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Gender transitioning care takes center stage at Supreme Court of Texas

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Gender transitioning care takes center stage at Supreme Court of Texas


AUSTIN, Texas — At the Texas Supreme Court on Tuesday, justices heard arguments for and against gender transitioning care for youths across the state and whether those medical treatments will be protected under the law.

In a lawsuit filed in July 2023, plaintiffs and their legal teams in the State of Texas vs. Loe are suing the state to block Senate Bill 14, which bans hormone therapies and puberty blockers for minors. 

The plaintiffs and their legal teams are looking to turn a temporary injunction of Senate Bill 14, which bans hormone therapies and puberty blockers for minors into a new trial with full medical data and testimonials. (Spectrum News 1/ Dylan Scott)

Meanwhile, the attorney general’s office and groups advocating for the bill want the Supreme Court of Texas to make a firm decision, believing it’s too risky a treatment for any Texan under the age of 18.

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“These types of procedures are harmful and dangerous to kids and the only way we can stop them is to have something in state law that makes it no longer appropriate to be offered,” President and Attorney for Texas Values, Jonathan Saenz said.

More than 20 states have already implemented a similar type of legislation. It could be months until we find out where Texas is on the issue.

“No matter at the end of this we’ll continue to fight for transgender youths to have the medical treatment they deserve,” Legal Director from the Transgender Law Center, Lynyl Egyes, said.



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Austin, TX

Mother searching for answers after Texas college student Brianna Aguilera found dead after football game

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Mother searching for answers after Texas college student Brianna Aguilera found dead after football game


The mother of a Texas college student is desperately searching for answers after her daughter was found dead near campus after attending a tailgate, according to reports and authorities.

Brianna Aguilera, a 19-year-old student at Texas A&M University, was discovered dead outside an apartment complex around 1 a.m. Saturday morning, just hours after she attended a tailgate for Texas A&M’s football game against the University of Texas, KSAT reported.

Aguilera’s mother, Stephanie Rodriguez, told the outlet that she has received inconsistent answers from the Austin Police Department after investigators said Aguilera likely died by suicide.

Brianna Aguilera, a 19-year-old student at Texas A&M University, was discovered dead outside an apartment complex around 1 a.m. Saturday morning. Facebook / Stephanie Rodriguez

Detectives told her she had fallen from 17 floors, the mother recalled.

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“There are a lot of inconsistencies with the story,” Rodriguez said. “He told me they said she jumped, and then he told me that the friends said they didn’t know her whereabouts.”

The heartbroken mother said her daughter, a sophomore at the university, was not suicidal and was looking forward to her future as a lawyer.

Rodriguez called police after her daughter did not answer her phone after Friday’s game, noting she saw Aguilera’s phone pinging in Austin.

Cops then instructed her to wait 24 hours before filing a missing persons report, the outlet reported.

Officers later found Aguilera’s cellphone on Saturday. However, Rodriguez was not told until 4 p.m. that day that her daughter was in the morgue, the mother recalled.

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Detectives told mother Stephanie Rodriguez that Aguilera had fallen from 17 floors. Facebook / Stephanie Rodriguez

Rodriguez believes something more sinister could have been at play leading up to the fatal fall.

She maintained that one of the 15 people inside the apartment must know something about her daughter’s death.

“There was a fight that happened between my daughter and another girl, and they were all staying in the same apartment that I have actual text messages of, and the detective just disregarded them,” Rodriguez said.

Austin police said Aguilera’s death is not being investigated as a homicide, as the investigation has not revealed any suspicious details, the outlet reported.

The Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office will determine the aspiring lawyer’s cause of death.

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Austin police said Aguilera’s death is not being investigated as a homicide, as the investigation has not revealed any suspicious details. Facebook / Stephanie Rodriguez

Aguilera hailed from Laredo, where she attended United High School. She was a “seasoned cheerleader” and received Magna Cum Laude honors before graduating high school, according to a GoFundMe organized for her loved ones.

“She was pursuing her dream of becoming a lawyer and was attending The Bush School of Government & Public Service at Texas A&M,” the statement continued.

“The details surrounding what happened next remain unclear, and her mother is still awaiting answers,” the fundraiser continued.

The GoFundMe has since raised over $28,000, more than double its $12,000 goal.

“Im so grateful for your love and support at this moment. The unexpected loss of my brie brie has been a tremendous challenge, but I find strength in the outpouring of kindness,” Rodriguez said in a Monday message to the hoards of supporters.  

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“I’ve experienced every parent’s worst fear, but I’m comforted by the knowledge that my brie brie touched so many hearts.” 

Texas A&M University did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.



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Austin Light Rail gets ‘medium-high’ rating from federal transit officials

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Austin Light Rail gets ‘medium-high’ rating from federal transit officials


AUSTIN, Texas — The Austin Light Rail project is creeping closer to the station after a promising rating from federal transit officials last week.

In an annual funding recommendation report from the Federal Transit Administration, the project received an overall project rating and local financial commitment summary rating of “medium-high.” It also received “medium” ratings for mobility improvement, land use and project justification summary.

The line received a cost-effectiveness rating of “low,” which may reflect the problems the Austin Light Rail has faced since its 2020 voter approval as part of Project Connect. The project included “a generational $7 billion transit overhaul and an ongoing 20% property tax increase,” the Austin American-Statesman reported, but the cost of the light rail has since increased.

The funding recommendation ratings are set to allow the Austin Transit Partnership to compete for federal funding through the Capital Investment Grant. The line’s overall rating also “signals that federal staff view the project as financially and technically viable,” according to the Statesman.

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Austin Light Rail was 27 miles long at the time of Project Connect’s passing but has since been reduced to under 10 miles. It would run north to south between 38th and Oltorf streets and include an eastern spur stretching from Lady Bird Lake area to near the inside of State Highway 71.



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What seed did Texas volleyball get in the NCAA Tournament?

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What seed did Texas volleyball get in the NCAA Tournament?


For the first time since 2022, Texas volleyball will enter the NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed.

The NCAA Tournament’s selection committee released its field of 64 Sunday, and Texas (23-3) received one of the coveted top-four seeds, which means the Longhorns won’t leave Austin until a possible trip to the Final Four Dec. 18-21 in Kansas City, Mo.

Texas, the No. 3 overall seed, will open the tournament Friday at 7 p.m. against Florida A&M at Gregory Gymnasium on the Longhorns’ campus. With a win, the Longhorns would face either No. 8 seed and defending national champion Penn State or South Florida this weekend in a second-round contest.

If Texas wins both its games this upcoming week, the Longhorns could face No. 4 Indiana, No. 3 Wisconsin or No. 2 Stanford in the regional tournament. Those programs are the other top-four teams in the Longhorns’ Austin Quadrant.

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The NCAA will release its full tournament schedule later Sunday.

The NCAA volleyball tournament is structured like college basketball’s postseason tournament and features 64 teams, including 31 automatic qualifiers and 33 at-large selections. The selection committee seeded the top 32 teams with the top 16 identified in rank order.

Top-ranked Nebraska, the nation’s only unbeaten team, is the No. 1 overall seed while SEC champion Kentucky is the No. 2 seed. Pittsburgh earned the final No. 1 seed and the fourth overall seed.



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