Mom of deported teen runaway files federal lawsuit

  HOUSTON -- The mother of a teenage Dallas runaway who immigration authorities shipped to South America after she provided a false name has filed a civil rights suit against top federal officials claiming her daughter was illegally detained and deported.

Johnisa Turner seeks unspecified damages in the federal lawsuit filed Tuesday in Houston.

In April last year, Turner's then-14-year-old daughter was arrested for shoplifting and identified herself to authorities as a 21-year-old Colombian national. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported the teen. She returned to the U.S. in January after her grandmother and Dallas police tracked her down.

Among defendants in the lawsuit are Attorney General Eric Holder and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.

Federal officials have said they followed procedures and that the girl did nothing to indicate she is U.S. citizen.

(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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Federal court tosses Texas Open Beaches Act

  GALVESTON, TX -- A federal appeals court, ruling in the case of a Galveston waterfront property owner, says the Texas Open Beaches Act that keeps the state's beaches public is unconstitutional.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling echoes a Texas Supreme Court ruling last month that found problems with the law as it applies to west Galveston Island beaches rapidly eroded by storms.

A San Diego attorney sued after she was ordered to move her home because storm erosion put it on the public beach.

In a 2-1 ruling Monday, the 5th Circuit said enforcement of the law was unreasonable seizure of property. A lower federal court had dismissed her suit.

The Texas General Land Office told the Houston Chronicle (http://bit.ly/KPTtOV) it hadn't seen the ruling and had no reaction.

(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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Federal judge rejects Liberty County judge's plea deal

  BEAUMONT, TX (KTRK) -- We have a major update in a story broken by 13 Undercover. A federal judge in Beaumont rejected a plea agreement between the US government and the former Liberty County judge.

You'll remember Phil Fitzgerald was named in a 27-count indictment after 13 Undercover helped expose details of an alleged bribery-kickback scheme involving a Hurricane Ike debris contract.

In October, Fitzgerald pleaded guilty to a felony with the understanding he would serve 36 months probation and pay a $75,000 fine.

On Friday, in a rare move, the judge in the case rejected that plea deal, likely sending the case to trial.

You can read much more about this in the Cleveland Advocate, our Houston Community Newspaper partner online. We want to thank them for their help in reporting this story.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more 13 Undercover »

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