Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Wednesday, July 24, 2024. Check back later today for updated story links and audio.

Texas Republicans scramble to rethink strategy as Kamala Harris gets Democratic support

The political world is still adjusting to the seismic shift that Vice President Kamala Harris will likely assume the Democratic presidential nomination, instead of incumbent President Joe Biden.

How will Texas Republicans change campaign strategy in a post-Biden election cycle? Public affairs expert and consultant Brendan Steinhauser has worked with several Texas GOP candidates and joins the Standard with more.

Sheila Jackson Lee’s death leaves a void in Texas’ 18th District. Who will fill it?

Democratic U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee served Texas’ 18th District from 1995 until her death on Friday. She was a familiar face at community events in Central Houston and northern Harris County and was expected to win another term this November.

Her passing now raises questions about who will take her place. Houston Chronicle state bureau reporter Taylor Goldenstein joins the Standard with more.

Rio Grande Valley faces unprecedented water crisis as drought intensifies

Fresh water is about as scarce as it’s ever been in the Rio Grande Valley, with water levels in the Rio Grande and its reservoirs nearing historic lows.

The RGV has certainly faced droughts before, but this one has taken on a more dire feel. University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley associate professor Jude Benavides joins the Standard with more.

Texas teen Sam Watson sets speed climbing records ahead of Paris Olympics

Speed climbing was introduced to the Olympics at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo and consists of two competitors racing up identical 15-meter walls.

The fastest climbers can do it in under five seconds – including Sam Watson, an 18-year-old from Southlake who holds the three fastest times ever in speed climbing. Ahead of his 2024 appearance in Paris, Watson joins the Standard today.

San Antonio’s Rivercenter to get culinary makeover celebrating local and Mexican flavors

From tequila to tortillas, a new concept coming to downtown San Antonio will revitalize the food court of the iconic Shops at the Rivercenter to honor the culinary history and culture of the city and Mexico.

Texas Public Radio’s Marian Navarro spoke with the San Antonio chef who is leading the new multi-concept shopping experience coming to the mall next year.

Her brother passed away on death row, but Delia Perez Meyer’s continuing her fight against the death penalty

Delia Perez Meyer’s brother Louis Castro Perez was sentenced to death in 1999 for the brutal murders of two women and one girl. He maintained his innocence and died in May on death row.

Although her brother is gone, Delia continues to fight for his exoneration and the end of the death penalty.

Legal battle intensifies over Blaine Milam’s death row case due to intellectual disability claims

Blaine Milam is on Texas’ death row for the 2008 beating death of 13-month-old Amora Carson. His execution, set for 2021, was stayed by a Texas appeals court due to claims of “significant limitations in intellectual functioning.” The U.S. Supreme Court barred executions of individuals with intellectual disabilities in 2002 but allowed states some discretion.

Last week, The Arc of the United States and other groups filed an amicus brief with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Arc legal director Shira Wakschlag joins the Standard with the latest developments.

All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.

A young Texas high school English teacher and cheer coach was “randomly” shot and killed at an outdoor bar in San Antonio in a shocking tragedy Tuesday.

The beloved Jasper High educator Ayden Burt, 28, was at a local rooftop bar while in town for the Texas High School Coaches Association Conference when she was struck by a bullet just after midnight, San Antonio police said.

Investigators said Burt was “randomly” shot but don’t yet know who fired at her.

“Our Homicide Detectives are working to bring justice to Ayden and her family; however, details are limited,” the police department said in a statement. “SAPD is asking for the public’s help for any information regarding this tragic incident.”

A bullet struck Burt in the upper back while she was sitting on the rooftop patio of Smoke Skybar on East Crockett Street, police told 12 News Now.

Her back was towards the nearby highway, I-37, and police believe the shot was fired from the Interstate, the local news station reported.

Burt was with other coaches from across the state at the bar when the shooting occurred.

“She was sitting right next to me laughing and talking and the next [minute] bleeding in my lap,” Humble High School football coach Robert Murphy said on X. “My coaches did everything they could performing CPR etc to save her life. She was excited about the upcoming year. Traumatizing.”

Burt was rushed to an area hospital in critical condition following the shooting but she couldn’t be saved.

No other injuries were reported.

Burt taught English at both Jasper Junior High and Jasper High School since 2019. She also coached volleyball and cheerleading teams.

Jasper ISD Superintendent John Seybold announced her death in a statement to school community members.

“Dear Bulldog Family, It is with a heavy heart that we have learned of the passing of one of our staff members, Ayden Burt,” Seybold wrote. “We ask for prayers of comfort for her family, as well as her extended family, the students and staff of Jasper ISD.”

He told 12 News Now that he was in shock by the death of the young teacher.

“Ayden was so young. She was a great person, very kindhearted,” Seybold told the station. “Just starting her teaching career, she had already touched so many lives.”

Burt came from a line of Jasper educators. Her father and grandfather both served as principals of Jasper Junior High and she was a graduate of the high school.

“She was irreplaceable. A Jasper bulldog through and through,” Seybold said.

The school district offered grief counseling for students, staff and community members Tuesday.

BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) – A recent report ranks Texas the second worst state in the country for women’s reproductive health.

Among people of reproductive age, Texas also has one of the highest rates of being uninsured.

Theresa Morris, the Director of the Women’s and Gender Studies Program at Texas A&M University said on Tuesday that part of the issue is the expense of reproductive health in Texas.

“Texas has the strictest requirements to be on Medicaid and in fact, working adults don’t qualify to be on Medicaid unless they’re caregivers, disabled, pregnant, or over 65. Then the Affordable Care Act does have subsidized insurance. But one has to make 100% of the poverty level to enter that exchange. So, it’s called the gap, and they’re about, I think, 800,000 people in Texas who are in this gap,” Morris explained.

This report wasn’t all bad news for Texas, especially when it comes to mortality rates.

“Texas has put resources into addressing maternal mortality and infant mortality. There’s a maternal mortality and review board that does biennial reviews, and so that, I think, is why you’re seeing those numbers a little bit better. There are over 40 measures on this report card and Texas didn’t do poorly in all of them,” said Morris.

One of the things Morris said Texas could do to address the issue was expand Medicaid.

“Think about who to vote for issues that you might support and write to your Congress person about that, and I also think support, community birth, and home birth and midwives. That’s a place where the maternity deserts are served. These are certified, professional midwives who are all over Texas serving many of those deserts, and we even have some in our community. We have a birth center, Jubilee Birth Center in our community, and also focusing on how do we expand healthcare access,” Morris added.

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