Texas

U.S. gunman killing 23 at El Paso Walmart pleads guilty to 90 charges

HOUSTON, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- The gunman who killed 23 people including eight Mexicans in 2019 at a Walmart mall in the largely Latino border city of El Paso in the U.S. state of Texas pleaded guilty on Wednesday to 90 charges, including 23 counts of hate crimes resulting in death.

His plea comes three years, six months and five days after the mass shooting took place on Aug. 3, 2019 as the deadliest attack targeting Hispanics in U.S. history.

USA: Texas power woes linger as Arctic air heads for New England

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — As rising temperatures offered some hope for frustrated Texans shivering in their homes days after losing power in a deadly winter storm, another wave of frigid weather was taking aim Friday at the northern U.S.

An Arctic cold front was expected to move from Canada into the northern Plains and Upper Midwest and sweep into the Northeast. Wind chills in some areas could dive below minus 50 Fahrenheit (minus 45 Celsius).

USA: Afghan soldier seeks asylum after arrest at US-Mexico border

HOUSTON (AP) — Abdul Wasi Safi kept documents detailing his time as an Afghan soldier who worked with the U.S. military close to him as he made the monthslong, treacherous journey from Brazil to the U.S.-Mexico border.

He fled Afghanistan fearing retribution from the Taliban following the August 2021 American withdrawal, and hoped the paperwork would secure his asylum in the U.S. Despite thick jungles, raging rivers and beatings, he kept those documents safe.

USA: Texas AG to halt most of Citigroup's municipal offerings on gun law row

Jan 18 (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc (C.N) has discriminated against the firearms sector, the office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said, making a decision that "has the effect" of Texas halting Citi's ability to underwrite most municipal bond offerings in the state.

Republicans have been ramping up pressure on the finance industry over what they say are their increasingly aggressive environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices.

Indian-origin man accused of killing son in US, charged with capital murder

Houston, Jan 9 (PTI) A 39-year-old Indian-origin man has been charged with capital murder for allegedly stabbing to death his 9-year-old son in the US state of Texas, police said.

Subramanian Ponnazhakan was charged on Sunday for stabbing his son on January 6, and his warrant was set for USD one million, the Mckinney police said in a tweet.

He is hospitalised for what the police said are self-inflicted wounds.

Biden inspects US-Mexico border in face of GOP criticism

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden walked a muddy stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border and inspected a busy port of entry Sunday on his first trip to the region after two years in office, a visit shadowed by the fraught politics of immigration as Republicans blame him for record numbers of migrants crossing into the country.

Ban on bump stocks for rapid gunfire blocked by U.S. appeals court

HOUSTON, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. appeals court in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Friday blocked a ban on certain types of bump stocks, which enable semi-automatic rifles to fire sustained and faster rounds that make assaults more lethal.

The full 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 13:3 that bump stocks were not covered by the federal law that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that had imposed the 2018 ban.

US violence: Democratic officials’ homes, offices shot in New Mexico state

HOUSTON, Jan 7 (NNN-Xinhua) — Five local Democratic elected officials’ homes or offices have been shot in a string of gunfire over the past month in Albuquerque, the largest city of southwestern U.S. state New Mexico. An investigation is underway.

“We’re worried and concerned that these are connected and possibly politically motivated or personally motivated … but we don’t know that for a fact,” Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller said at a press conference via the Albuquerque Police Department’s Facebook livestream.

Ban on bump stocks for rapid gunfire blocked by U.S. appeals court

HOUSTON, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. appeals court in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Friday blocked a ban on certain types of bump stocks, which enable semi-automatic rifles to fire sustained and faster rounds that make assaults more lethal.

The full 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 13:3 that bump stocks were not covered by the federal law that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that had imposed the 2018 ban.

U.S. Apollo 7 astronaut Walter Cunningham dies at 90

HOUSTON, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. astronaut Walt Cunningham, who flew into space on Apollo 7, the first crewed Apollo flight, died at 90 on Tuesday in Houston, according to a news release from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

"On Apollo 7, the first launch of a crewed Apollo mission, Walt and his crewmates made history, paving the way for the Artemis Generation we see today," said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

Cunningham died of complications of a fall, his family said. A public memorial service will be held on Jan. 24 in Houston.

Subscribe to Texas