Free Republic

Austin, Texas residents are expressing outrage over police staffing shortages and longer 911-call response times in the aftermath of the city council's vote to defund the department in 2020. In February, a section of the city was notably left without a single police officer for a few hours on a Saturday due to the ongoing shortages. Austin Police Association President Michael Bullock, who called attention to the vacancy on X, told Fox News Digital that a steady decline in public safety has put the city on the "brink of disaster."

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Widespread power outages in the Texas capital stretched into a third day Friday for thousands of residents following a winter storm that was spiraling into a management crisis as city leaders remained unable to say when all the lights would come back on. Impatience among frazzled, freezing and fed-up families in Austin escalated even as milder weather returned. On Friday, the newly elected mayor stood before cameras and apologized after a week of slow repairs, failed technology and lacking communication with the public. “The city let its citizens down. The situation is unacceptable to the community,...

Texas’ capital city is once again thumbing its nose at the state government, this time by defying Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Legislature’s recently passed ban on sanctuary cities. Last week, the Austin City Council unanimously approved a pair of “Freedom City” resolutions that target racial disparity in Austin Police Department arrests and how police officers are to react to illegal immigrants. While the first is largely eye-roll worthy (par for the course as far as Austin City Council resolutions go), it does instruct officers to refrain from arresting minority individuals for “low-level offenses” such as smoking marijuana, possession...

AUSTIN — Nadia Bolz-Weber bounds into the University United Methodist Church sanctuary like a superhero from Planet Alternative Christian. Her 6-foot-1 frame is plastered with tattoos, her arms are sculpted by competitive weightlifting and, to show it all off, this pastor is wearing a tight tank top and jeans. Looking out at the hundreds of people crowded into the pews to hear her present the gospel of Jesus Christ, she sees: Dockers and blazers. Sensible shoes. Grandmothers and soccer moms. Nary a facial piercing. To Bolz-Weber’s bafflement, this is now her congregation: mainstream America. These are the people who put...

This week The Audacity of Hope, the US boat to Gaza, will sail to Greece to rendezvous with other international ships. From there the flotilla, named "Freedom Flotilla II - Stay Human," will attempt to sail to Gaza to challenge Israel's unlawful blockade which has effectively imprisoned 1.6 million civilians, almost half of whom are under the age of 16. Aboard the ships will be hundreds of peaceful activists and observers, and some ships will carry humanitarian aid. Here in Austin, CodePink invites you to join us for a symbolic launch on the Pfluger pedestrian bridge. We don't have our...

AUSTIN – Thousands of college graduates with no teacher training are expected to be put in charge of classrooms this fall under a controversial plan approved Friday to ease the state's teacher shortage. The plan creates a new two-year teaching certificate that allows college graduates to become instant teachers in grades eight through 12 if they pass a state test and their degree is related to the subjects they would teach. State Board of Education members cleared the plan on Friday even though a bare majority was against it. Opponents on the 15-member board were two votes short of the...

Man convicted of murdering girl in '91 Austin jurors in yogurt-shop case reject that confession was forced 09/23/2002 Associated Press AUSTIN - A man who confessed to police that he shot and strangled a 13-year-old girl at an Austin yogurt shop 11 years ago was convicted Sunday of capital murder. The decision against Michael Scott came in the Dec. 6, 1991, murder of Amy Ayers. Jurors deliberated 22 ½ hours over three days before handing up the verdict at 2:30 p.m. Sunday to state District Judge Mike Lynch. Mr. Scott faces the death penalty or life in prison when...