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From the Gavel Daily newsroom

Who Can Be Denied Bail in Texas Now?
Assault4d ago

Who Can Be Denied Bail in Texas Now?

Texas voters added Section 11d to the state constitution in November 2025, letting judges deny pretrial bail in nine specific felony cases. The charge alone does not decide it. A prosecutor has to ask, and then has to prove one of two theories at a hearing where you have a right to a lawyer.

AssaultSep 2

A Colorado Judge Threw Out a Felony Case Without Finding the DNA Analyst Ever Touched It. The State Supreme Court Wants Him to Explain Why.

On August 2, 2026, a Weld County judge dismissed a felony child sexual assault case over the CBI DNA scandal, even though prosecutors say analyst Yvonne "Missy" Woods altered nothing in that specific case. The Colorado Supreme Court has ordered him to explain by September 16, and the answer could change what more than 1,000 Colorado defendants are able to ask for.

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AssaultAug 20

Alabama Can Seek the Death Penalty for Crimes That Killed No One Starting October 1, and the Sponsor Says That Is the Point

Alabama's Child Predator Death Penalty Act takes effect October 1, 2026, making first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, and sexual torture capital offenses when the victim is under 12. The Supreme Court held in Kennedy v. Louisiana that the Eighth Amendment forbids exactly this. The bill's sponsor agrees, and says forcing the Court to reconsider is the whole strategy. Here is what actually changes for anyone charged.

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AssaultAug 19

Pennsylvania's Deadline to Fix Life Without Parole Expired on July 24, and 1,100 Sentences Are Now in Limbo

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court struck down mandatory life without parole for second-degree murder in March, then gave lawmakers 120 days to write a replacement. The deadline came and went with no law. Roughly 1,100 people now hold a constitutional right that only one of them can currently enforce.

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