Free Republic

Tommy Vaughn knows his clients may be distrustful when a court appoints him to handle their case. Without enough money to hire their own lawyer, defendants are often suspicious that court-appointed attorneys will provide a poor defense or just try to coerce a quick guilty plea. “I kind of assume that’s what they’re thinking when I first meet them,” said Vaughn, who has worked as a defense attorney in Texas for 2½ years. The issue of trust has long been part of a larger discussion about the quality of indigent defense in the U.S. Now, the Central Texas county where...

These people are unfair and manipulate the judicial system. Jennifer Tharp should not be re-elected.

Three private groups are now in the hunt to build U.S. 281 toll lanes, but two big foreign companies competing just a short while ago to build and lease a larger toll network here have dropped out. The Alamo Regional Mobility Authority board voted Wednesday to let all three teams submit plans to rebuild U.S. 281 north of Loop 1604 into a tollway with free access roads by 2012. It's the fledging agency's first project. "Goodness knows we have been two and a half years getting here," board member Bob Thompson said. "Maybe it's even more important to see the...

A lawsuit filed against Comal County Judge Danny Scheel, former County Commissioner Moe Schwab and County Engineer Tom Hornseth just won’t go away. The suit has reached the Fifth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals, but no matter how you slice it, Comal County is in a world of hurt, thanks to former employees Monica M. Wallace and Patricia Kniss, plaintiffs in the case. The Fifth Circuit action was sought by Scheel and other defendants, seeking an appeal of a United States District Court (Western District) decision, in which Scheel’s hope of being protected by “qualified Immunity” would...

FREIHEIT, Texas - Have Nose. Will Travel. That sums up Barbara Emmerson's job. She's one of two so-called Nasal Rangers at the Comal County, Texas, Landfill. They stop at specific locations and take a big whiff. The Nasal Rangers are part of an effort to control yucky odors emanating from the landfill. They say it can be a little embarrassing when they tell others about the unusual job. The Rangers have office duties at the landfill as well. But Emmerson says sticking her nose in the air is the satisfying part of the work. She says she wants to help...