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Bexar County sees record voter turnout; Roberson defense slams AG report; SAFD gets a new chief

Kristin Quintanilla
/
TPR

This is TPR's roundup of the latest headlines and news developments. It provides a succinct and clear summary of the stories TPR is following.

Today's weather: Expect a high today of 91 and a low of 65. The coming days will see highs in the upper 80s. The evenings will remain pleasantly cool.

The tropics: There is no significant tropical activity in the Gulf or Caribbean regions. The Atlantic hurricane season ends on Nov. 30.

Flu shots available: Bexar County and University Health will offer another free drive-thru flu shot clinic on Saturday, from 8 a.m. to noon, at Gustafson Stadium, 7001 Culebra. Registration is required for each family member getting a vaccine. Find out more at UniversityHealth.com/events. There will be one more similar event in early November.


Harris and Trump in Texas today

Former president Donald Trump holds the first Texas event of the day. At 12:30 p.m., he’ll host a press conference at a private jet terminal in East Austin. After he leaves, it’s expected he’ll make an appearance on Joe Rogan’s popular podcast, which tapes in Austin.

Vice President Kamala Harris will be in Houston for a rally from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. That’s according to the National Democratic Party, which boasts that guitarist Willie Nelson will be in attendance, along with Tina Knowles, the mother of Beyonce.

NPR reported that "Queen Bey herself is set to make an appearance on the campaign trail, performing at a Harris rally in Houston, according to a source familiar with the plan, who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the official announcement."

Democratic Congressman Colin Allred. who’s running for U.S. Senate against Ted Cruz, will also join Harris.

Vice President Harris will have a special guest at her rally in Houston on Friday: Beyoncé.

Early voting still going strong in Bexar County

Bexar County continues its record-breaking streak during early voting. Elections Administrator Jacque Callanen said she has overseen more than 300 elections over almost two decades, and she said this is the highest voter turnout during this election so far.

The county closed out Thursday with the highest day ever of early voting — 48,653 people cast a ballot.

Early voting continues today from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tomorrow polls are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Voters can find the busiest and least busy polling sites online at bexar.org/vote.

@texaspublicradio

Early voting turnout in Bexar County and San Antonio is continuing its record breaking streak. As of 1:00 PM Thursday, October 24, Elections Administrator Jacque Callanen says it’s the highest turnout she’s ever seen in her two decades overseeing more than 300 elections.

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Hours for the weekend and next week:

  • Sat., Oct. 26: 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
  • Sun., Oct. 27: 12 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
  • Mon., Oct. 28 thru Fri., Nov. 1: 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

More San Antonio voters support pay raise amendment

A swing of San Antonio voters support a charter amendment that would give city council members and the mayor a pay raise of around $25,000, according to a new poll from the UTSA Center for Public Opinion Research.

The proposition went from less than a third in support in September to a slight majority in support in October. The center's director, Bryan Gervais, said the major swing in support is likely related to how they asked about Prop E in each of the two surveys.

The September poll, where a majority of polled residents opposed Prop E, described what it would do.

Prop E would increase the mayoral salary to around $85,000 and council salaries to around $70,000. Salaries would then increase or decrease based on a federal measure of the median household income for a family of four in San Antonio.

An October poll from UTSA's Center for Public Opinion Research found major increases in support for Propositions C and E once voters were presented with exact ballot language, compared with much lower support in September when voters were given descriptions of the propositions.

Roberson attorneys slam AG Paxton's report on child's death

Attorneys for death row inmate Robert Roberson are responding to a report from the Texas Attorney General’s office with a scathing rebuke. The defense team is calling out Attorney General Ken Paxton for misrepresenting evidence in the case.

On Wednesday, Paxton's office issued a report it said was going to “set the record straight” about the 2002 death of Robert Roberson’s 2-year old daughter Nikki. The report claimed she didn’t die from shaken baby syndrome but from blunt force trauma to the head.

On Thursday, Roberson’s attorney issued a 27-page rebuttal pointing out 12 misrepresentations — many are so weak that they were not used in Roberson’s 2003 capital murder trial.

Attorney Gretchen Sween said the AG report doesn’t even cite the actual court record and is resurfacing allegations proven false at that time.

The statement from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton "corrects falsehoods" from critics who say death row inmate Robert Roberson was unjustifiably convicted in the death of his toddler child.

SAFD gets a new chief on Nov. 1

The San Antonio Fire Department will have a new permanent fire chief beginning Nov. 1.

SAFD Deputy Chief and 24-year veteran Valerie Frausto was chosen after a nationwide search that included 65 candidates.

The San Antonio City Council will confirm her appointment on Oct. 31.

Former SAFD Chief Charles Hood abruptly resigned in January after an investigation into vulgar comments he made regarding women was made public.


Court blocks Biden administration immigration appeal

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has denied the Biden administration's appeal to a 2021 ruling that said the U.S. government’s practice of turning back immigrants before due process is illegal.

From 2016 to 2021, the U.S. prevented immigrants from accessing the asylum system at the southern border once a certain number per day had been allowed to start the process, a practice known as “metering.”

In its case against the federal government, the advocacy group Al Otro Lado said that metering violated the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act, which mandates that individuals seeking asylum at ports of entry be processed by border officials.

The group filed a separate lawsuit against the Biden administration last year, when it began to require immigrants to apply for asylum through the CBP One mobile app, which limits appointments to just under 1,500 per day.


New program to train sheriff deputies as EMTs

The Bexar County Sheriff's Office and UT Health San Antonio have launched the office's first-ever Medical Emergency Deputy Program.

The program will help reduce injury by deploying sworn sheriff's deputies who are EMT certified.

Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said the program will help provide care that would normally come from EMS and fire departments.

"There is nothing more frustrating and disheartening for a law enforcement officer being the first arriving on scene knowing that in some instances EMS may be several minutes away," he said. "Watching as somebody's life is slipping away, being somewhat limited on what we can do with what we can do and the equipment and training that we have to that point. "

MED deputies in the law enforcement division will serve as immediate first responders at medical emergencies and trauma scenes.

The Texas Newsroom's Blaise Gainey and NPR contributed to this report.

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