Texas Abortion Restrictions Remain in Effect. The legal challenge that briefly blocked Senate Bill 8 from being enacted is in the rear view mirror. Perhaps the most conservative of all the federal appeals courts allowed the ban on abortion after six weeks of gestation to continue until the courts take up the U.S. Department of Justice’s official challenge to the state law. The state’s decision has caused women to pour into neighboring states like Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Kansas seeking abortions.
Meanwhile, Legislators Dilute Tarrant, Dallas County Districts. The redistricting process is targeting the 33rd and 6th congressional districts, largely suburban areas that have seen a flood of Latino and Asian residents. Those districts had long been Republican strongholds, but have recently won favor with Democrats. Now, the Texas Tribune reports, they’re taking these areas with growing percentages of people of color and “grafting them onto massive districts dominated by White voters.” That means the districts, which currently encompass the suburban areas east of Fort Worth and just east of Dallas, respectively, would glom onto the rural counties north and south of them, more than halving the influence of likely Democratic voters.
Dallas Cop Shoots at Man, Suspended for 45 Days. Officer Branson Grisham rounded a corner and then fired his weapon at a 59-year-old man who was standing still with his hands up. The cop missed, but his body camera captured the act. No weapon was found on the man, proving that he was not a threat to the officer. Police Chief Eddie Garcia said he had “serious concerns” with the incident and placed the officer on administrative leave. Now Grisham will be sidelined without pay for 45 days; the incident has been forwarded to a grand jury.
Cold Front Is Here, Fall To Come. You’re going to wake up to temperatures in the low 70s that will drop into the 60s behind a northern wind. Expect those temperatures to hold through the afternoon and evening. Saturday morning will begin in the 50s with surrounding areas in the 40s; expect the afternoon to stay around the 70s. Same deal on Sunday. Enjoy the weather—Fake Fall is dead.
