acknowledge we missed the mark in certain areas."

Organizers noted that parking lots opened two hours earlier than originally planned to alleviate traffic and that the venue had not ru

Two new Astroworld lawsuits filed against Travis Scott

Two new lawsuits have been filed against the organizers of the fatal 2021 Astroworld music festival, representing more than 40 plaintiffs combined.

The lawsuits, which were filed in Harris County on Oct 12. and Oct. 17, respectively, name a litany of defendants, including rappers Travis Scott and Drake, Live Nation Entertainment, Apple, and several of the agencies who provided security for the festival. Each lawsuit is asking for $1 million in damages.

Ten people died and hundreds more were in

Truck finally removed from Buffalo Bayou after 11 months

The truck has been stuck in the middle of Buffalo Bayou behind the mountain bike trails at the park for almost a year. The truck's owner, 29-year-old Alejandro Torres, was reported missing by his family in November after he was last seen at a bar on Washington Avenue on Nov. 27. On Nov. 29, a hiker in Memorial Park reported seeing the truck submerged in the water near the Aqua mountain bike trail on the south side of the park. On Dec. 3, Torres' body was recovered from the water by police divers

Lawsuits allege 'missing' West U man faked his disappearance

A West University developer and father of three who went missing over the summer is now being sued by investors and home buyers who claim he faked his own disappearance in order to hide financial malfeasance.

Two new lawsuits, which were filed in Harris County on Oct. 4, include allegations that Brett Detamore took cash advances that were meant to be used to purchase construction materials for new homes and instead used them to fund a "lavish lifestyle". The suit also alleges that Detamore crea

Texas ranks second in the country for successful book bans

The study, which was released Sept. 21 and compiled by free expression nonprofit PEN America, shows that over the 2022–23 school year, 625 titles were banned by public school districts in the state, including titles by Toni Morrison, Margaret Atwood, and John Green. That's second in the country, behind only Florida, which banned a whopping 1,406 titles.

The study also shows that book bans are becoming more common throughout the country, with 33 percent more bans happening in the 22–23 academic

Judge issues order barring Texas’ book rating law

Nearly three weeks after issuing an oral ruling temporarily pausing enforcement of HB 900, also known as the Reader Act, U.S. A District Court Judge Alan D. Albright has issued a formal written order barring implementation of the law, writing that it "violates the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.”

Meanwhile, the state has indicated its intention to appeal the ruling by Albright. Prior to the release of Albright's written order, the state also asked Albright to allow the law to go into

City of Houston drops lawsuit against Galleria nightclub Tabu

The City of Houston has dropped its lawsuit against the owners of Galleria-area nightclub Tabu, the site of multiple shootings and other disturbances, including one on June 11 that injured five people and killed a sixth.

The city initially sued the owners of the club a week after that shooting, calling the venue a "common nuisance" and citing a string of violent incidents going back to January 2022, including multiple aggravated assaults with a deadly weapon. The city also accused Tabu of opera

Judge pauses enforcement of Texas book rating law

A judge has paused enforcement of a new law that would require any book vendor who sells to Texas public schools to rate every publication in their stock on the basis of sexual content.

The law, Texas House Bill 900, also known as the Readers Act, was passed this spring during the state's biannual legislative session, and was set to go into effect Sept. 1. During a Zoom status call on Aug. 31, U.S. District Court Judge Alan D. Albright indicated that he would also issue a written order in the n

2nd suspect identified in deadly Texas nightclub shooting

A second suspect has been named in the June shooting at an Houston nightclub that left five people injured and one dead.

Calvin Rashad Williams, 32, is charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one count of aggravated assault against a public servant, according to the Houston Police Department. As of Monday he had not yet been arrested.

Police believe that Williams was the main gunman in the June 11 shooting at Tabu, a Galleria-area nightclub that was the site of

Autopsy shows rapper Big Pokey died of ‘massive’ heart attack

Jefferson County officials have released the results of an autopsy in the death of Houston rapper Big Pokey, which show the musician died of a heart attack while performing at a Juneteenth festival in Beaumont earlier this summer.

Pokey, whose given name was Milton Powell, collapsed on stage during the late night show at Pour09 Bar on June 18. Several bystanders and a Beaumont police officer who was working security at the venue were able to render aid immediately before paramedics arrived to t

'Emily Takes Notes' is simplifying Houston city council meetings

It's been three years since Emily Hynds started documenting Houston City Council meetings on social media. Now, as as a citywide election looms—including the chance for Houstonians to choose a new mayor in November—she has some advice for Bayou City voters: This is the time to keep an eye on city council meetings.

This year marks the end of Sylvester Turner's second four-year term as Houston mayor, and six members of city council, as well as city comptroller Chris Brown, are all facing term lim

Paramore singer calls out Texas governor at Houston show

In October 2022, while performing at the Austin City Limits Festival, Paramore lead singer Hayley Williams called on Texans to turn their back on Republican Governor Greg Abbott and instead vote for former Democratic congressman Beto O'Rourke in the following month's state gubernatorial election.

From stages in Austin, Fort Worth and San Antonio, Williams has dedicated the song "Big Man, Little Dignity" to Abbott, who is serving his third term as governor. The lyrics to the song address patriar

Texas woman fights off would-be armed mugger in parking lot

The video, released by Houston Police on Monday, shows the woman as she is unloading items from the passenger side of her car after arriving at work near 6900 Alabonson Road early on the morning of June 29. She has a cell phone wedged between her left ear and shoulder while she juggles multiple items in both hands, including a tote bag, a water bottle, a can of soda and what appears to be an accordion folder.

A man dressed in all black approaches her from behind, brandishes a gun, and demands h
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