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June 30 -- Rains bring some drought relief but mainly along the immediate Gulf Coast: HOUSTON (AP) - Some areas of parched Southeast Texas looked for a second straight day of rain Monday, but it was south-central Texas' turn for a respite from drought conditions.

June 30 -- Gramm: Texans must act quickly to get their share of highway dollars: HOUSTON (AP) - Boosters of the state's regional highway projects need to be first in line making overtures to the federal government for newly set aside transportation money, U.S. Sen. Phil Gramm warned Monday.

June 30 -- San Antonio makes bid to host 2000 Republican National Convention: SAN ANTONIO (AP) - With dancers, fireworks and balloons, a cadre of civic leaders tried Monday to persuade the Republican National Committee to bring its 2000 party convention to town.

June 30 -- Hay hotline established: AUSTIN (AP) - A toll-free hotline has been set up by the state for farmers and ranchers in drought-stricken areas of Texas who need hay for their livestock.

June 30 -- School budgets affected by oil slump: LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) - West Texas school officials are having to take a long, hard look at their budgets for the coming school year because of the oil slump. But they say job cuts are not in the immediate future.

June 30 -- Summers stresses importance of U.S. investing in IMF: ABILENE, Texas (AP) - U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers stressed again Monday the importance of ensuring adequate resources for the International Monetary Fund.

June 30 -- Wyman Meinzer photographs the land he loves best: the Texas plains: QUANAH, Texas - Wyman Meinzer is the resident photographer of the tiny town of Benjamin, Texas - and a storyteller as well - but he doesn't travel far for some of his best material.

June 30 -- Jury selection to get under way next week for second cadet trial: FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - Jury selection will get under way next week at New Braunfels for the murder trial of a former Air Force Academy cadet in the slaying of a Mansfield High School student.

June 30 -- Capital Briefs: News briefs from Austin

June 30 -- Police identify juvenile suspect in triple slaying: BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) - Police are seeking a 15-year-old Brownsville middle school student after he allegedly bragged about gunning down three teens during a robbery.

June 29 -- Car wash air conditioner stolen during heat wave: HOUSTON (AP) -- The heat can cause people to do crazy things sometimes -- like steal a 200-pound air conditioner.

June 29 -- Klan rally accomplishes real goal: media attention: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- The weekend Ku Klux Klan rally here had the stated purpose of condemning a black resident's horrific death by three white men accused of chaining him to a pickup truck, then dragging him along a country road until his body shredded to pieces.

June 29 -- LULAC convention to focus on education, immigration and image: DALLAS (AP) -- Delegates from one of the nation's oldest civil rights organizations will converge upon Dallas this week to talk about issues facing the national Hispanic community.

June 29 -- Report: Plastics industry knew about vinyl chloride deaths long before action taken: HOUSTON (AP) -- Chemical industry documents dating back four decades noted the cancer danger to workers caused by an ingredient used to make one of the world's common plastics, according to the Houston Chronicle.

June 29 -- Controversial color on the courthouse square?: DENTON, Texas -- Purple? That's the single-word question that businesses and residents on the Square are asking after learning that the new owners of the old Wright Opera House plan to paint the historic building a new color.

June 29 -- New tower will help cut through fog, extend view of air traffic: AUSTIN (AP) -- State-of-the-art landing systems and radar equipment based out of a new Federal Aviation Administration control tower at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport will mean fewer fog delays for travelers, air traffic controllers say.

June 29 -- Trail part of improvements in historic missions area: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Along the historic Mission Trail, the city is spending millions of dollars to spruce up the area around the Spanish settlements that date from the 1700s.

June 29 -- Democrats have fight ahead: SAN ANTONIO -- For the optimists in the Democratic Party, this year is no different from past elections when their candidates have come from behind to achieve victory.

June 29 -- Many Texans agree with some New Age beliefs, poll shows: About half of Texans say New Age beliefs contradict their religious faith, but most agree with some New Age ideas, according to The Scripps Howard Texas Poll.

June 29 -- UT researchers attack germ-warfare: AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- A pair of University of Texas researchers say they're close to a breakthrough in the search for a way to protect the public from germ warfare.

June 28 -- Most Texans support bilingual education: About three-fourths of Texans support bilingual education, but they are split over how to teach students with limited English skills, according to The Scripps Howard Texas Poll.

June 28 -- Klan assembles in Jasper to condemn black man's slaying: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Vastly outnumbered by police and media, 25 Ku Klux Klan members rallied Saturday to condemn the horrific slaying of a black man earlier this month by three whites accused of having ties to supremacist groups.

June 28 -- Attorney suspected of paying hush money to sexual assault victim: HOUSTON (AP) -- A lawyer with a history of problems with the State Bar of Texas was arrested in court on accusations he paid a sexual assault victim not to testify against his client.

June 28 -- Report: Welfare rolls shrinking; other states lead in placement: DALLAS (AP) -- Texas families are getting off welfare in greater numbers but still having trouble landing jobs, according to a federal government report.

June 28 -- Documents: Suspect confessed to friends, Mexican police: SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) -- The man charged with killing a woman in front of her quadruplet daughters told acquaintances about the slaying and even confessed before Mexican police, newly released investigative documents indicate.

June 28 -- Police arrest 64 in Grayson County drug sweep: SHERMAN, Texas (AP) -- More than 60 people have been arrested in a Grayson County drug sweep that started Friday and continued into the weekend.

June 27 -- Robbery audit discovers money was missing: WACO, Texas (AP) -- At least $600,000 is missing from an East Central Texas bank where a bank executive was slain, according to the Waco Tribune-Herald.

June 27 -- Tarrant County town opts not to help fight rural fire: FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Officials in suburban Benbrook are defending the town fire department's decision not to assist other Tarrant County units with a rural fire that destroyed a house and left two firefighters with minor injuries.

June 27 -- Dallas woman's suit against collagen maker rejected: WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Dallas woman who says she had to have plastic surgery after receiving collagen injections to reduce facial wrinkles lost a Supreme Court appeal today that sought to revive her lawsuit against the collagen maker.

June 27 -- VP promising help to keep Texas fires from getting out of control: WILLIS, Texas (AP) -- Scorched earth, the telltale sign of wildfire, is obvious along Interstate 45 in parched Montgomery County.

June 27 -- Hutchison predicts bumpy road through Senate for Amtrak: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Amtrak is going to have a bumpy ride through the Senate, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said Friday, predicting that the Texas Eagle and other lines outside the railroad's strong Northeast corridor may be newly imperiled.

June 27 -- Klan says rally aims to condemn black man's slaying: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Through clenched teeth and highway marquees, residents on Friday voiced their contempt for Ku Klux Klan leader Michael Lowe as he staged impromptu news conferences to hype his weekend rally here.

June 27 -- Bush commutes Lucas' sentence to life: BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Gov. George W. Bush on Friday agreed with the state parole board's recommendation not to execute confessed serial killer Henry Lee Lucas.

June 27 -- Famed defense attorney withdraws for Austin death-setence case: AUSTIN (AP) -- Citing a hectic schedule and his doctor's advice to stop doing death penalty work, defense lawyer Michael Tigar has withdrawn as attorney for a 47-year-old man convicted of shooting an Austin police officer.

June 27 -- Gore talks about welfare-to-work before convention: SAN ANTONIO -- Introduced to the Democratic State Convention as the next president of the United States, Vice President Al Gore bounded on stage to strains of ZZ Top and ripped into the GOP as "all sizzle and no steak."

June 27 -- Governors: Border is an opportunity -- not a problem: BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Gov. George W. Bush and a group of U.S. and Mexican governors want to educate their respective federal governments that the U.S.-Mexico border has potential, aside from its problems. .

June 27 -- Oprah lawyer: Food libel law bad news for journalism: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- The attorney who successfully defended Oprah Winfrey in a lawsuit brought by Panhandle cattlemen warned newspaper editors and publishers Friday to beware of the state's "veggie libel" law.

June 27 -- Man executed for 1988 stabbing frenzy that killed ex-girlfriend, siblings: HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- A 30-year-old San Antonio man was executed Friday night for a frenzied knife attack that left his former girlfriend and her three siblings fatally slashed inside their home a decade ago.

June 27 -- Texans satisfied with jobs, stressed out: At the same time, 85 percent say they're not worried about losing their jobs in the next year but 19 percent would fire their boss if they could.

June 26 -- Most Texans would use state money to provide health insurance for children: AUSTIN -- A majority of Texans favor using state money to help families buy health insurance for their children, according to The Scripps Howard Texas Poll.

June 26 -- Parole board recommends commutation of Lucas sentence: AUSTIN -- Confessed serial killer Henry Lee Lucas shouldn't be executed Tuesday for the rape and strangulation of a woman known as "Orange Socks," the state Board of Pardons and Paroles said Thursday.

June 26 -- Federal judge rules tribe's electronic machines illegal: AUSTIN (AP) -- Electronic gaming machines at the Kidkapoo Indians' Lucky Eagle casino in Eagle Pass are illegal, a federal judge says.

June 26 -- Benavides to take Dallas up on its city manager offer: DENTON, Texas (AP) -- Denton City Manager Ted Benavides said he's excited about the possibility of taking the job as Dallas city manager.

June 26 -- Democrats focus on family: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Democrats readying for their state convention focused on family issues Thursday as two members of their political family waged a battle for the party's top spot.

June 26 -- Vice President says more to be done on keeping kids from crime: FRIENDSWOOD, Texas (AP) -- Despite a falling juvenile crime rate, Vice-President Al Gore called Thursday for additional steps so "swift and certain punishment becomes part of the equation."

June 26 -- Legislators look at prison gangs: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texas prison gangs are a growing menace outside prison walls, authorities say.

June 26 -- Modernizing border among topics at border governors conference: BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Developing ideas to continue modernizing the Texas-Mexico border is Gov. George W. Bush's top priority during a two-day meeting involving the governors of several U.S. and Mexican border states.

June 26 -- Morales launches investigation of three HMOs: DALLAS (AP) -- Possible improper financial incentives to physicians at three HMOs have spurred Texas Attorney General Dan Morales to investigate, the Dallas Morning News reported in Thursday's editions.

June 26 -- Black Panthers to convene in Jasper to counter Klan rally: HOUSTON (AP) -- Advising Jasper residents to "load your guns," the New Black Panther Party said Thursday it would send armed members to the East Texas town Saturday to protect blacks during a planned Ku Klux Klan rally.

June 26 -- Tall mesquite will sprout cash: SAN ANTONIO -- About to chain-saw that huge old nuisance mesquite?

June 26 -- Deer Park firm may get shipment of napalm for recycling: HOUSTON (AP) -- A Deer Park storage facility may get a shipment of rail cars filled with 22,000 gallons of napalm for recycling, officials say.

June 26 -- Judicial Council approves new rules for court records: AUSTIN (AP) -- The Texas Judicial Council on Thursday approved new rules regarding public access to court records.

June 25 -- Governor says Mauro engaging in 'shallow' rhetoric: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Gov. George W. Bush lashed back at Democratic challenger Garry Mauro on Wednesday for suggesting that if Bush had done more to end mandatory prison release, a man accused in the Jasper dragging death might still be jailed.

June 25 -- Judge to release ruling on Texan accused of taking ammo into Mexico: VICTORIA, Texas (AP) -- A Mexican federal judge is to release his ruling Friday in the case of an El Campo man imprisoned for bringing ammunition across the border, a U.S. government official said Wednesday.

June 25 -- Witness: Bail bondsman targeted IRS agent, lawyer, newspaperman: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- A prominent bail bondsman ordered the killings of an Internal Revenue Service agent, a lawyer and a newspaper columnist because he was angry about a federal probe and bad press, a government witness says.

June 25 -- Miller County investigating look-alike gambling machines: TEXARKANA, Ark. (AP) -- Miller County may be getting some fallout from a Texas attorney general's opinion outlawing certain look-alike gambling machines.

June 25 -- Denton city manager offered Dallas job: DENTON, Texas (AP) -- Denton City Manager Ted Benavides will be offered the job as Dallas' city manager, an aide to Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk said Wednesday.

June 25 -- Houston inspector fined, suspended for improper work: AUSTIN (AP) -- State fire officials are cracking down on fire extinguisher inspectors doing improper work.

June 25 -- Clinton urges passage of tougher hate-crime law: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Citing the dragging death of a black Texas man, President Clinton urged Congress to pass a bill that would make it easier for federal prosecution of hate crimes.

June 25 -- Heat raises electricity demand; enough supply available, officials say: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texans are using plenty of electricity in this hot and dry June, but utility companies can produce enough power to meet the added need, according to state regulators.

June 25 -- Affidavit: Man's face was spray-painted before he was dragged to death: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- The black man dragged to his death along an East Texas back road earlier this month was sprayed in the face with black paint before he was chained to a truck and killed, according to court documents released this week.

June 25 -- Parole board voting on Lucas clemency; prosecutor says he did it: AUSTIN (AP) -- As the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles was voting Wednesday on confessed serial killer Henry Lee Lucas' bid for clemency, a prosecutor said the evidence shows Lucas did it.

June 25 -- Stanley Marsh 3 plans to put more color in the sky: HOUSTON (AP) -- The Amarillo millionaire who buried 10 Cadillacs and called it art is now planning to paint the Panhandle sky with rainbows.

June 25 -- Investigation expands in youth minister case: AUSTIN (AP) -- Police are following leads from half a dozen calls after charging the minister of students at one of Austin's largest Baptist churches with sexual assault of a child he met at the church.

June 25 -- Organ agencies urge more South Texans to become donors: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Scared, sad and happy all at once, an ailing Janie Rodriguez was loaded onto a small jet in McAllen and flown to San Antonio to begin a new life.

June 25 -- Court of Appeals changes accomplice witness rule for juveniles: AUSTIN (AP) -- In a sweeping reversal, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday said juveniles who are accomplices to a crime can no longer testify in court without having their testimony corroborated by other evidence.

June 25 -- American Airlines, pilots settle lawsuit: FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Pilots who sued American Airlines over their free speech rights have reached an agreement with the airline.

June 25 -- Officials discuss ways to get Houston area into air quality compliance: HOUSTON (AP) -- As Houston struggles to avoid surpassing Los Angeles as the nation's smog capital, speakers at an air quality conference Wednesday said the entire eastern half of Texas is going to have to chip in by cleaning up its skies.

June 25 -- Discovery might bring relief to Alzheimer's sufferers: EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- By age 75, Alzheimer's disease had stolen the woman's life. She couldn't get out of bed in the morning, go to the bathroom or even get dressed without assistance.

June 25 -- Texas judicial nominee withdraws name after lengthy standoff with Gramm: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Stymied by Sen. Phil Gramm's implacable opposition, Fort Worth lawyer Michael Schattman has asked President Clinton to withdraw his name from consideration for appointment to the federal bench in the Northern District of Texas.

June 24 -- Clinton declares fire emergency in Texas; offers federal help: WASHINGTON (AP) -- With Texas dry as a tinderbox from a scorching heat wave that won't lift, President Clinton on Tuesday declared an emergency and ordered federal assistance to help combat existing wildfires and prevent future outbreaks.

June 24 -- Report: Tobacco truce near: HOUSTON (AP) -- A truce is likely to be announced soon in the war between Attorney General Dan Morales and Gov. George W. Bush over legal fees in the state's tobacco settlement.

June 24 -- Report: Bush may get heat over R-rated film ties: AUSTIN (AP) -- Gov. George W. Bush was on the board of directors of a company that raised $1 billion to finance Walt Disney Co. movies, including some R-rated films, the Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday.

June 24 -- Consumer, environment advocates warn Texans to be vocal in dereg debate: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texas consumers will be left in the dark and holding the bill if they don't become more vocal in the debate over deregulating the state's electric utilities, a group of consumer and environmental advocates warned Tuesday.

June 24 -- Safety experts urge caution: AUSTIN (AP) -- The extremely dry conditions across much of Texas prompted fire prevention experts Tuesday to urge the public to keep safety in mind with the upcoming July 4 holiday.

June 24 -- Lawyer accuses white man of scheming to take black child from family: HOUSTON (AP) -- A white man used his expertise as a lawyer to facilitate a scheme to take a black child from his mother, an attorney told jurors Tuesday in opening statements of a custody case that has outraged the city's black community.

June 24 -- High-stakes case revolves around cooking grease: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- The case has all the elements of a high-stakes undercover investigation -- wired microphones, a surveillance camera and a secret informant.

June 24 -- Severe heat causing deaths of illegal immigrants: LAREDO, Texas (AP) -- At least 10 undocumented immigrants have died while walking in the 100-degree-plus heat that has seared South Texas the past three weeks, the U.S. Border Patrol says.

June 24 -- Attorney General lends hand to Jasper prosecutors; city braces for rally: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Lawyers from the state Attorney General's office arrived here Tuesday to help local prosecutors prepare a capital case against at least two of the three men charged with dragging another man to death along a country road.

June 24 -- New trial ordered for woman on Death Row: HOUSTON (AP) -- One of seven women on Death Row may get a third trial in the 1980 strangulation of a Houston man.

June 24 -- Pantex loses out to South Carolina in competition for 500-job facility: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Texas' Pantex Plant officially lost out Wednesday to South Carolina in a competition for a new $500 million mixed-oxide fuel fabrication facility.

June 24 -- Archdiocese ousts priest accused in sex assault: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- A parish priest has been removed from his duties after he was accused of sexually assaulting an altar boy 22 years ago, the Archdiocese of San Antonio says.

June 24 -- Documents outline suspicions against victim's husband: SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) -- The teen-age daughter of a woman slain in front of her quadruplet toddlers told detectives she suspected her father may have been involved, according to court documents.

June 24 -- Federal judge sentences McLaren to 12 years: DALLAS (AP) -- A federal judge sentenced Texas separatist Richard McLaren today to 12 years and seven months in federal prison and ordered him to make $426,000 in restitution payments.

June 24 -- Supreme Court dismisses case involving Planned Parenthood: AUSTIN (AP) -- Planned Parenthood on Tuesday lost an attempt to wipe out a provision in state law that requires parental consent before minors obtain state-paid birth control and other prescriptions.

June 24 -- Small family businesses compete with national tortilla factories: ODESSA, Texas -- Manuel Gonzalez III has been making tortillas since he was a child.

June 23 -- Scientists says haze over Texas similar to smog over L.A.: AUSTIN (AP) - There's more evidence to support the feeling of city-dwelling Texans who think traffic snarls make their hometowns look like Los Angeles. The air lately is a lot like L.A., too.

June 23 -- Heat, dry weather prompt fires across state: Drought-fueled fires raged in three counties across the state Monday as the first week of summer brought more triple-digit temperatures and turned thousands of acres of grassland into what firefighter called "Texas kindling."

June 23 -- Parks and Wildlife touts spring-fed lakes to stay cool: AUSTIN (AP) - The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department wants Texans to think cool. As in pool. As broiling temperatures continue to bake the state, the Parks and Wildlife Department is reminding Texans about the many spring-fed lakes and pools across the state as a way to beat the heat.

June 23 -- West Texas counties among seven regions seeking spaceports: SAN ANGELO, Texas (AP) - Rocketships in West Texas? Officials in Fort Stockton and Sanderson seem to think it's a good idea. Pecos and Terrell counties are the state's only two inland locations participating in a study of possible spaceport sites, according to the San Angelo Standard-Times.

June 23 -- Dallas gets destruction, exposure in summer movies: DALLAS (AP) - About four million people watched an office building in downtown Dallas explode on movie screens last weekend as "The X-Files" raked in $31 million in ticket sales.

June 23 -- The truth is out there - even in Central Texas: WACO, Texas - Was a 1950s Waco drive-in movie theater a favorite stopover for flying saucers? Does a half-man, half-goat monster lurk in the shadows of a Central Texas bridge? Do spirits haunt the quiet paths of Waco's Cameron Park?

June 23 -- School district not liable for concealed teacher-student sex, court rules: AUSTIN (AP) - School districts must know about and show "deliberate indifference" to sexual harassment and abuse of students before they can be held accountable for such offenses, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a Texas case Monday.

June 23 -- Trial starts in custody case between white man, black family: HOUSTON (AP) - In a case that questions what role race and family ties should play in custody decisions, jury selection began Monday in the trial of a white man suing a black family for guardianship of their child.

June 23 -- Mauro attacks Bush on mandatory early release for prisoners: WASHINGTON (AP) - Days after Texas Gov. George W. Bush swept into town to raise a cool $1 million for his re-election, Democratic challenger Garry Mauro was making the rounds himself this week, using the drawing power of friends Bill and Hillary Clinton to help bring in a quarter-million dollars.

June 22 -- Computer use is climbing rapidly in state: About half of Texans have home computers, but most don't use the Internet, according to The Scripps-Howard Texas Poll. Computer ownership is growing fast in Texas - 51 percent now compared with 41 percent three years ago, according to the poll.

June 22 -- Dallas mayor seen as future candidate for statewide office: DALLAS (AP) - Mayor Ron Kirk is eyeing a second term, and many political pros believe he has a future beyond the local skyline.

June 22 -- Father says boy accused of slashing teachers needs help, not prison: McKINNEY, Texas - The father of the 16-year-old Princeton boy accused of slashing three high school teachers with a razor blade in March wants the world to know his son needs help, not imprisonment.

June 21 -- Most Texans believe juvenile crime a problem, blame parents, poll shows: Ninety-eight percent of Texans believe juvenile crime is a serious problem, and a majority blame parents for it, according to The Scripps Howard Texas Poll.

June 21 -- Ten border governors to discuss trade issues in Brownsville: BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Trade issues and job creation will be among the top issues when governors of 10 states on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border meet here beginning Thursday.

June 21 -- Volunteers complete Habitat's largest U.S. home-building project: HOUSTON (AP) -- The work is finished, but the celebrations have just begun.

June 21 -- Texas program won't take boys accused in Arkansas school shootings: JONESBORO, Ark. (AP) -- A Texas juvenile treatment program says it won't accept, if asked, the two Arkansas boys accused of the March 24 schoolyard murders of four schoolmates and a teacher.

June 21 -- Reporter turns 100, still going strong: THORNDALE, Texas (AP) -- Ask 99-year-old Grace Berry why she keeps writing for the newspaper, and she is quick with a quip: "My two boys tell me it's so they can retire," the mother of sons ages 74 and 79 said Saturday.

June 21 -- Fort Worth man sentenced to 99 years for killing man he saw urinating: FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- A man convicted of stabbing another man he saw urinating outside of his apartment in 1996 has been sentenced to 99 years in prison.

June 21 -- Trustees decide to vote against student drug testing: FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Trustees in a North Texas school district have dropped a plan to require drug testing of high school students involved in extracurricular activities.

June 21 -- Appeals court orders trial in father's lawsuit: HOUSTON (AP) -- An appeals court has ordered a trial in an unusual lawsuit brought by the father of a slain 7-year-old girl against the parents of a second victim.

June 20 -- San Antonio 'Bail Bond King' charged with tax fraud, obstructing justice: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- A man known as the "bail bond king" of San Antonio has been accused of income tax fraud and attempting to silence a business partner by trying to have him killed.

June 20 -- 2 men jailed after high-speed chase ends in Greenville: GREENVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Two cousins suspected of a cross-country crime spree have been jailed in Greenville.

June 20 -- Crickets, ants making life miserable at City Hall in Houston: HOUSTON (AP) -- Mayor Lee Brown's office is bugged. So are some City Council offices.

June 20 -- Fires spreading; Austin asks residents to save water: AUSTIN (AP) -- The danger of wildfires is rising like the thermometer, and Texas officials Friday said the longer the state goes without rain the worse it gets.

June 20 -- State officials find Avinger school board 'dysfunctional': AVINGER, Texas (AP) -- The Texas Education Agency's Division of School Governance has made public a report of its findings after an investigation of mismanagement by the Avinger Independent School District.

June 20 -- Another Greenville-area business suffers heavy fire damage: GREENVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Less than two days after three Greenville businesses suffered heavy fire damage, another blaze struck a statuary company on Interstate 30 just west of Greenville.

June 20 -- Home health care industry sweats out judge's ruling: DALLAS (AP) -- Home health-care officials in Texas say the fate of their industry could well be in the hands of U.S. District Judge Barefoot Sanders of Dallas.

June 20 -- Republic of Texas member convicted, sentenced to 90 years: FORT STOCKTON, Texas (AP) -- The last of five Republic of Texas members accused in a kidnapping that started an armed standoff a year ago has been convicted of burglury with intent to commit aggravated assault.

June 20 -- Comptroller seeks end to college student Social Security tax: AUSTIN (AP) -- State Comptroller John Sharp is asking Texas members of Congress to help change the Social Security Act so Texas can exempt working students from the tax.

June 19 -- Reports: New agreement is near: AUSTIN (AP) -- Attorney General Dan Morales' office said Thursday that Texas is "on the precipice" of a new tobacco deal that would bring the state more money than the $15.3 billion it's already won.

June 19 -- Twin Bush fund-raisers in D.C. top $1 million: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Gov. George W. Bush swept into the nation's capital on a million-dollar fund-raising swing Thursday, with aides continuing to play down speculation that he's focusing on anything other than re-election.

June 19 -- 'They just melted': 200,000 chickens killed by heat wave: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- The heat wave that has fried Texas in recent weeks has killed an estimated 200,000 chickens at poultry farms around Gonzales County in South Texas.

June 19 -- Folk healers from U.S., Mexico meet for three-day gathering: BROWNSVILLE, Texas -- Under a lush canopy of fig, papaya and banana trees, Helga Garza tends the organic gardens that nurture many of the medicinal herbs that her ancestors used centuries ago.

June 19 -- Panhandle fugitive: 'Love makes you do crazy things': HOUSTON (AP) -- Painting his romance with teen-age sweetheart Shannon Ludington as a modern "Romeo and Juliet" gone awry, recently captured fugitive Jimmie Hays told the Houston Chronicle that "love makes you do crazy things."

June 19 -- Feds want money to fight growing North Texas drug problem: DALLAS (AP) -- Federal drug fighters want to label a large area of North Texas a major national drug distribution center in order to secure increased funding to battle traffickers.

June 19 -- Bomb-disposal crew begins search for unexploded ordnance: EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- Bomb disposal experts have begun clearing a 150-acre tract of land that was an Army artillery range and may eventually become part of a state park.

June 19 -- State leads nation in pollution reduction, EPA says: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texas manufacturers reduced the amount of toxic chemicals they released and disposed of in 1996 by 34 million pounds, more than manufacturers in any other state, according to the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission and the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

June 19 -- Study finds possible link to high blood pressure in blacks: DALLAS (AP) -- Healthy blacks don't react as strongly as whites to a chemical that helps the body handle stress, according to a study that could help explain why blacks are more likely to have high blood pressure.

June 19 -- Trial of man accused of killing five takes bizarre turn: HOUSTON (AP) -- The trial of a man accused of killing five people at a Houston-area house has been delayed because, prosecutors say, the defendant tried to have four witnesses and another person killed.

June 19 -- DPS asking for public's help in identifying Henry Lee Lucas' 1979 victim: AUSTIN (AP) -- The Texas Department of Public Safety is asking for the public's help once again in identifying the woman known only as "Orange Socks," whose slaying landed Henry Lee Lucas on death row.

June 19 -- Sharp, Perry in dead heat, poll shows: The race for lieutenant governor is neck-and-neck between Democrat John Sharp and Republican Rick Perry, but nearly one-third of the voters still are undecided, according to The Scripps Howard Texas Poll.

June 18 -- Poll shows Bush in clear lead over Mauro in governor's race: Gov. George W. Bush would easily defeat Democratic Land Commissioner Garry Mauro if the 1998 election for governor were today, according to The Scripps Howard Texas Poll.

June 18 -- Police break up international car theft ring: EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- U.S. and Mexican police have cracked an elaborate international car theft ring with connections to drug trafficking.

June 18 -- Bush heads to nation's capital for pair of fund raisers: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Texas Gov. George W. Bush travels to the nation's capital Thursday for a pair of fundraisers expected to add more than $750,000 to his already-bountiful campaign coffers.

June 18 -- Pilot of crashed air ambulance familiar with area, rescue plan: HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) -- The National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary report on a medical helicopter crash says the pilot was not given coordinates to a rescue site, but he was familiar with the area.

June 18 -- Trial begins for clerk accused of abuse of power: TEXARKANA, Texas (AP) -- Testimony resumed Wednesday in Camp County for Bowie County Clerk Marylene Megason, who is on trial for two counts of abuse of official capacity. She is accused of paying her son's company, M&M Moving, for work performed by employees of her office and county jail inmates.

June 18 -- Man indicted on murder charges in baby's death: LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- A grand jury indicted a man Wednesday on a murder charge in the 1989 death of a 14-month-old boy whom discredited pathologist Ralph Erdmann had ruled died of pneumonia.

June 18 -- Lucas pleased governor asking parole board to look at his case: HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Confessed serial killer Henry Lee Lucas, maintaining his innocence with two weeks to go before his scheduled execution, said Wednesday he's pleased Gov. George W. Bush wants the state parole board to review his case.

June 18 -- Texans, on the brink of summer, wait for spring: HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) -- When summer officially kicks off Sunday, many Texans will be wondering what happened to spring.

June 18 -- GM closes Arlington plant because of Michigan strikes: ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- The General Motors plant in Arlington fell victim Wednesday to strikes in Michigan, shutting down because of a lack of truck parts.

June 17 -- Most crops suffering from drought: COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) -- Most of Texas is suffering from a drought, but ask several farmers if they need rain and you will likely get different responses, reports the Texas Agricultural Extension Service.

June 17 -- Texas facing $1.7 billion in drought-related costs, ag officials say: THRALL, Texas (AP) -- The drought of 1998 has dried up $517 million in crops so far, a cost of $1.7 billion to the overall state economy, according to ag economists at the Texas A&M extension program.

June 17 -- New autopsy reveals more mistakes by discredited pathologist: TULIA, Texas (AP) -- Despite friends' pleas to get on with his life after the death of his 14-month-old son, Norman Ballard held firm in his belief that the toddler did not die of pneumonia as a medical examiner had ruled.

June 17 -- KKK plans rally in Jasper: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Two Ku Klux Klan factions who have denounced the suspected hate-slaying of a black man plan to rally here later this month, city officials said Tuesday.

June 17 -- Police capture wanted couple in Las Vegas: LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- A South Plains couple featured on America's Most Wanted as a modern day Bonnie and Clyde were captured in Las Vegas last week when police pulled them over for having expired license plates.

June 17 -- Orange Socks tombstone simply reads: Unidentified Woman 1979: GEORGETOWN, Texas (AP) -- Her neighbors forever are a woman who died eight days after her 99th birthday and an infant who died on the day of his birth.

June 17 -- Simple flower unearthed archaeology passion: HEMPSTEAD, Texas -- Every place needs an explorer, and Waller County has found one in Clarence Miller.

June 17 -- Judge waxes eloquent in keeping historic pool open: AUSTIN (AP) -- Cleaning the pool is cool. So says a federal judge, who issued a rhyming ruling Tuesday rejecting a motion that could have closed Austin's landmark swimming hole, Barton Springs Pool.

June 17 -- Archbishop denies getting early warning about priest: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Catholic Archbishop Patrick Flores insists he had no warning about the sexual problems of a pedophile priest until three families complained to his staff in 1992.

June 17 -- Father of slain woman goes to Washington to protest: TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Sheila Bellush had just put life jackets on her quadruplet toddlers for a swim in the backyard pool when someone broke into her home, shot her in the face and slashed her throat.

June 17 -- U.S., Mexico launch initiative to reduce border crossing deaths: WASHINGTON (AP) -- They drown in the strong currents of the Rio Grande and California's All-American Canal, freeze to death in the mountains, or die of heat exposure and dehydration in the Arizona desert or on arid Texas ranchland.

June 16 -- Governor asks parole board to look at Lucas case: AUSTIN (AP) - Gov. George W. Bush said Monday he is bothered by questions raised about the guilt of confessed serial killer Henry Lee Lucas and has asked the State Board of Pardons and Paroles to review the case.

June 16 -- Will Lucas die for slaying he did not commit? AUSTIN (AP) - The irony can't be lost. Will Henry Lee Lucas, a man who confessed to committing as many as 600 murders, be put to death June 30 for one he did not commit?

June 16 -- Volunteers brave sweltering temperatures to build homes for the poor: HOUSTON (AP) - Under a scorching sun, thousands of sweat-soaked volunteers began hammering away Monday to build 100 homes in five days in Habitat for Humanity's largest U.S. project.

June 16 -- Feds approve Texas plan to expand health coverage for uninsured children: WASHINGTON (AP) - The Clinton administration signed off Monday on a Texas plan that would extend health coverage to 63,000 uninsured teen-agers whose families earn too much for traditional Medicaid yet not enough for private health insurance.

June 16 -- Legislators urge widening Interstate 35 in Central Texas: SALADO, Texas (AP) - Two state senators today urged that some of Texas' share of federal highway funds be used to widen a 110-mile stretch of Interstate 35 between Georgetown and Hillsboro.

June 16 -- Tiguas removed from tribal rolls face hardship: EL PASO, Texas (AP) - Dozens of people removed from the Tigua Indians' tribal rolls may be facing hardship as they find themselves cut off from federal funds and possibly even reservation housing.

June 16 -- Last suspect in Republic of Texas standoff goes on trial: FORT STOCKTON, Texas (AP) - The last of five Republic of Texas members accused in a kidnapping that touched off an armed standoff went on trial Monday on a charge of burglary with intent to commit aggravated assault.

June 16 -- Texas' old courthouses among nation's 'most endangered' places: AUSTIN (AP) - Texas' historic county courthouses, many of which have fallen into disrepair, Monday were named to the list of America's most endangered historic places. Gov. George W. Bush said it's time for the state to help save the aging buildings.

June 16 -- Study: Heart tissue may recover when device used: DALLAS (AP) - The long-held belief that damaged heart tissue can never recover may be wrong.

June 15 -- Mayor of dragging-death town tries to soothe its wounds: JASPER - R.C. Horn still remembers eating turnip greens and cornbread with little Raymond Durdin. Remembers all those muggy summer afternoons dunking each other in the swimming hole - the black sharecropper's son and the white farmer's boy.

June 15 -- Famed serial killer Henry Lee Lucas nearing execution: HUNTSVILLE - Time is running out for Henry Lee Lucas, the man known as the one-eyed drifter and once considered among the most prolific serial killers the nation ever has known.

June 15 -- Republicans: Convention succeeds in raising excitement, unity: FORT WORTH - From top to bottom, Texas Republicans say their bi-annual convention succeeded in getting party leaders and volunteers geared up and united for fall elections.

June 15 -- Police say woman and infant killed by driver fleeing his arson fire: HOUSTON (AP) - A drunk man set fire to a bar that had refused him service, then sped away with his headlights off and killed a woman and baby in a head-on collision, police say.

June 15 -- Founder of famed cafes dies at 93: PONDER (AP) - Grace "Pete" Jackson, who served steaks and caramel pies to the famous and the ordinary alike, died Friday at the age of 93.

June 15 -- Donna police keep tabs on gangs involved in the occult: DONNA, Texas (AP) - The first homicide victim of the year in this South Texas town was 12-year-old David Cardenas, whose mutilated body was found under some aluminum slabs in a bushy, tree-tangled field.

June 15 -- Now 23, North Texas first quintuplets are still close: ARLINGTON, Texas - As babies, they were each assigned their own colors that identified everything from their blankets to the frosting on their birthday cakes. Almost 23 years later, the colors of their childhood have not been forgotten by the Davis quintuplets, the first born in Texas.

June 14 -- Texan waits for justice after taking ammo into Mexico: EL CAMPO, Texas (AP) -- A Mexican judge is expected to rule within two weeks in the case of an El Campo man imprisoned for bringing ammunition across the border.

June 14 -- Aging parents of mentally disabled adults face decisions about future: TYLER, Texas -- Betty Bailey dreads going to the grocery store because she has to lift her 100-pound son in and out of the van every time she leaves the house.

June 14 -- Relatives say goodbye to victim of dragging death: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Civil rights leaders and politicians called for an end to racial violence Saturday as hundreds of mourners crowded into a sweltering, tiny church for the funeral of a black man who police say was brutally killed by white supremacists.

June 14 -- Report: carnival ride had faulty lock: AUSTIN (AP) -- A carnival ride car from which a teen-ager was thrown to her death this year had a defective latch on the restraining bar, the Austin American-Statesman reported Saturday after obtaining a report by a federal agency investigating the incident.

June 13 -- Divers to begin exploration of ship linked to La Salle: AUSTIN -- Four scuba-diving archaeologists plan to dive into waters near Matagorda Bay next week to investigate a lost ship linked to former French explorer La Salle.

June 13 -- National Archives considering moving records out of Fort Worth: FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- In the middle of an industrial area of town sits a massive warehouse crammed with obscure bits of history: accounts of 19th century pirates in New Orleans, the Apollo 11 flight plan and chunks of the emergency room where President Kennedy died.

June 13 -- Financial disclosure forms provide snapshot of lawmakers' finances: WASHINGTON (AP) -- What's an appearance on "Walker, Texas Ranger" worth?

June 13 -- Couple charged with hiring hit man to kill Terrell police officer: DALLAS (AP) -- An ex-convict and his wife were arrested Thursday and charged with trying to hire someone to kill a Terrell police officer who was investigating the man, authorities said.

June 13 -- Attorneys promise zealous defense of suspected race killers: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- As residents of a small East Texas lumber town mourned a man mercilessly dragged to death on a country road, attorneys appointed to represent his alleged killers promised a vigorous defense.

June 13 -- Youth crime statistics down, despite high-profile attacks: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- A 15-year-old boy in Burnet is accused of shooting and wounding his mother with an AK-47 rifle.

June 13 -- Continental Airlines pilots agree to five-year deal: HOUSTON (AP) -- Continental Airlines pilots Friday approved a five-year contract that both sides say will bring paychecks and benefits up to industry standards while offering job security in the wake of an alliance with Northwest Airlines.

June 13 -- Suspect says mom's ex-husband behind slaying, documents show: SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) -- One of three men charged in the slaying of a mother of six children, including quadruplet toddlers, pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy to commit murder.

June 13 -- Ministers' reaction mixed to Baptist family-leadership doctrine: DALLAS (AP) -- Early reaction to a Southern Baptist Convention declaration that a woman should "submit herself graciously" to her husband in family matters reveals sharp diversity of opinion within the nation's largest Protestant church.

June 13 -- Teachers meet at Vietnam War archives to learn new methods: LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- For long moments after showing her class a video about Vietnam prisoners of war, high school history teacher Anita Phillips pretended to search for papers in her desk to give her tearful students time to compose themselves.

June 12 -- Doctors' group complains about legal fees: AUSTIN (AP) -- An anti-smoking doctors' group on Thursday criticized the state's settlement with the tobacco industry, calling the $2.3 billion in fees for private lawyers "unconscionable."

June 12 -- Texas executes Boggess in 1986 Montague County slaying: HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- A Texas man who described himself as going "hog wild" in the years after high school was executed Thursday for one of two murders he committed during a month-long crime spree almost a dozen years ago.

June 12 -- FBI assumes lead in investigation: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- The FBI took a more prominent role Thursday investigating a black hitchhiker's gruesome death, but the agency said that has no bearing on whether the three suspects will be tried on state or federal charges. Black lawmakers say root out racial hatred in wake of Texas killing | TDCJ allocates funds to fight prison gang activity

June 12 -- Newspapers, legislator vow to seek compromise on open records: FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- A standoff between Texas newspapers and a key state senator over access to accident records eased a bit on Thursday, as both sides talked of compromise.

June 12 -- Continental begins flights from Dallas Love Field: DALLAS (AP) -- Continental Airlines figures there's enough Love to go around.

June 12 -- Polygraph test puts Darlie Routier's husband back under suspicion: DALLAS (AP) -- When the relatives of death-row inmate Darlie Routier asked a Texas millionaire to help exonerate the suburban homemaker of killing her young sons, he was happy to help.

June 12 -- TNRCC warns oil companies about underground tank regulations: PLAINVIEW, Texas (AP) -- The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission warned West Texas oil and gas companies Thursday that they face fines or closure unless they comply with regulations on underground storage tanks.

June 12 -- Bush says officials should be alert to signs of school violence: AUSTIN (AP) -- In the wake of an outbreak of school violence, Gov. George W. Bush says it's important for students and educators to heed early signs of trouble.

June 11 -- Dragging death in Jasper:

Three white men charged in dragging death of black man: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Three white men accused of chaining a black man to the back of a pickup truck and then dragging him for two miles until he died deserve the death penalty, Jasper County authorities said Wednesday.

Bush sickened by dragging death, says doesn't define state: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texas Gov. George W. Bush, describing himself as sickened by the death of a black man chained to a pickup and dragged for two miles, said Wednesday the "barbaric" act shouldn't be allowed to define the state.

East Texas town says race problems were in the past: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Most people in this East Texas town of sawmills and timber companies earn their living from the woods of tall green pines that grow right up to the edge of the country roads.

Suspects in Jasper dragging death not identified as prison gang members: HOUSTON (AP) -- The three white ex-convicts suspected of dragging a black man to death behind a pickup truck were not identified by the prison system as members of a racist gang, despite tattoos that indicate otherwise.

June 11 -- Continental poised to start flights from Dallas Love Field: DALLAS (AP) -- Early Thursday, a Continental Airlines jet is scheduled to pull away from a terminal at Love Field and end an era.

June 11 -- State restricts access to Hueco Tanks in bid to protect resources: EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- Texas parks officials have announced stringent new access restrictions for a state historical park that is a mecca for rock climbers and is home to priceless native American rock art.

June 11 -- Court of Criminal Appeals reverses death sentence: AUSTIN (AP) -- The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday reversed the death sentence of a man convicted of killing two men with a rifle during a fight outside a San Antonio nightclub in 1994.

June 11 -- University of North Texas sculptors capture Texas wildlife: DENTON, Texas -- Wild animals have invaded the University of North Texas.

June 10 -- Antler impostor given four years probation: AUSTIN (AP) -- Dallas restaurant owner B.W. Morrow claimed to have the best rack after allegedly shooting a 12-point buck in 1996.

June 10 -- Seven of eight children follow forebears in Amarillo clan of physicians: DALLAS -- Great-grandmother Archer knew something about birthing babies.

June 10 -- Three white men charged in dragging death of black man: JASPER, Texas (AP) -- Three white men with suspected ties to the Ku Klux Klan chained a black hitchhiker to the back of a pickup truck and dragged him to his death, authorities said Tuesday. Man's trail of death now marked by red police spray paint

June 10 -- Group says campaign reform needed to cure pollution: AUSTIN (AP) -- Cleaning up air pollution in Texas will require a limit on campaign contributions, says a group that monitors money in politics.

June 10 -- Arlington woman gives birth to healthy quintuplets: DALLAS (AP) -- Sonia Zuniga came up one child shy of birthing her own "Brady Bunch."

June 10 -- Student sues district, claims attacks result from lack of discipline: TYLER, Texas (AP) -- An East Texas middle student's lawyers have sued the school system, contending that a lack of discipline has led to five beatings by fellow pupils.

June 10 -- District considers revamping promotion policy for second-graders: WACO (AP) -- The Waco Independent School District is considering a change to a portion of its new promotions requirement to reduce the number of second-graders expected to fail.

June 10 -- Council sides with boys in meteorite fight: MONAHANS, Texas (AP) -- The city council agrees: It's finders, keepers.

June 10 -- Highway bill signed into law includes billions for Texas: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Texas officials Tuesday praised the sixyear, $203 billion transportation bill signed into law by President Clinton, saying the legislation goes a long way toward redressing past funding inequities for the state.

June 10 -- Study says global warming treaty could cost Texas jobs: WASHINGTON -- A study released Tuesday by the energy industry said the global warming treaty negotiated in Kyoto, Japan last year would cost the typical U.S. family $2,700 a year -- 27 times higher than the Clinton administration's earlier estimate.

June 9 -- City council to rule Tuesday on who owns meteorite: MONAHANS, Texas (AP) - Eleven-year-old Alvaro Lyles was about to shoot a 3-pointer in a driveway basketball game when a shrill, deafening noise, followed by a crash, caused him to toss the ball aside.

June 9 -- Mom recalls defense of children against mountain lion: HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) - Mary Jane Coder's three daughters brag about how tough their mom is. "My mom can stand up to a mountain lion," Meagan Coder, 6, says. "My friends' moms can't do that."

June 9 -- Ex-President Carter to join in largest-ever home-building effort: HOUSTON (AP) - Former President Jimmy Carter plans to be among 6,000 volunteers who hope to begin construction on 100 homes next week in Habitat for Humanity's largest-ever U.S. project.

June 9 -- Woman's naming as Baptist pastor draws protestors: WACO, Texas (AP) - Dozens of men upset over a Baptist church's selection of a woman as its senior pastor picketed at Sunday services, holding signs saying the minister "needs to go home and be a wife and mother."

June 9 -- Georgetown overtaken by movie set: GEORGETOWN, Texas (AP) - Residents of this Central Texas town are doing double takes as they drive by the high school football stadium.

June 9 -- Minority groups seek to intervene in appeal of Hopwood: AUSTIN (AP) - A number of minority groups, including the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, on Monday filed a motion to intervene in the University of Texas' appeal of the anti-affirmative action court ruling known as Hopwood.

June 9 -- Darin Routier says polygraph was designed to trip him up: DALLAS (AP) - Darin Routier says he failed a polygraph about his sons' murders because the examiner wanted him to fail.

June 9 -- Owner of demolished apartment complex sues city and demolition company: HOUSTON (AP) - The owner of a demolished apartment complex has filed a lawsuit in federal court accusing the city of Houston and Cherry Demolition of illegally destroying 41 apartment buildings.

June 9 -- Bush issues drought proclamation for 207 counties: AUSTIN (AP) - An emergency proclamation was announced Monday for 207 of the state's 254 counties due to an early drought and extreme danger of wildfires.

June 9 -- Teacher group applauds LULAC for resolution opposing vouchers: AUSTIN (AP) - A Texas teacher group is applauding the League of United Latin American Citizens for reversing an earlier position and taking a strong stand against using taxpayer dollars to fund private-school vouchers.

June 9 -- Texas Digest: Press State survey asks students about heroin use ... Student denied diploma for spraying Silly String after graduation

June 9 -- Effectiveness of Border Patrol debated: SARITA, Texas (AP) - Proponents and critics of the 10-month-old Operation Rio Grande, a crackdown on illegal immigration in Brownsville, disagree on whether the operation has stemmed the flow of undocumented immigrants or diverted them to new border crossing points.

June 8 -- Family outraged that loved one buried in cardboard box: HOUSTON (AP) - The family of a Pasadena man who died of cancer 2-1/2 years ago requested simple funeral arrangements, including an inexpensive-but-dignified pine coffin. What they actually got has driven them to tears - and to court.

June 8 -- Man killed in Dallas shooting: DALLAS (AP) - One man died and another was hurt critically Sunday morning in a shooting outside the Bronco Bowl in South Dallas.

June 8 -- Woman wrongly diagnosed with AIDS loses lawsuit: FORT WORTH (AP) - A woman who spent three years believing she was carrying the AIDS virus deserves no money from the doctors who treated her or the medical laboratory that tested her, a jury decided.

June 8 -- Former LR policeman faces indecency charges in Texas: LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Authorities say a man who resigned as a police officer in Little Rock and pleaded no-contest to a misdemeanor assault charge now faces two felony charges in Texas accusing him of indecency with a child.

June 7 -- Psychologist: Brothers in sex assault shouldn't return to parents: DALLAS (AP) -- Two brothers ages 7 and 8, who admitted they helped beat and sexually assault a 3-year-old girl, should remain in state custody and not return to their parents, a psychologist testified.

June 7 -- Three dead in helicopter crash: GUERRA, Texas (AP) -- A day-long search for a missing air ambulance ended Saturday morning. The helicopter's wreckage was found, and there were no survivors among the crew of three.

June 7 -- Ties to Hicks helped Kirks boost fortunes $500,000: DALLAS (AP) -- Mayor Ron Kirk's family is benefiting financially from a company owned by radio and sports mogul Tom Hicks, whom Kirk supported in his plans to build an arena near downtown Dallas.

June 7 -- Lottery fares better in game's second drawing: AUSTIN (AP) -- The Texas Lottery actually made money in its Texas Million drawing on Friday, a better fare than its first run at the game.

June 7 -- AG's office clears way for private scholarships: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texas colleges and universities can give students information about private scholarships awarded on the basis of race, according to Attorney General Dan Morales.

June 7 -- Search warrant allows seizure of computer disks, case files: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- A federal search warrant reportedly authorized the FBI to seize not only case files but computer disks, phone records and bank account information for Webb County District Attorney Joe Rubio.

June 7 -- Newspapers: Death row inmate's husband failed polygraph: DALLAS (AP) -- Darin Routier, the husband of death row inmate Darlie Routier, recently failed a polygraph test in which he denied knowing who killed his two sons or helping plan the crime two years ago at his Rowlett home.

June 7 -- UT Medical, dental schools minority enrollment to match pre-Hopwood level: AUSTIN (AP) -- University of Texas medical and dental schools plan to enroll as many blacks and Hispanics this fall as in 1996, before a federal court Hopwood decision eliminated affirmative action programs at state colleges.

June 7 -- Vactioners warned to take precautions: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texans getting ready to head off on summer vacation should take some precautions while preparing for the trip, an insurance industry group says.

June 6 -- Air bag deactivation switches have problems, mechanics say: KELLER, Texas (AP) -- Makers of a switch that disconnects air bags say they believe the device may not be safe because it can be difficult to determine whether it is on or off.

June 6 -- TABC resumes enforcement against eight-liners: AUSTIN (AP) -- Inspectors for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission again are targeting owners and operators of eight-liner machines.

June 6 -- Report: State workers charging more at holidays: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texas state employees go on a spending spree in December with their state American Express cards, even though those cards are restricted to business use, the Austin American-Statesman reported Friday.

June 6 -- Supreme Court rules on punitive damages: AUSTIN (AP) -- In civil cases involving punitive damages, defendants can introduce evidence to juries showing how much their alleged misconduct has already cost them, including previous amounts paid in punitive damages, the Texas Supreme Court has ruled.

June 6 -- Where have all the egrets gone?: BRYAN, Texas (AP) -- Egrets are conspicuous by their absence in the Bryan-College Station area.

June 6 -- Divided court rules against Hyundai: AUSTIN (AP) -- A man paralyzed after being thrown from the sunroof of a car lacking front-seat lap belts can pursue his lawsuit against Hyundai, even though the automaker chose a passenger-restraint option allowed by federal regulations, a divided Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday.

June 6 -- Offices of public officials, bail bondsman raided in federal probe: LAREDO, Texas (AP) -- FBI agents have returned some seized files to the Webb County district attorney, though a sweeping federal investigation in this border city continues.

June 6 -- Second public health alert to be canceled: AUSTIN (AP) -- The state plans to cancel its latest public health alert for smoky skies effective Saturday night, officials said Friday.

June 6 -- City looking warily at tribe's proposed land purchase: EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- City leaders are worried about the Tigua Indians' plan to buy a 68,000-acre ranch that abuts property El Paso purchased to secure a contingency water supply.

June 6 -- Homeless woman who tried to swap toddler for van sentenced to prison: HOUSTON (AP) -- A homeless woman who tried to trade her 2-year-old son for a custom van has been sentenced to two years in prison, although she could be paroled in about a month because of time already served in the Harris County Jail.

June 6 -- Fallen state troopers honored at new museum in San Antonio: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Bill Davidson of Edna was gunned down by a man who said rap music made him do it.

June 5 -- Alert reissued for south-of-border smoke: DALLAS (AP) -- Worried that more smoke will get in Texans' eyes, the state's environmental agency reissued its health alert Thursday because of continuing fires south of the border.

June 5 -- Jury convicts 11-year-old of raping 3-year-old: DALLAS (AP) -- An 11-year-old boy who told police he beat and sexually assaulted a 3-year-old girl then testified that he only beat her was found guilty of both acts Thursday.

June 5 -- Perry: Valley farmers face fifth year of weather-related economic losses: WESLACO, Texas (AP) -- With a drought drying up water levels, Valley growers face another year of weather-related economic losses, predicts Texas Agriculture Commissioner Rick Perry.

June 5 -- Harpists converge on island: GALVESTON, Texas (AP) -- Once every two years, harpists come from around the world to honor their instruments and the lilting music they produce. This week, they've plucked their way here.

June 5 -- Judge delays decision on Austin's pool cleaning: AUSTIN (AP) -- A federal judge has postponed a decision on whether the city's cleaning of Barton Springs pool violates federal law and harms the Barton Springs salamander, an endangered species.

June 5 -- City leaders question contract with insurance company: EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- Some City Council members are thinking about possibly canceling the contract of a company that administers the health plans of 45,000 public employees after questions arose about its practices.

June 5 -- Teen charged with shooting his mother: BURNET, Texas (AP) -- A 15-year-old boy was being held Thursday in a youth facility in Kerrville on attempted capital murder charges after shooting his mother with an AK-47 rifle on Wednesday.

June 5 -- City of Houston begins distributing its own bottled water: HOUSTON (AP) -- When city workers in 20 municipal offices use their water cooler now, they're not drawing refreshment from some faraway, pristine spring.

June 5 -- Air Force claims no politics in California, Texas base closings: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Acting Air Force Secretary F. Whitten Peters said Thursday he regrets his choice of words in a memo that created a political storm over base closings. But he stuck to his contention that the White House sought the Pentagon's help in getting a defense contractor to bid to keep some jobs in California.

June 5 -- Appeals court says there should be trial in death after 911 call: AUSTIN (AP) -- In his calls to the city of Temple's 911 dispatcher, Stephan Peterson became increasingly distraught.

June 5 -- Officials, prospective students praise opportunities: AUSTIN (AP) -- An increase in the prospective number of minority students at the University of Texas law school comes in the wake of new scholarship opportunities for minorities and new admission criteria.

June 4 -- Fourth-grader testifies in own defense: DALLAS (AP) -- In a quavering voice, a fourth-grader testified Wednesday he lied when he told a police detective he beat and sexually assaulted a 3-year-old girl at a creek.

June 4 -- Texas officials not aiming to follow California: AUSTIN (AP) -- Texas officials are in no hurry to follow California's lead in dismantling bilingual education, saying Wednesday that programs that work deserve support.

June 4 -- Fire ants cause deaths of trout in Guadalupe River: SATTLER, Texas (AP) -- Fire ants are being blamed for a major fish kill in the Guadalupe River, where wildlife officials say thousands of trout have died after eating dead ants.

June 4 -- Heat wave may soon recede for most of Texas: LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- Texans watching their rose gardens wilt and dreading their monthly electric bill after five days of 100 degree plus temperatures can take heart: meteorologists say relief is finally in sight for most of the state.

June 4 -- Negotiations on hospital, university merger stall: EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- A prospective merger between two allies in the treatment of the city's uninsured and indigent has foundered as both prepare to compete for Medicaid patients, officials say.

June 4 -- New game, new winner, big jackpot put smiles on lottery faces: AUSTIN (AP) -- Folks at the Texas Lottery were all smiles Wednesday.

June 4 -- DPS says no more warnings for seat belt violations: AUSTIN (AP) -- The Texas Department of Public Safety is going after Texans traveling in vehicles without using their seat belts.

June 4 -- Waco schools invest $1 million in summer school: WACO, Texas (AP) -- The Waco Independent School District will invest $1 million in summer school for 2,000 students expected to have failed the district's new guidelines for promotion.

June 4 -- State re-issues health alert: AUSTIN (AP) -- Less than a week after cancelling it, state officials Wednesday reissued a public health alert because of smoke and air pollution from fires in Mexico and Central America.

June 4 -- Ephedrine distributors line up against rule proposals: AUSTIN (AP) -- Distributors of ephedrine-based products that promise weight loss and an energy boost lined up in opposition Wednesday to Texas Department of Health rule proposals cracking down on ephedrine.

June 4 -- Lampson promises bill to boost U.S. Customs crusade against online porn: HOUSTON (AP) -- As line after line of raunchy Internet "chats" scrolled on a projector screen behind him, U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson announced Wednesday a bill intended to boost U.S. Customs efforts to stop online child exploitation.

June 4 -- Texan leads fight against constitutional amendment on religion: WASHINGTON (AP) -- A moderate Democrat whose Central Texas district is home to America's largest Baptist university, Rep. Chet Edwards seems an unlikely choice to lead the charge against a constitutional amendment that would create a right to religious expression on public property.

June 3 -- Two young brothers admit sexual assault: DALLAS (AP) -- Two brothers, ages 7 and 8, testified Tuesday that they and a fourth-grade friend sexually assaulted and beat a 3-year-old girl at a West Dallas creek.

June 3 -- Clinton visits Houston for discussion on the census: HOUSTON (AP) -- Anticipating a showdown with congressional Republicans over the next national census, President Clinton today advocated using statistical sampling to avoid undercounts of minorities and the rural poor. "It's not about politics, it's about people," he said.

June 3 -- Convicted serial killer earned trusty status: HOUSTON (AP) -- A convicted serial killer serving a life sentence for his role in slaying 27 youths in the 1970s recently spent about two weeks in a minimum security wing of the Palestine-area Coffield Unit, officials say.

June 3 -- Houston poet says receiving MacArthur grant is 'liberating': HOUSTON -- In April, when transplanted Houston poet Edward Hirsch won a prestigious award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, an aunt in Chicago wondered aloud, "When are you going to win a prize the family has heard of?"

June 3 -- Central, South Texas cities relieved of dual pollution standards: AUSTIN (AP) -- Air quality officials in Central and South Texas are breathing a little easier. The Environmental Protection Agency lifted one of two air pollution standards.

June 3 -- One of five Waco elementary, middle-school students has failed: WACO, Texas (AP) -- At a school district that uses Texas Assessment of Academic Skills scores in deciding whether to promote students, one in five pupils in grades three through eight has failed because of either TAAS scores or report card grades.

June 3 -- West Texas task force loses funding amid allegations: The Odessa American reported that 28 employees of the Permian Basin Drug Task Force were placed on paid vacation, effective Monday morning.

June 3 -- Heat continues in Texas: HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) -- Triple-digit heat gripped Texas again on Tuesday, although some residents were unfazed.

June 3 -- UT Law makes more offers to blacks, Hispanics: AUSTIN (AP) -- The University of Texas law school so far has offered admission to 18 more black and Mexican American students for fall 1998 than it did last year, the school said Tuesday.

June 3 -- Man with false credentials gains high-security NASA clearance: HOUSTON (AP) -- A pilot accused of parlaying phony NASA, CIA and war credentials into access to some of the space agency's highest security areas was in custody Tuesday, charged with impersonating a federal officer.

June 2 -- AG says private tobacco attorneys were willing to reduce fees: TEXARKANA, Texas (AP) - Private attorneys involved in Texas' lawsuit against the nation's tobacco industry were at one point willing to consider a "substantial" reduction in their $2.3 billion in fees.

June 2 -- Texans seek relief as record-setting heat hits state: SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Unusually hot weather gripped Texas again Monday as temperatures hovered around 100 degrees all over the state and forecasters predicted dry conditions for much of the week.

June 2 -- Clinton heads to Texas to talk up Census: WASHINGTON (AP) - Wading into a high-stakes political battle over how the 2000 Census will be conducted, President Clinton travels to Houston on Tuesday to make the case for a new method of counting the nation's population.

June 2 -- State launches program for 'underserved' areas: AUSTIN (AP) - Good drivers in nearly 400 ZIP Code areas are going to get some help in finding reasonably priced auto insurance, the Texas Department of Insurance announced Monday. The new program could save drivers hundreds of dollars in the areas that currently are underserved, Insurance Commissioner Elton Bomer said.

June 2 -- El Nino, storms fuel run on handy radios: DALLAS (AP) - El Nino-fueled demand for latest-generation weather radios that alert listeners to tornado, hurricane and other warnings has caused a nationwide shortage of the devices. After the first deadly twisters hit Florida, Texas-based Radio Shack went through a year's inventory in just weeks and has had to reorder from an overseas manufacturer.

June 2 -- Councilman wants Waco to denounce 1916 lynching at City Hall: WACO, Texas (AP) - A councilman wants Waco to officially denounce the 1916 lynching of a black man who was hanged over a bonfire and mutilated on the City Hall lawn after his conviction in the murder of a white woman.

June 2 -- Waco church hires female as senior pastor: WACO, Texas (AP) - Members of Calvary Baptist Church have hired a 37-year-old senior pastor who is believed to be the first female ever named senior pastor in a Southern Baptist church in Texas.

June 2 -- Coastal town adopts persistent mutt as its unofficial mascot: BRAZORIA, Texas (AP) - Just one dog in this southeast Texas town is allowed to chase the animal control truck without getting nabbed. Patrick, a dogged chow-collie mix who wouldn't leave municipal employees alone, has become the city's unofficial mascot.

June 2 -- Houston No. 1 city when it comes to biting dogs: HOUSTON (AP) - Houston is the No. 1 city in the nation in a category that no one is proud of. It's the No. city when it comes to the number of postal workers bitten by dogs.

June 2 -- State employees don't pay off their charge card bills: AUSTIN (AP) - More than 47,000 state employees don't leave home without the American Express cards they use for business expenses. And many don't pay the bills.

June 2 -- Jury selection starting in 11-year-old's assault trial: DALLAS (AP) - An 11-year-old boy accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a 3-year-old girl is fighting the charges this week in court, where two younger brothers may testify against him.

June 1 -- Fourth grade class goes entire school year without an absence: VIDOR (AP) - It's amazing, officials at a Vidor elementary school agree. The 16 students in Carol Welborn's fourth-grade class at Vidor's Pine Forest Elementary School showed up for all 176 days of the school year. Nobody was absent. Not once.

June 1 -- Officials warn against complacency as another hurricane season looms: GALVESTON - When Hurricane Allen hammered the lower Texas coast in 1980, killing two and causing $55 million in damage, it ended the state's unprecedented eight-year streak of hurricane-free years. Once again, eight summers have passed without a hurricane. In records dating to 1871, Texas' 367 miles of coastline has never gone nine years without absorbing hurricane damage. Simply stated, we're due.

June 1 -- Parents locked out when coliseum full: CORPUS CHRISTI (AP) - Russell Charo's high school graduation was one big disappointment to his mother. Alicia Charo and some other would-be spectators missed the Saturday evening ceremony at Memorial Coliseum after officials determined no more people could safely be seated in the building.

June 1 -- Mom accused of having Munchausen's disorder, injuring children: SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Eight-month-old Joseph Martinez lay quietly in a hospital baby bed, a cluster of tubes and other devices attached to his tiny body. Beside him sat his seemingly devoted, worried mother. Alone with her son, Cynthia Martinez did something peculiar, perhaps even criminal.