Out of 26 million Texans, you may have an idea to change the world. You may have had several ideas to change the world. But only a tiny minority of you pushed through the U.S. Patent office from application to successful patent. We've seen Texans change the world many times over. Jack Kilby did it with Texas Instruments in 1958 with the integrated circuit, causing the start of the digital revolution, which, in part, is why you can read these words over your electronic device.
Over the last few years, Texas Business has brought its feature: Texas Business Patent of the Day. This list is of the ones that were either extremely clever, odd or strange. One thing becomes apparent from these patents and the patent that runs daily in Texas Business—Texans have a unique mind set.
Though the history of the Corn Dog is disputed, the State Fair of Texas claims to have introduced the Corny Dog sometime between 1938 and 1942. As a paean to that invention that now sits in the freezer section of every grocery store in the southwest, here are the fried foods the State Fair of Texas has introduced, or tried to introduce, in the last seven years.
Dead Texas musicians live on every time you hear their songs. Their songs play everywhere, so the dead Texas musicians appear to be immortal. Here's the short list.
Don't get caught up with John Wayne religion. For one thing, he's not Texan. He's in some fine movies involving Texas, most notably The Searchers, but none of his movies can make the best cut of Texas movies. Here's the short list.
Unsung Texas Business Journalists Mention that one is a reporter, and there's a spark of interest. Mention that one is a business news reporter, and watch the eyes glaze over. Except to the players, business and economic journalists are unappreciated. While many wish to become sports reporters when they grow up, most do not realize that business journalists cover the Real Game. Mention that reporter covers business, and watch the eyes glaze over. A toast to these below on the short list and the numerous unnamed ones slogging away. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Best Texas Mexican Food: The Short List No, we're not going to debate the difference between Tex-Mex, Mex-Tex, Mexican and Texican food. Just know these establishments are the pinnacle of Texas Mexican fare. No brag, just fact. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Best Texas Burgers Texas Burgers. . While a hamburger is merely sustenance and gratification for a meal, the memory a good Texas burger can give rise to Homeric odes. The short list. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The State of Texas filed a lawsuit against BP America and other defendants for their role in the April 2010 Deepwater Horizon offshore oil spill.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Theresa Portillo, 44, of Dallas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to 78 months (six and one-half years) in federal prison and ordered to pay $3,431,000 in restitution, following her guilty plea in January 2013 to a felony information charging one count of embezzlement of funds from a credit union.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—On the day before their trial was to begin in federal court, Dallas residents Eric Damon Johnson and Tracie Elaine Stenson pleaded guilty to their roles in a mortgage fraud conspiracy that they ran in Dallas, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The owner of a now defunct chiropractic clinic in Bryan has pleaded guilty to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud various automobile insurance companies of more than $3 million, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.
Texas likes to be “business friendly” and as the state legislature considers bills to limit environmental regulation to keep it that way, some economists warn of the longer term consequences.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN – The Texas Attorney General’s Office resolved the state’s enforcement action against Austin-based legal services provider Just for People Inc.
Texplainer: Who Oversees Texas' Fertilizer Plants? Hey, Texplainer: Which state and federal agencies were responsible for overseeing and regulating the fertilizer plant in West that exploded last week, killing 14 and injuring at least 200?Full Story » Cody Permenter for the Texas Tribune
A week after a blast at a Texas fertilizer plant killed at least 15 people and hurt more than 200, authorities still don’t know exactly why the West Chemical and Fertilizer Company plant exploded.
Recovery efforts continued Friday in West, two days after the town was devastated by a fertilizer plant explosion. And as investigators search for the cause of the explosion, environmentalists said that the situation highlighted lax regulations in Texas for plants handling dangerous chemicals.
Texas Business reports: AMARILLO—Michael David Goodwin, 63, an orthodontist who practiced in Amarillo and Crown Point, Indiana, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Mary Lou Robinson to 50 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $1,810,960 in restitution, following his guilty plea in December 2012 to one count of health care fraud related to the Texas Medicaid program.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Tricon Precast Ltd. with 21 alleged serious violations and three other-than-serious violations following an October 2012 complaint inspection for exposing workers to struck-by, electrical, fall hazards and numerous other unsafe working conditions at the company's Henry Road facility in Houston.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS — Following a seven-day trial, before U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey, a federal jury convicted three defendants on health care fraud and related charges stemming from their involvement in the operation of Euless Healthcare Corporation (EHC) and Medic Healthcare Incorporated (Medic), announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Donald Gibson II, 56, of Richmond, was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud relating to medically unnecessary diagnostic testing and physical therapy, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: LUBBOCK, Texas — Jeffrey David Gunselman, 30, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to 188 months in federal prison, fined $175,000 and ordered to pay $54,973,137 in restitution, following his guilty plea in December 2012 to an Indictment charging 51 counts of wire fraud, 24 counts of money laundering and four counts of making false statements in violation of the Clean Air Act.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality today approved penalties totaling $1,175,956 against 78 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—Seventy-one year-old Robert Roland Langguth, of Austin, Texas, was sentenced last week to 48 months’ confinement in federal prison for conducting a Ponzi scheme whereby he solicited more than 100 investors into legitimate and fictitious construction projects and investments worth over $10 million.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Andrea Michelle Tellison, 46, has been arrested following the return of a 21-count indictment charging her with health care fraud and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The State of Texas resolved its enforcement action against Houston-based Darque Tan, a tanning operation that unlawfully claimed that indoor tanning beds can increase levels of Vitamin D in the body and have health benefits.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The owner and operator of a Houston-area ambulance company was convicted by a federal jury in Houston of multiple counts of health care fraud for submitting false and fraudulent claims to Medicare, Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas, Special Agent in Charge Stephen L. Morris of the FBI’s Houston Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Mike Fields of the U.S. Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General-Office of Investigations Houston Office announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Children’s Physician Services of South Texas (CPSST) and Radiology Associates have agreed to pay to settle claims they violated the False Claims Act and the Texas Medicaid Fraud Prevention Act between 2002 and 2007, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Michael Duye Campbell, 30, of Houston, appeared in federal court in Dallas today and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis to an information charging one count of mail fraud, stemming from a scheme he ran from 2010 to 2012 to obtain financial assistance so that he could play professional golf.
Texas Business reports: BASTROP—A Bastrop County grand jury issued felony indictments last week against a mother and son for conspiring to defraud taxpayer-funded public housing programs. Both defendants face felony theft and organized criminal activity charges as a result of their scheme to financially benefit themselves and their family members at the expense of taxpayers and low-income Texans.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Joseph Edem, 53, of Richmond, has been convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud relating to medically unnecessary diagnostic testing and physical therapy, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS — Two owners of Alliance Healthcare Services, L.P., a Dallas home health care agency, were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle for their roles in a nearly $1.3 million health care fraud conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldańa of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: McALLEN—The owner of a now defunct McAllen area durable medical equipment (DME) business, his wife and another former employee have been convicted for their roles in a conspiracy and scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billings, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson and the Texas Attorney General’s office announced.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved penalties totaling $1,831,176 against 47 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—On the day his trial was to begin in U.S. federal court, Daniel K. Leong, 59, who owned South Dallas Community Medical Center (SDCMC) on Martin Luther King Blvd., in Dallas, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Tejas Underground Utilities LLC with one willful and one serious violation for exposing workers to excavation hazards at its work site in Houston.
Texas Business reports: NEW BRAUNFELS—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited BMC Building Materials and Construction Services Inc. with seven serious violations for exposing workers to electrical and machine guarding hazards at the company's work site in New Braunfels.
Texas Business reports: WACO—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Marathon Norco Aerospace Inc. with eight serious health violations following a July inspection for exposing workers to hazardous materials, such as nickel and cadmium, at the company's facility on Imperial Drive in Waco.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The Texas Attorney General’s Office today charged Syam Tax Services LLC and two of its officers – Shannon Mays and Marshrief Shead – with fraudulently obtaining elderly Texans’ sensitive personal information and illegally filing falsified federal income tax returns on their behalf.
To see the federal government’s inconsistent oversight of nursing homes, one needs only to look at what happened after two residents died — one in Texas, one in South Carolina.
Full Story » Charles Ornstein and Lena Groeger for Pro Publica
Texas Business reports: LUFKIN, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Pilgrim's Pride Corp. in Lufkin with three repeat and four serious violations following a June inspection as part of the agency's Process Safety Management Covered Chemical Facilities national emphasis program.
Federal officials have given energy and mining companies permission to pollute aquifers in more than 1,500 places across the country, releasing toxic material into underground reservoirs that help supply more than half of the nation's drinking water. In many cases, the Environmental Protection Agency has granted these so-called aquifer exemptions in Western states now stricken by drought and increasingly desperate for water.
Texas Business reports: CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas—A luxury condominium located in South Padre Island alleged to be owned by former Tamaulipas Mexico Governor Tomas Yarrington has been successfully forfeited to the government, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Yolanda Nowlin, 41, and Carla Parnell, 49, both of Bryan, have been charged in a seven-count indictment alleging conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, conspiracy to pay kickbacks and theft of government money, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The Texas Attorney General’s Office charged the Christmas Bureau of Austin & Travis County and four of the organization’s current and past officials with illegally soliciting charitable donations and misappropriating the funds that were donated to benefit needy Central Texas families.
Texas Business reports: CORPUS CHRISTI – A state district court in Nueces County issued a permanent injunction prohibiting Silverio Salinas, owner of Corpus Christi-based Silverio Salinas Inc. d/b/a Neohealth Inc., Natural Doctor Center, and Maya Wellness Center from selling unauthorized supplements:
Texas Business reports: McALLEN—Velma Alaniz, 31, and her brother Valente Alaniz, 27, both of Palmview, have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billings for power wheelchairs, incontinent supplies and other medical items, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports; DALLAS – The Texas Attorney General’s office announced the resolution of the State’s enforcement action against Dallas-based pharmacist Gary Osborn, the defendant’s compounding pharmacy, Apothecure Inc., and another of Osborn’s companies, SpectraPharm Inc.
Texas Business reports—HUTCHINS, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Williams & Davis Boilers Inc. with nine safety violations - including one willful, four repeat and four serious - for continuing to expose workers to fall and other hazards at the company's facility in Hutchins.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Abdul Waheed Alex Shittu, 54, a naturalized United States citizen from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Tony Nnonso Obi, 56, a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has been sentenced to 41 months in federal prison for his role in a massive health care fraud conspiracy that billed the Medicare and Medicaid programs for more than $45 million, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: McALLEN—Sara Elicia Garza, 56, and Valerie Jean Flores 39, both of Mission, have been sentenced to federal prison for conspiring to defraud the Texas Medicaid/Vendor Drug program, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN – The Texas Attorney General’s office today announced the resolution of a civil Medicaid fraud enforcement action against Swiss-based pharmaceutical drug company Novartis for unlawful and deceptive marketing of a topical skin cream product.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Williams Brothers Construction Co. Inc. with one repeat and one serious violation at a work site on Loop 610 in Houston.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—A Dallas-area home health services company owner admitted his role in a $374 million home health fraud scheme in which he and others conspired to bill Medicare for unnecessary services that were never performed.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved revisions to the Texas permitting program for major air pollution sources under the Clean Air Act’s New Source Review (NSR) program. The changes were submitted by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Texas Business reports: ROBSTOWN, Texas—The Environmental Protection Agency announced it has reached a settlement with US Ecology Texas and TD*X Associates in Robstown, Texas, for violating federal hazardous waste laws.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Twelve defendants were arrested on various charges, outlined in five indictments, regarding their respective roles in several unrelated health care fraud conspiracies involving more than $100 million in fraudulent billings to Medicare, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The Environmental Protection Agency has fined Alta Mesa Services, L.P., of Houston, Texas, $29,400 for violating federal Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations at two of its oil production facilities in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Philip Odoemena, 59, the former owner/operator of Kingsway Medical Systems Inc., appeared this morning in federal court in Dallas and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Irma C. Ramirez to one count of health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas—The Environmental Protection Agency has fined Denbury Onshore LLC, of Alvin, Texas, $16,600 for violating the federal Clean Water Act.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—The Environmental Protection Agency announced, with support from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, that two sites in Texas have been added to the National Priorities List (NPL) of Superfund sites.
Texas Business reports: WACO—Baylor University's Law School will begin operating a clinic to assist those who may be eligible for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. An estimated 150,000 young unauthorized immigrants in Texas are eligible for relief from immediate deportation.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The Texas Attorney General’s office resolved the state’s enforcement action against the Texas Highway Patrol Museum (THPM), two of its affiliate organizations and its managers.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON –Emmanuel Nwora, 48, of Houston, was arrested following the return of a sealed indictment alleging health care fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Tony Nnonso Obi, 56, a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has entered a plea of guilty for his role in a massive health care fraud conspiracy that billed the Medicare and Medicaid programs for more than $45 million, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Abdul Waheed Alex Shittu, 54, a naturalized United States citizen from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has been charged in a 21-count indictment with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: LUBBOCK—Richard Salinas was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to six months in federal prison and ordered to pay $11, 475 in restitution, following his guilty plea in April 2012 to an Information charging one count of making a false statement on an income tax return, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Cal Graves, 31, who worked as a physician assistant at the South Dallas Community Medical Center (SDCMC), pleaded guilty this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée Harris Toliver to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: SNYDER—The Environmental Protection Agency fined Enterprise Crude Pipeline of Houston $5,000 for violating the federal Clean Water Act.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The Environmental Protection Agency fined the Citation Oil and Gas Corporation of Houston, Texas, $22,000 for violating the federal Clean Water Act.
Cardiac Arrest: Hospital Refuses to Give Widow her Husband’s Heart After more than eight years, Linda Carswell finally has proof: According to photographs submitted as evidence at a recent court hearing, her husband's heart sits in a locker in the morgue of St. Joseph Medical Center in Houston, stored in two plastic tubs. Full Story » Marshall Allen for Pro Publica
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Electronic Recycling and Trading Co. with 14 serious violations after two workers were injured from a combustible dust explosion at the company's work site in Austin.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—Valence Technology Inc. filed a voluntary petition for a chapter 11 business reorganization in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: The Securities and Exchange Commission charged Texas-based medical device company Orthofix International N.V. with violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) when a subsidiary paid routine bribes referred to as “chocolates” to Mexican officials in order to obtain lucrative sales contracts with government hospitals.
Texas Business reports: ALVIN—The Environmental Protection Agency has fined Denbury Onshire, LLC, of Alvin, Texas, $19,927 for violating the federal Clean Water Act.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Floyd Leslie Brooks, 45, of Houston, entered a plea of guilty to conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute for his role in the $45 million City Nursing Health Care scandal, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: CONVERSE—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Pallet Repair Services S.A. Inc. with 13 serious and three other-than-serious violations for exposing workers to amputation hazards and other safety violations at its facility in Converse.
Texas Business reports: ST. HEDWIG— The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Zamco Inc., doing business as Concepts in Cabinetry, with 14 safety and health violations – including one repeat – for electrical, respiratory and other hazards at the company's facility on Lupon Road in St. Hedwig.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—An owner of a Houston health care company was convicted yesterday by a jury in the Southern District of Texas in connection with a $750,000 Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The Texas Attorney General’s office issued the following statement about the resolution of the state’s investigation into Arizona-based JAWA and its owners, and the court order requiring the defendants to pay $2 million for defrauding wireless customers in Texas.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The Texas Attorney General’s office and and other state attorneys general today resolved a two-phase Medicaid fraud and deceptive marketing investigation into Abbott Laboratories.
LSAT Numbers Fall in Texas, Nationally Have bad economic times started to blunt the college grad’s time-honored enthusiasm for pursuing legal careers? A recent sharp drop in the number of people taking the Law School Admission Test suggests some kind of reassessment may be under way. Full Story » By Jordan Humphreys for Reporting Texas
The Environmental Protection Agency issued the first-ever national air pollution regulations for fracking on Wednesday. First proposed in July 2011, the final rules have been welcomed by environmental groups as a much-needed initial move in reducing pollution and protecting public health from the toxic chemicals involved in the oil and natural gas drilling process. But many cautioned it was just a first step.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Floyd Leslie Brooks, 45, Gwendolyn Kay Frank, 43, both of Houston, have been charged with conspiracy to violation the Anti-Kickback Statue, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.
Investigation Initiated On State Bar Funds Texas Business reports: The State Bar of Texas notified the Travis County District Attorney’s Office regarding a potential misappropriation of funds. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Tony Nnonso Obi, 56, a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Federal Republic of Nigeria has been charged in a 20-count indictment for his role in a massive health care fraud conspiracy that billed the Medicare and Medicaid programs for more than $45 million, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
The government recently unveiled a new set of rules outlining better care for immigrants and asylum seekers detained while waiting for their deportation hearings.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—A Travis County jury returned a $195 million verdict against Houston-based TaxMasters, Inc., its predecessor companies and its founder and chief executive, Patrick Cox, for violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
Texas Business reports: COLLEGE STATION— Natural gas drilling in Texas’ shale regions may be lucrative for mineral rights owners, but it can be a headache for landowners with surface rights who are unprepared to negotiate with pipeline companies.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced the Circle Court Ground Water site, in Willow Park, Texas, has been proposed to be added to the National Priorities List (NPL) of Superfund sites, a list of sites that pose risks to people’s health and the environment.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Bassey Essien, the former co-owner of Durable Medical Equipment (DME) companies Logic World Medical and Roben Medical in Houston, was sentenced to 99 months in federal prison for defrauding the Texas Medicaid program, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today along with Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.
Texas Business reports: Among corporations involved in the 2006 stock-option backdating scandal, those implicated earlier were more likely to dismiss their top executives than those that surfaced later on, according to new research from Rice University and the University of California at Irvine.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The University of Houston Law Center will offer its alumni free, unlimited access to the nation's largest web-based continuing education and professional development service.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Piping Technology and Products Inc. for 13 willful and 17 serious violations for exposing workers to the risk of amputations and other serious injuries from dangerous machinery, as well as other hazards, at the company's Houston facility.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—BNY Mellon Capital Markets LLC will pay $1.3 million to Texas and two other states for its role in a scheme to lower borrowing costs for Citizens Property Insurance Corp. of Florida.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Benjamin Essien, the former owner of durable medical equipment (DME) companies Logic World Medical and Roben Medical in Houston, has been sentenced to 145 months in federal prison for defrauding the Texas Medicaid program, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today along with Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN –The Texas Attorney General’s Office secured an asset freeze and temporary restraining order against the Texas Highway Patrol Association (THPA) and two of its affiliate organizations.
Texas Business reports: LUBBOCK — Licensed Professional Counselor Margie E. Hollingsworth, of Lubbock, Texas, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in Lubbock on 12 counts of health care fraud and six counts of false statements related to health care matters, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña, of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Kelvin Washington, 48, of Houston, has been convicted on all counts of health care fraud, conspiracy and violations of the anti-kickback statute charged against him, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.
Texas Business reports: McALLEN—A co-owner and manager of a McAllen-area durable medical equipment (DME) business have both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud for their roles in a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billings for power wheelchairs, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced that Agrifos, a former phosphoric acid and phosphate fertilizer producer, agreed to pay a $1.8 million dollar penalty and conduct an environmental project to resolve alleged violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Clean Air Act.
Texas Business reports: FORT WORTH—Judge Sean H. Lane of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York granted approval of a series of first day motions filed by the AMR Corporation, the parent company of American Airlines, Inc. and AMR Eagle Holding Corporation to help facilitate American's and American Eagle's continued normal business operations throughout the reorganization process.
Texas Business reports: TYLER—United States Attorney John M. Bales announced that Candido Patino was sentenced for structuring and assisting in structuring transactions with a domestic financial institution in the Eastern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Julian Kimble, 46, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and tax evasion, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: SAN BENITO –The Texas Attorney General’s Office charged the operator of an unauthorized waste tire storage site with numerous violations of the Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN – The Texas Attorney General’s Office today resolved its investigation into U.S. Money Reserve Inc., an Austin-based commemorative coin marketer that does business as U.S. Rare Coin and Bullion Reserve.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON - A former Houston physician has been sentenced to 70 months in prison following his convictions for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and mail fraud, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS — Three defendants who have been charged in a federal indictment, unsealed today, with various offenses related to their involvement in the operation of Euless Healthcare Corporation, were arrested by special agents with the FBI and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - Office of the Inspector General, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
AUSTIN—At the Jester King Craft Brewery, in the hills just west of Austin, managing partner Ron Extract can explain the differences between Cascade and Amarillo hops. He can explain what gives “Das Wunderkind” beer its “delicate tartness” and “Commercial Suicide” its “oaky notes.” He cannot sell you a glass of either. Nor can he tell you where Jester King’s beers are sold. According to the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission code, both activities are illegal.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – A Lexington, Kentucky-based direct sales firm has agreed to repay up to $1.3 million to its Texas customers. The agreement resolves the Texas Attorney General’s Office investigation into potential Deceptive Trade Practices Act violations by Fortune Hi-Tech Marketing, Inc. – including allegations that the firm operated an illegal pyramid scheme.
Texas Business reports: LAMESA, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Robinson Drilling of Texas Ltd. for eight serious, four repeat and 11 other-than-serious safety and health violations following the death of two workers at the company's work site near Lamesa at Truitt Woods Field, Well No. 1, Rig No. 3.
Texas Business reports: CHANNELVIEW—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Sneed Shipbuilding Inc. for 14 serious, seven repeat and four other-than-serious violations for exposing workers to multiple safety hazards at the company's facility in Channelview.
Texas Business reports: The United States Attorney’s Office announced that in Austin , 44-year-old Kurt Branham Barton, founder, president, and CEO of Triton Financial LLC, was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for carrying out a Ponzi scheme which victimized more than 300 individuals and resulted in a total estimated loss to investors of over $50 million.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved penalties totaling $934,026 against 66 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Texas Business reports: McALLEN, TEXAS - A co-owner and manager of a McAllen-area durable medical equipment (DME) business have been indicted by a federal grand jury and charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, multiple counts of health care fraud and aggravated identity theft for their alleged roles in a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billings for power wheelchairs, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – The Texas Attorney General’s Office today resolved the State’s enforcement actions against BP Products North America Inc.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Dallas-based Kennedy, Clark & Williams PC, a boutique law firm focused on intellectual property and corporate litigation, has added Keith McDole as Partner.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Six Houston residents involved in a long-term scheme to defraud the Medicare and Medicaid health care benefit programs have been sentenced to federal prison, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—An owner and operator of a Houston durable medical equipment (DME) company was sentenced today in Houston federal court to 41 months in prison for his role in a Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC has merged with the Houston law firm of Spain Chambers, marking Baker Donelson's entry into Texas with a major step in the firm's continuing strategic growth.
Texas Business reports: BRENHAM--On May 5, 2011, an Emergency Cease and Desist Order was issued to Emmitt Lewis, Jr., dba Lewis Funeral Home and Chapel for the sale of a trust-funded preneed funeral contract without the required state permit and the mishandling of funds as required by Texas Finance Code Chapter 154, the Texas Department of Banking announced this week.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Justina Okehie aka Dr. Tina Collins, 55, of Richmond, Texas, has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—Under agreements negotiated by the Texas Attorney General’s Office, several weight-loss clinics and a distributor of a weight loss product in Texas must significantly alter the way they market their services and/or products.
Texas Business reports: CORPUS CHRISTI—Richard Lopez, 43, Benjamin Martinez, 74, and Toby Clarkson, 39, all pleaded guilty to federal money laundering charges related to an embezzlement scheme at Sherwin Alumina Company, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: SAGINAW—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Minneapolis-based Horizon Milling LLC for 17 serious violations for exposing workers to multiple safety hazards at the company's facility in Saginaw. Proposed penalties total $57,000.
Texas Business reports: NEW BRAUNFELS – A pretrial settlement agreement negotiated last week by the Texas Attorney General’s Office will require a New Braunfels-based all-terrain vehicle sales retailer to surrender its sales license.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—Investors in the Warr Investment Group LLC of Austin, which the State Securities Board forced into receivership earlier this year, will receive nearly one-third of their money back, with the potential for additional payments.
Texas Business reports: Fines of $591,798 against Valero Refining-Texas LP of Nueces and Galveston counties, and $141,925 against ConocoPhillips Company of Hutchinson County included.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – Three people have been sentenced by United States District Court Judge Ewing Werlein for conspiring to force labor and conspiring to distribute pirated CDs and DVDs, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced.
Texas Business reports: AMARILLO – The Texas Attorney General’s Office resolved the state’s enforcement action against a Potter County consultant who unlawfully provided immigration-related services – despite the fact that she was not licensed to do so. The defendant is charged with violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA) and Notary Public Act.
Texas Business reports: CONROE— The National Response Team (NRT) of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) along with ATF Special Agents from the Houston Field Division have been activated by a request from the City of Conroe Fire Marshal's Office to investigate a fire at the Garden Ridge Pottery Home Decor Store located at 16788 I45, Conroe, Texas.
Melissa Essary Steps Down As Dean of Campbell Law School, Plans To Return To Full-Time Faculty Texas Business reports: Raleigh, North Carolina— Melissa Essary, a well-known Texas lawyer transplanted to North Carolina, announced her intention to step away from the dean’s position after six years and return to full-time faculty responsibilities at Campbell University’s law school, effective July 1, 2012.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON - Edmund Hugh Benton, 63, of Scottsdale, Ariz., pleaded guilty yesterday to the federal felony offense of conspiracy to launder money before U.S. District Judge Sim Lake, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI) Special Agent in Charge Rodney E. Clarke announced today.
Rosenberg Roofing Contractor Agrees to Pay Restitution for Misleading Homeowners Texas Business reports: SINTON – A Rosenberg-based roofing contractor today agreed to reimburse all homeowners who improperly paid the company’s “liquidated damages” contracts. In June, the Attorney General’s Office charged Holden Roofing Inc. (HRI) with subjecting homeowners to unlawful penalties if they did not hire the defendant to perform the work.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: McALLEN,TEXAS - A federal jury in McAllen has convicted the owner of a durable medical equipment business in connection with a health care fraud and aggravated identity theft scheme, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced today.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON - A former owner of a durable medical equipment company (DME) was sentenced today to more than six years in federal prison for engaging in a conspiracy to defraud Medicare of more than $5 million and wire fraud, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced today.
Texas Business reports: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has fined the Texas Petroleum Investment Company of Houston, Texas, $134,895 for violating federal Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations outlined under the Clean Water Act.
Texas Business reports: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) settled a complaint against Camterra Resources, Inc., of Marshall, Texas, for violations of the Clean Water Act.
Texas Business reports: Earlier this week, 46-year-old Carl James Woodruff, former onsite construction manager for the Midland-based architecture and engineering firm of Grimes and Associates (Grimes), pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with a mail fraud scheme involving more than $200,000 in kickbacks from subcontractors United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced.
Texas Business reports: SAN ANGELO, Texas — At a hearing today in a U.S. District Court in San Angelo, U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings sentenced convicted Brownwood, Texas, dentist, James Crow, 67, to 70 months in federal prison on multiple offenses related to a healthcare fraud scheme he ran, according to U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: FORT WORTH – The owner of two Arlington used car dealerships who was previously charged with falsifying vehicle emissions test results has entered into an agreed judgment requiring him to comply with Texas law.
Two Dallas Area Residents Charged In National Medicare Fraud Operation Texas Business reports: DALLAS – A Dallas-area doctor appeared in federal court on charges related to his alleged participation in a scheme to defraud the Medicare and Medicaid programs, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS). Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON - Carla Jean Johnson, 40, of Houston, has been sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for her conviction of conspiracy to commit wire fraud involving almost $1 million in loss to the victim company, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged a Corinth, Texas man with securities fraud for soliciting more than $3.45 million from several thousand deaf investors in an investment scheme that the SEC halted last year.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The owner of a Medicare referral business and the owner of a medical supply company have been charged for their participation in separate schemes to defraud the Medicare program of more than $62 million, announced the Departments of Justice, Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Texas Attorney General’s Office.
Texas Business reports: BROWNSVILLE—John Jeff Woodard Jr., 49, of Harlingen, Texas, has been sentenced to a 51-month term of imprisonment for bank fraud conducted through the operation of a check kite scheme involving multiple bank accounts held in the names of several of his former businesses, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Plano Couple Plead Guilty to Health Care Fraud in State and Federal Probe Texas Business reports: DALLAS — Joanna Jones Ellis Kemp, 68, and her husband, Peter A. Kemp, 67, both of Plano, Texas, each appeared in federal court this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Irma C. Ramirez and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit false statements relating to health care matters, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: VICTORIA—A Victoria waste transportation company pleaded guilty to one count of unauthorized discharge and paid a $150,000 fine, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality announced.
Texas Business reports: LAREDO—The Texas Attorney General’s Office charged a Laredo furniture store and its owners with violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA).
Texas Business reports: SAN ANTONIO—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Roma Construction with six safety violations after an inspection of the company's work site on Wild Basin in San Antonio found employees exposed to scaffolding hazards while applying stucco to the exterior of a home.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality today approved penalties totaling $904,545 against 91 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations. Included in the total was a fine of $212,500 against J-W Operating Company, Wise County, for air violations noted in a December 2010 records review.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The former owner of Global Laboratories LLC, located in Scottsdale, Ariz., has been convicted of unlawfully introducing stem cells into interstate commerce, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced along with Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Holland of the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OCI), Kansas City Field Office and Cory B. Nelson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s San Antonio Field Office.
Texas Business reports: DRIPPING SPRINGS, Texas—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Austin-based Buffalo Framing and Truss LP for 13 serious and one repeat safety violation resulting from inspections at two of the company's work sites in Dripping Springs. Proposed penalties total $58,100.
Seaside Aquaculture and Owner Convicted For Killing Protected Texas Business reports: VICTORIA, Texas—Following one and one-half days of trial testimony and approximately three and one-half hours of deliberation, a federal jury returned a verdict finding Seaside Aquaculture Inc., a fish farm located in Palacios, Texas, and its owner, Khanh Vu, guilty of illegally killing approximately 90 brown pelicans, which are protected under federal law, according to United States Attorney José Angel Moreno.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: LUBBOCK—A federal grand jury in Lubbock returned an indictment this week charging San Angelo, Texas resident Debra Rucker Brown with six counts of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Two Houston businessmen, a mortgage company loan officer, and a title company attorney and escrow officer were indicted for their alleged involvement in a scheme to defraud residential mortgage lenders of more than $22 million in loans, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced along with FBI Special Agent in Charge Stephen L. Morris and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI) Special Agent in Charge Rodney E. Clarke.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) is revoking Certificates of Approval for 22 programs being taught at career schools in Texas owned by ATI Enterprises Inc. (ATI), following the discovery of substantial misreporting of graduate employment rates in those programs.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has fined the Texas Petroleum Company of Houston, Texas, $163,487 for violating federal Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations outlined under the Clean Water Act.
Texas Business reports: BEAUMONT, Texas—A 62-year-old Leawood, Kansas lawyer was sentenced to federal prison for investment fraud in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Texas Business reports: FREEPORT, Texas—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Freeport-based Enterprise Products Transportation Co. for 29 serious and three other-than-serious violations following a fatality which occurred at the facility's tank wash operation in Freeport.
Texas Business reports: FRISCO—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Exide Technologies for one serious and one repeat violation at the company's battery recycling facility on South Fifth Street in Frisco.
Texas Business reports: GARDEN CITY, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Midland-based Trinidad Drilling LP for three serious and two repeat violations following the fatal electrocution of a worker at the company's job site near Garden City on County Road 125.
Texas Business reports: A federal grand jury charged 46-year-old Carl James Woodruff, former onsite construction manager for the Midland-based architecture and engineering firm of Grimes and Associates (Grimes), in a mail fraud scheme involving more than $200,000 in kickbacks from subcontractors. United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – An employee of a Houston area nursing home has been arrested as a result of the return of a sealed indictment by a Houston grand jury charging him with conspiracy, health care fraud and violations of the anti-kickback statute arising from a scheme to unlawfully bill federal health care programs for ambulance transport, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno, along with Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott announced.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—The Inspections & Compliance Division of the State Securities Board has requested that Houston investment adviser Brian Anthony Bjork and his firm, Select Asset Management LLC (SAM), have their state registrations revoked.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—Securities Commissioner Benette L. Zivley sued Waco-based Life Partners Holdings Inc. and its chief executive, Brian Pardo, for refusing to comply with subpoenas from the State Securities Board, the agency announced.
Texas Business reports: McAllen—A total of 20 South Texas residents indicted for their roles in a scheme to defraud the American Family Life Assurance Company (Aflac) of millions of dollars by filing thousands of false injury claims under Aflac’s accident-only insurance plan have been convicted this week, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Three family members/principals of Aspen Exploration, Inc., the managing partner of oil and gas well programs offered and sold to investors throughout the U.S. and elsewhere, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis for their respective roles in operating a fraudulent investment scheme, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: McALLEN, Texas—Felicitas Velez Alanis, 50, and her daughter-in-law Erika Ortega Alanis, 26, both of Brownsville, Texas, have been arrested on charges of health care fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced along with the Texas Attorney General’s office.
US Labor Department's OSHA cites AMF Bowling in Addison, Texas, following worker fatality Texas Business reports: ADDISON, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited AMF Bowling Centers Inc. for three serious and three repeat violations following the death of a worker at the company's 300 Dallas facility on Belt Line Road in Addison.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: Federal, state and local authorities arrested 18 individuals Tuesday, including seven former Texas Medicaid Medical Transportation Program (TMMTP) San Antonio call center employees, in connection with a health care fraud investigation focusing on more than 1,000 fraudulent transportation claims totaling approximately $200,000, announced United States Attorney John E. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge Cory B. Nelson, Federal Bureau of Investigation –San Antonio Division, Special Agent in Charge George M. Fields, Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General–Dallas Field Division and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.
Texas Business reports:Salsalito Cantina Inc. and owner, 50-year-old Hossein Bagheri face a maximum $1 million fine and up to five years in federal prison, respectively, after pleading guilty to harboring an undocumented alien in connection with a worksite enforcement investigation, announced United States Attorney John E. Murphy.
Texas Business reports: United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced 27-year-old Babauk Omeed Harizavi of San Antonio faces up to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to his role in a vehicle title washing scheme involving over 600 Texas vehicle titles.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON - Harvard H. Hill, of Houston, has been charged with three counts of wire fraud in connection with an investment in the general partnership of a Houston-based venture capital fund he promoted, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Vincent Wallace Aldridge, a former fee attorney for First Southwestern Title Company, has been sentenced to 63 months imprisonment for wire fraud and money laundering arising from a scheme to defraud residential mortgage lenders of more than $3.7 million in loans in connection with home purchases in the Houston area, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced, along with acting FBI Special Agent in Charge Russell D. Robinson and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI) Special Agent in Charge Rodney E. Clark.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—A federal grand jury in Dallas has returned a four-count indictment this week charging three individuals, Vathany Teng, Lina Ma and Jerry Goh each with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and two substantive counts of bank fraud in relation to a loan fraud scheme they allegedly ran in the Dallas area from August 2007 to April 2008.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved penalties totaling $1,115,124 against 105 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Texas Business reports: FORT WORTH—The Texas attorney general’s office today charged the owner of a certified vehicle emissions inspection station with manipulating the state’s testing protocols.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fined Denbury Onshore LLC of Alvin $13,905 for violating the federal Clean Water Act.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Tenaris Global Services Corp., a manufacturer and supplier of steel pipe products for the oil and energy industry, has agreed to pay $717,324 of civil penalties to the United States to settle violations of environmental regulations at seven facilities related to the public reporting of toxic chemicals at its facilities in Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas.
Texas Business reports: DALLAS—Mesa Power Group LLC, a Texas-based renewable energy development company, has initiated the first step in a legal claim against the Canadian government for violations of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) while the company was pursuing 565 megawatts of wind energy projects in western Ontario.
Texas Business reports: EL PASO – The Texas state attorney general’s office charged a registered sex offender with operating an unauthorized legal services business in El Paso County.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON - Roger Lewis Pulley, 63, of League City, Texas, has been indicted and charged with fraud involving space vehicle parts and making a false statement in a matter within the jurisdiction of NASA, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced today.
Texas Business reports: SAN ANTONIO—Residents at three unlicensed assisted living facilities in Comal and Bexar counties were relocated today after a Bexar County district court determined that the facilities where they lived were not properly licensed by state health authorities.
Texas Business reports:CHINA GROVE, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Lone Star Bakery Inc. for 18 serious and three repeat safety and health violations at Plant 2 of the company's facility on U.S. Highway 87 East in China Grove.
Texas Business reports: BEAUMONT—A 49-year-old Baytown, Texas man has pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of Texas to disposing of hazardous wastes, including benzene solutions and inflammable solutions, without a permit, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Claymon “Butch” Trammell, along with his wife, Jeannettea Williams, and daughter, Michelle Trammell, have all pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for their roles in a multi-million-dollar mortgage fraud scheme, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced today.
Texas Business reports: The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which maintains a special reserve fund mandated by Congress to protect the customers of insolvent brokerage firms, said that it expects to announce on or about September 15, 2011 its decision about the referral provided by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with respect to the Stanford Group Company, operated by former Waco businessman Robert Allen Stanford.
Texas Business reports: EL PASO—United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced that in El Paso, a federal jury convicted Anthony Francis Valdez, 57, on all charges in connection with an estimated $41 million fraudulent health care benefit program billing scheme.
Texas Business reports: United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced that 35-year-old Jason Heath Morrison, of Midland, Texas, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release for his role in a real estate fraud scheme, as well as for his failure to register as a sex offender.
Texas Business reports: LONGVIEW—A 50-year-old Henderson, Texas woman has been sentenced to federal prison for a health care fraud scheme in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON—Neal Lim, former owner of one of the largest mail presort operations in the Houston area, has been sentenced to prison for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and possessing and using counterfeit postage meter machines to affix counterfeit postage in his mass mailing businesses, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno and United States Postal Inspection Service Inspector-in-Charge Gary Barksdale announced.
Texas Business reports: AUSTIN—Securities Commissioner Benette L. Zivley announced Wednesday that Raymond James Financial Services Inc. and Raymond James & Associates Inc. will pay a $293,595 fine to the State of Texas to settle claims the companies failed to disclose the risks of auction rate securities.
Texas Business reports: SAN ANTONIO—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Delta Granite and Marble Inc. with 10 serious and one other-than-serious violation.
Texas Business reports: WACO, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Hobbs Bonded Fiber Inc. with 29 serious violations following a Dec. 27, 2010, safety and health inspection. OSHA's Fort Worth Area Office initiated the inspection in response to a complaint alleging unsafe working conditions at the company's facility on Commerce Drive in Waco.
Texas Business reports: Houston—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Schumacher Co. of Texas Inc. for 31 alleged serious and two other-than-serious violations for exposing employees to multiple safety and health hazards, including exposure to hazardous chemicals, at the company's facility in Houston.
Colleyville, Texas, Man Indicted in $4 Million Investment Fraud Scheme Texas Business reports: FORT WORTH—Christopher Blackwell, 32, of Colleyville has been indicted by a federal grand jury on two counts of wire fraud in relation to an investment fraud scheme he has operated since January 2007, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas (NDTX).Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: An owner of a Houston health care company pleaded guilty Thursday to committing health care fraud and making false statements relating to health care matters, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).
Texas Business reports: PLANO—A Dallas/Fort Worth homebuilder pleaded guilty to a mortgage fraud scheme in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales Thursday.
Sanctuary Cities protest in San Antonio. Photo by C.P. Gian. Copyright 2011.
Sanctuary Cities protest in San Antonio Texas Business reports: SAN ANTONIO--Protesters picket in a Sanctuary City protest against s concerns about the proposed "sanctuary cities" legislation in San Antonio. Full Story » Photo by C.P. Gian. Copyright 2011.
Texas Business reports: Two owners of a Houston health care company pleaded guilty for their roles in a scheme to defraud Medicare of more than $800,000, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).
Texas Business reports: Over the past year, five states have begun requiring energy companies to disclose some of the chemicals they pump into the ground to extract oil and gas using the process of hydraulic fracturing.
Texas Business reports:An owner of a Houston health care company pleaded guilty in connection with a $654,227 Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).
Texas Business reports: WICHITA FALLS— James Clayton Baxter, 28, of Wichita Falls pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert K. Roach to one count of copyright infringement, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
32 South Texas Residents Charged With Fraud as a Result of “Operation Sitting Duck” Texas Business reports: McALLEN--“Operation Sitting Duck,” an ongoing investigation into fraudulent insurance claims filed with the American Family Life Assurance Company (AFLAC), has resulted in the return of eight separate but related sealed indictments, charges of conspiracy and wire fraud and the arrest of 32 South Texas residents for their alleged involvement in a scheme to defraud AFLAC of millions of dollars by allegedly filing false injury claims, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced Friday along with Special Agent-in-Charge Cory B. Nelson of the FBI San Antonio field office.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Three Indicted In Alligator Gar Smuggling Operation Texas Business reports: BEAUMONT, Texas – Three men have been indicted by a federal grand jury for smuggling alligator gar in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Former San Antonio Business Comptroller Indicted In Tax Scheme Texas Business reports: Former Watermark Group comptroller Monica R. Richardson faces federal income tax related charges resulting from a alleged scheme to steal over $500,000 from the company, United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports:SAN ANTONIO—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Bimbo Bakeries USA in San Antonio for 10 serious violations following a safety and health inspection at the company's work site in San Antonio after investigators found workers exposed to numerous workplace hazards, including the danger of amputations.
Prominent Breeder Agrees To Pay $1.5 Million For Smuggling Deer Into East Texas Texas Business reports: TYLER—After a lengthy four year investigation a 77-year-old Cherokee County, Texas licensed deer breeder has pleaded guilty to illegally transporting wildlife in the Eastern District of Texas and then lying about it to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife agent, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
“Alpha One” Foreign Currency Trader Convicted of Securities Fraud Texas Business reports: Houston—Robert David Watson, 50, of Spring, Texas, the “developer and owner” of “Alpha One”, a purportedly profitable foreign currency investment model, has been convicted of securities fraud after defrauding investors of millions of dollars, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced today.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Former City of Garland Employee Sentenced to 57 Months in Prison for Embezzling $1.9 Million Texas Business reports: Dallas—Patricia Leathers, a former risk management adjustor for the City of Garland, was sentenced this morning by Chief U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to 57 months in prison, following her guilty plea in December 2010 to one count of conspiracy involving theft of city funds, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Tyler And Athens Tax Preparer Sentenced For Filing False Returns Texas Business reports: Charles Hollie, a resident of Tyler, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Schneider to 24 months in prison for filing false tax returns, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality today approved penalties totaling $1,854,902 against 135 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Texas Business reports: San Antonio – The Texas Attorney General’s office joined the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) to launch a national crackdown on immigration scams. During the launch of the “Combating Immigration Services Scams” initiative, attorney general’s office also announced the state today charged four defendants with violating Texas laws governing notaries public.
Texas Business reports: Austin—The Texas Attorney General’s Office today charged a Cameron County developer with unlawfully subdividing and leasing lots in violation of state colonias prevention laws.
Dallas Businessman Erick Rulack Farrington Sentenced For Orchestrating Mortgage Fraud Texas Business reports: Dallas—Eric Rulack Farrington, 58, of Irving, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay to 132 months in federal prison for largely orchestrating a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme in the Dallas area, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: Corpus Christi—The Texas Attorney General’s office resolved a portion of its ongoing investigation into the disposition of the late Robert C. East’s estate.
Texas Business reports:Houston—Adrian Levale Cole and Albert Terrance Watkins, both of Houston, have been sentenced to prison for their roles in a multi-million-dollar mortgage fraud scheme, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: ALEXANDRIA, VA—A federal grand jury late yesterday indicted David Maloy, 57, of Coppell, Texas, for his involvement in a fraud scheme that caused more than $7 million in losses.
Texas Business reports: Tyler—A 31-year-old Malakoff, Texas man pled guilty to federal charges in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Texas Business reports: Corpus Christi—The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued four serious and one repeat citation to Sam Kane Beef Processor Inc. following an inspection at the company's facility in Corpus Christi, where multiple safety hazards were found. Proposed penalties total $61,000.
Rusty Hardin Trial Win Named Texas’ Top Business Law Verdict of 2010 Texas Business reports: Houston—A $2.8 million breach of contract verdict won by attorneys from Houston’s Rusty Hardin & Associates P.C., against Stewart Title Guaranty Co. has been named as Texas’ top business law verdict of 2010.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: Groesbeck--A Limestone County jury sentenced Reginald Lee Clark to 25 years in state prison after convicting him of stealing more than $400,000 from clients of his investment advisory business. The 12-member jury convicted Clark on a charge of theft on May 25, according to a statement by the Texas State Securities Board.
Texas Business reports: Beaumont—A Broaddus, Texas couple has been sentenced for health care fraud violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Houston Real Estate Developer Charged With Disaster Fraud Texas Business reports: Houston—Jon August Holverson, the owner of Bayou City Properties, and his brother, Jeffrey Holverson, have been indicted for conspiring to obtain approximately $1 million in disaster relief funds by fraudulent means and for making false statements in connection with a benefit authorized pursuant to a presidentially declared disaster declaration, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno, announced today along with Small Business Administration Office of the Inspector General (SBA-OIG) Special Agent in Charge Scott Dennis and Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General (DHS-OIG) Houston Special Agent in Charge Ronald Moore.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports:Dallas—Ray M. White, 52, of Mansfield, Texas, who pleaded guilty in June 2010 to one count of commodities fraud, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade to 10 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
Liberty County business owner sentenced in air pollution case Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality announced that its environmental crimes unit investigation of a Liberty County storage tank manufacturer culminated Monday in a guilty plea and criminal fines totaling $250,000.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: Securities Commissioner Benette L. Zivley on May 13 entered an Emergency Cease and Desist Order against a North Texas company and its affiliate, alleging the fraudulent sale and marketing of oil and gas interests to teachers and other school district employees.
Texas Business reports: Plano—A 52-year-old Paris, Texas podiatrist has pleaded guilty to federal health care fraud charges in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Texas Business reports: Beaumont—A federal grand jury has returned a 37-count indictment charging a Beaumont electrical contractor with federal violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Texas Business reports: Because of the severity of the Texas drought, water rights have been restricted on the longest river in Texas, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality announced.
Texas Business reports: The owner of a Houston-area durable medical equipment (DME) company was sentenced to 84 months in prison for her role in a Medicare fraud scheme, the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.
Texas Business reports: Corpus Christi—The Texas Attorney General’s office charged Silverio Salinas of Corpus Christi with falsely claiming to be a medical doctor licensed in Texas.
Texas Business reports: Tenaris S.A., a publicly traded corporation headquartered in Luxembourg, has agreed to pay a $3.5 million penalty for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and has entered into a non-prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer for the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Five Arrested In Austin-based Alleged Visa Fraud Scheme Texas Business reports: United States Attorney John E. Murphy and Special Agent in Charge Jerry Robinette, U.S. ICE Homeland Security Investigations,announced the arrests of an Austin area businessman and four other individuals in connection with a H-2B visa fraud scheme.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: A retired major in the U.S. Army pleaded guilty Monday in San Antonio to accepting $400,000 from a contractor following his deployment to Kuwait, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Defendants Arrested in Staged Accident Conspiracy Texas Business reports: Dallas—Four Dallas/Fort Worth-area residents, charged in a six-count indictment with various offenses related to their running a staged accident scheme, have been arrested, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality fined Belvan Corporation in Crocket County $119,360 for air violations, and Apache Corporation in Wheeler County $11,200 for records violations.
Texas Business reports: A 20-year-old computer hacker from North Carolina has been sentenced to prison for planning to hack into Houston-area ATMs, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports:Houston—Former Houston gas trader Stephanie Roqumore has been sentenced by United States District Judge Lynn N. Hughes six years in federal prison without parole for defrauding numerous natural gas trading companies of nearly $8 million, United States José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: After a dispute over a helicopter landing between the Navarro County Sheriff’s Department and the Navarro Mills Volunteer Fire Department, they turned to the Texas Attorney General office to see who was right. Both are wrong, said the Texas Attorney General in an opinion issued today. Only the helicopter pilot has final authority over where to land.
Texas Business reports: The Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a court order in the Dallas Division of the Northern District of Texas that freezes assets of China Voice Holding Corp., which trades in over-the-counter markets and has claimed to have a portfolio of telecommunications products and services in both the U.S. and China.
Texas Business reports: McAllen—A former employee of a McAllen-area durable medical equipment (DME) company has been convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: Dallas—Rejis Lamont Williams, a Texas certified real estate appraiser, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay to 46 months in federal prison for his role in a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: A Harris County jury has returned a $13.8 million verdict against a credit repair business and its owner, finding they defrauded indebted Texans and failed to register with authorities in violation of state law.
OSHA cites China Grove, Texas bakery following fingertip amputation Texas Business reports: China Grove—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Lone Star Bakery Inc. for 32 serious, one repeat and 16 other-than-serious violations following an amputation incident and multiple inspections at two of the company's facilities in China Grove.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality today approved penalties totaling $1,347,522 against 90 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Texas Business reports: Houston—A former owner of a durable medical equipment company (DME) pleaded guilty to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud Medicare of more than $5 million, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: Fort Worth—American Airlines filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Travelport LLC, and Orbitz Worldwide to stop exclusionary and anticompetitive business practices of the defendants and recover monetary damages that American has incurred as a result of these harmful actions.
Texas Business reports: Eustace—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited five companies for serious safety and health violations following a combustible dust flash fire that released hydrogen sulfide at the Eustace Gas Processing Plant in Eustace and hospitalized five workers.
Texas Business reports: Austin—The Texas Attorney General’s office charged a California-based telemarketing firm and its owner with unlawfully selling fraudulent automobile vehicle warranties and violating state and federal “do not call” laws.
Texas Business reports:Marshall—Norit Americas Inc. announced that a three-person independent arbitration panel has issued its decision in the binding arbitration with ADA-ES, Inc. and certain of its affiliates, as well as former Norit employees John Rectenwald and Steve Young.
Texas Business reports: Dallas—Kay Anne White, 45, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis to three years in federal prison following her guilty plea in January to one count of making false statements regarding health care matters, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
Texas Business reports: Austin—The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) has notified ATI Enterprises Inc. (ATI) that an investigation of graduate employment reports from three of its Dallas-area ATI career schools revealed violations of the Texas Education Code, according to a TWC statement.
Texas Business reports: Dallas— The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York has approved the sale of substantially all of Blockbuster’s assets to DISH Network Corporation.
Texas Business reports:A San Antonio architectural firm won a $6 million contract to provide architectural and engineering services for a new U.S. courthouse.
Texas Business reports: McAllen—The former president and vice president of a McAllen-area bank and an area homebuilder have been convicted of bank fraud after pleading guilty, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Attorney General’s office resolved the state’s enforcement action against South Carolina-based income tax consulting firm JK Harris & Company.
Texas Business reports: U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack appointed three Texans to the Agricultural Air Quality Task Force, including one from a Texas agency that is actively bucking the EPA on air quality control permits.
USPTO Announces Launch Date for Fast-Track Patent Processing Texas Business reports: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced today plans for the agency to begin accepting requests for prioritized examination of patent applications – allowing inventors and businesses to have their patents processed within 12 months.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: A 29-count indictment, returned recently by a federal grand jury in Dallas and unsealed this week, charges five individuals with various felony offenses related to a mortgage fraud scheme they ran for nearly three years in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas (NDTX).
Texas Business reports: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has fined Martin Operating Partnership LP of Beaumont, Texas, $48,700 for violating federal Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations outlined under the Clean Water Act.
Colonias Not Restricted to Border Towns Guadalupe County, Texas – Luz Almendarez lines the inside walls of her faded pink mobile home with old family photographs and images honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe. Visitors to her Rancho Vista trailer home are greeted with a flourishing herb garden, and her love of cooking is obvious, with dozens of pots piled in her kitchen and utensils hanging above the sink.Full Story » By Alexa Garcia-Ditta of Reporting Texas
Texas Business reports: The University of Texas School of Law and the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) in Mexico City have announced a new dual-degree program that will allow students to earn both a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Texas School of Law and a Licenciatura en Derecho (Mexican professional degree in law) from ITAM, the UT law school said in a prepared statement.
Texas Business reports: The U.S. Department of Labor filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas alleging that Houston-based Goodman Manufacturing Co. LP, and its parent company Goodman Global Inc., violated the anti-retaliation provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act when they terminated an employee who had complained to supervisors about the companies' recordkeeping practices required by OSHA.
Texas Business reports: McAllen—The owner of a McAllen-area durable medical equipment (DME) company and one of his employees have been indicted by a federal grand jury and charged with conspiracy, multiple counts of health care fraud, and aggravated identity theft for their alleged roles in a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billing for power wheelchairs and diabetic supplies, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: A federal jury has convicted the owner of Memorial Medical Supply, a durable medical equipment business, of multiple counts of health care fraud and the payment of kickbacks arising from a multi-million dollar fraud upon Medicare and Medicaid, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno announced.
Texas Business reports: Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott charged 24 defendants – including Jason Hope, the chief executive officer of Arizona-based Eye Level Holdings – with perpetuating a text messaging scheme that led to millions of dollars in unauthorized mobile phone charges.
Texas Business reports: Houston—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Seaboard International Inc. with 24 serious and two other-than-serious safety violations following the death of a worker at the company's Houston facility.
Texas Business reports:The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that it has fined Southwest Securities, Inc. of Dallas $500,000 for using paid consultants to solicit municipal securities business and for violations of other Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) rules.
Texas Business reports: McAllen—The Texas Attorney General’s office resolved five price-gouging cases filed against South Texas motel operators for their improper conduct during Hurricane Dolly.
Texas Business reports: Helotes—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Venetian Marble & Granite in Helotes with 10 serious safety and health violations after an inspection found that workers were exposed to unsafe levels of crystalline silica particles, the agency announced in a formal statement.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Attorney General’s office said in an opinion issued today from its office that cities are prohibited from using radar devices that makes photographs of a vehicle, its license plate or operator.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved penalties totaling $1,976,497 against 91 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Texas Business reports: The Houston trial law firm Arnold & Itkin LLP announced a verdict of more than $2.4 million reached by a jury last week on behalf of a worker who suffered severe burns while working at ExxonMobil's refinery in Baytown, Texas.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Attorney General’s office recently resolved the state’s enforcement action against a Cameron County couple that unlawfully subdivided, sold, and leased several residential lots in the El Jardin and Magic Valley subdivisions.
Texas Business reports:Premont—The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued 21 serious citations to Waste Facility Inc. for exposing workers to multiple safety and health hazards following an inspection at the company's facility in Premont.
Texas Business reports: MCALLEN – The Texas Attorney General’s office took enforcement actions against six Rio Grande Valley “notarios” for defrauding their customers and violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), the state's Notary Public Act, and the State Bar Act.
Texas Business reports: Plano—A 68-year-old Dallas man has been indicted in a commercial real estate investment scheme in the Eastern District of Texas, recently announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.
Texas Business reports: Austin’s Valence Technology Inc., a manufacturer of advanced energy storage solutions, prevailed in a patent infringement lawsuit regarding the company's carbothermal reduction technology.
Texas Business reports: Dallas—Seven North Texas defendants, including the owners and operators of two health care companies, were arrested as part of a Medicare fraudulent claims scheme.
Texas Business reports: Minnesota’s Bowman and Brooke LLP, trial firm that defends household-name corporations in high-exposure product liability cases, opened a new office in Austin.
Texas Business reports: Austin’s Xitronix Corporation, a developer of advanced measurement systems designed to control key process steps in the manufacturing of semiconductors, recently received a final judgment invalidating KLA-Tencor Corporation’s patent claims against the company.
Texas Business reports: The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued SPA Pipe and Supply LP in Abilene, doing business as Smith Pipe, 20 serious and two other-than-serious citations after an inspection at the company's facility on Highway 277.
Texas Business reports: Dr. Arun Sharma, 56, of Kemah has been sentenced to 15 years for engaging in a conspiracy with his wife, Dr. Kiran Sharma, to commit health care fraud and committing health care fraud over a 10-year-period in the Southern District of Texas, the U.S. Attorney’s office announced.
Texas Business reports:The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality recently approved penalties totaling 422,320 against Chevron Phillips Chemical Company in Harris County.
Aspen Exploration Inc. Principals Plead Guilty to Roles in Oil and Gas Investment Fraud Scheme Texas Business reports: Four principals of Aspen Exploration Inc., the managing partner of oil and gas well programs offered and sold to investors throughout the U.S. and elsewhere, pleaded guilty to their respective roles in operating a fraudulent investment scheme, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: A Travis County jury today returned a record-setting verdict for damages, finding that drug manufacturer Actavis Mid-Atlantic LLC misrepresented its drug prices to the taxpayer-funded Medicaid program.
DeDeSoto Physician Guilty in Health Care Fraud Scheme Texas Business reports: A 53-year-old DeSoto, Texas physician has pleaded guilty to federal health care fraud-related charges in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales.Full Story » Texas Business
Texas Business reports: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a civil penalty of $1,025,000 against San Antonio Aerospace LP for violating the Department of Transportation’s Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing programs.
Texas Business reports: Waco—Life Partners HoldingsInc. confirmed the SEC is conducting an investigation into the business of its operating subsidiary, Life Partners Inc.
Texas Business reports: SAN ANTONIO – The U.S. Department of Labor fined a Houston-based recycler for potentially exposing workers to blood borne pathogens.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Attorney General’s office obtained a temporary restraining order and asset freeze that will help secure the Kennedy Ridge Water Supply Corporation’s financial resources—which were depleted after its former executive and others diverted the supply corporation’s funds into fraudulent accounts under their control.
Texas Business reports:A state district judge granted a request by American Airlines for a temporary restraining order Sabre from continuing to “bias” its display of American flights.
Texas Business notes this story in Bloomberg: U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles Everingham in Marshall, Texas, said today that testimony during the 2009 trial on damages was incorrect in light of recent unrelated appeals court rulings that limited how damages should be calculated.
Texas Business reports:The Texas attorney general’s office recently resolved a state enforcement action against Mylan Laboratories Inc., which was charged with inaccurately reporting drug prices to the Texas Medicaid program.
Texas Business reports: The Texas Attorney General’s office has been asked whether or not the U.S. citizenship requirement to hold a racing license in Texas is constitutional.
Greenhouse gas curbs are weeks away for Texas Texas Business notes this story by Matthew Tresaugue of the Houston Chronicle: A federal appeals court on Friday rejected pleas from Texas, some other states and industry allies to block nationwide rules on greenhouse gas emissions slated to start next month.Full Story »
Texas Business reports:The Texas Attorney General’s office charged a New Braunfels ATV dealer with violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA).
EPA Orders Fort Worth Range Resources To Take Immediate Action Texas Business reports: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ordered a Fort Worth natural gas company to take immediate action to protect homeowners living near one of its drilling operations who have complained about flammable and bubbling drinking water coming out of their tap.Full Story » Texas Business
Allen Stanford Too Drugged in Prison for Trial, Lawyer Says in Bail Bid Texas Business notes this story by Laurel Brubaker Calkins of Bloomberg: Jailed financier R. Allen Stanford is too heavily medicated to prepare for or testify at his January trial on charges he led a $7 billion investment fraud, his lawyer claimed in a bid for bail.Full Story »
Texas Business reports:In the latest battle between the Environmental Protection Agency and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the Texas agency issued a press release attacking the EPA’s method of communication.
Andrews County Site Proposed For Radioactive Waste Storage Texas Business reports: A proposed radioactive waste import/export rule would open Texas up to becoming the nation's radioactive waste dumping ground, allowing waste from around the country to go to Waste Control Specialists' site in Andrews County in West Texas, instead of limiting the site to the Compact states of Texas and Vermont.Full Story » Texas Business
Texas Business reports: LUBBOCK – The Texas Attorney General’s Office charged two Lubbock mortgage companies and their owners with orchestrating a complex scheme to defraud Texas property owners.
Texas Business reports:Hewlett-Packard entered into a civil settlement with Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) for alleged E-rate fraud, following an extensive investigation by the Federal Communications Commission and Department of Justice, the DOJ recently announced.
Texas Business reports: A 47-count sealed indictment returned by a Houston grand jury was unsealed following the arrest of five of six defendants charged with allegedly defrauding Medicare and Medicaid by filing false claims for orthotic equipment and devices, United States Attorney’s Office and Texas Attorney General’s Office announced.
Texas Business reports: LINDEN – The Texas Attorney General’s office reached an agreement with a Cass County horse seller that misrepresented the nature and health of its animals.
Texas Supreme court stopping in Amarillo Texas Business notes this story by Brenda Burnett of the Amarillo Globe-News: The Texas Supreme Court will hear arguments for two cases on Wednesday, 500 miles from its home in Austin.Full Story »
SEC Charges Houston firm, others for widespread bribery Texas Business reports: The Securities and Exchange Commission recently announced sweeping settlements with a Houston offshore drilling firm and six other companies in the oil services industry that violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by paying millions of dollars in bribes to foreign officials to receive preferential treatment and improper benefits during the customs process.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Bogus Debt Collection Letter
CASHMAX and related companies ordered to halt fake mailers Texas Business reports: The Texas Attorney General’s office charged an Oklahoma-based payday lending firm with illegally misrepresenting itself as an official Dallas County government agency.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Legal Jockeying, Settlement Erase $8.8M Verdict Texas Business notes this story by John Council of Texas Lawyer: After a bitter six-week trial that resulted in an $8.8 million plaintiff's verdict, plaintiff Gary Cruciani and defendants Baron & Budd and Russell Budd settled the contentious litigation.Full Story »
Texas Supreme Court To State: No Taking Of Beachfront Property Texas Business reports: The Texas Supreme Court issued an opinion this morning which decides whether Texas recognize a “rolling” public beachfront access easement, i.e., an easement in favor of the public that allows access to and use of the beaches on the Gulf of Mexico and if a landowner would be entitled to compensation under Texas’ laws or constitution other than the amount already offered for removal of houses.
Texas Business reports: HOUSTON – The Texas Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency resolved their enforcement action against Pasadena-based Air Products LLC.
Texas Business reports: EmFinders, a Frisco-based technology company that offers a wearable cellular locator device for impaired adults and children, terminated its relationship with Project Lifesaver International (PLI) and filed a lawsuit against PLI for breach of contract and tortuous interference.
Wrath of Khan & Footnote 21 The Texas Supreme Court quotes Star Trek in its decision concerning the asbestos liability of Crown Cork & Seal Company. Full Story »
Texas Business reports: A 9-count sealed indictment charging Birdie Leroy Revis, aka Leroy Revis, with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and health care fraud has been unsealed, the United States Attorney’s Office and the Texas Attorney General Office announced in a joint press release.
Failure To Reserve Mineral Rights Texas Business reports: In Cornerstone Land Ltd v. Leticia Sanchez Pierce and Pantaleona Castaneda, the Texas Tenth Court of Appeals discusses the failure to reserve mineral rights in a property transaction. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Border Security Outsourced Texas Business notes this story from Border Lines: the fundamentals – strategy, planning, coordination, intelligence – of the Texas border security strategy have been outsourced to a Washington Beltway consulting firm, Abrams Learning & Information Systems (ALIS). Full Story »
Hale County Commissioners Ask AG to consider Salary Grievance Proceeding Texas Business notes this opinion by Texas Attorney General's office: The Attorney General's office has been asked by the Hale County Commissioners Court to consider the following legal issue: Deadline for the initiation of a salary grievance proceeding by a county or precinct officer. Full Story »
Texas Business reports:EL PASO – An El Paso District Court Friday granted a temporary restraining order against two individuals that operated three Internet-based “home schools.”
Texas Business reports:DALLAS—Tyler Technologies Inc. has signed contracts to provide its integrated court case management software solution to Walker and Medina counties in Texas. In total, the contracts are valued at more than $1.9 million.
Central Texas Teenager Busted For Cattle Rustling Thursday Texas Business notes this story by KWTX: A Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association investigation led to the arrest of a Calvert teenager Thursday in the theft of 45 head of cattle from ranches in Robertson County.Full Story »
Texas Slaps Amazon With $269M Tax Assessment Texas Business notes this story by the Austin American-Statesman: Amazon Inc. said it has received a $269 million bill for four years worth of sales taxes from Texas authorities.Full Story »
Texas Business reports:FORT WORTH – The Texas Attorney General’s office today took legal action against a Grapevine women’s health clinic for purchasing and selling intrauterine devices (IUDs) that were not approved for sale in the United States.
Amarillo Builder's Former Bookkeeper Admits Fraud Texas Business reports: AMARILLO--Trisia Leann Jordan, 33, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Mary Lou Robinson to one count of fraud in connection with access devices, announced U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Beaumont law firm to collect evidence in federal lawsuit against BP, others Texas Business notes this story by Kalyn Belshaw of the Beaumont Enterprise: A federal judge in New Orleans has selected a Beaumont law firm to assist in compiling evidence, documents and depositions in the massive federal lawsuit against companies accused of causing the largest oil spill in U.S. history.Full Story »
Stanford denied insurance funds Texas Business notes this story by Caribbean 360: Just a few months before his criminal trial for fraud, disgraced financier Allen Stanford has suffered a serious blow as a judge rules he cannot use US$100 million of Lloyd’s of London directors and officers insurance coverage to pay lawyers to defend him.Full Story »
Texas Business reports:AUSTIN—Six independent pharmacies in Texas are suing CVS Caremark for Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) violations and trade secret misappropriation.
Louisiana, Texas and Florida Lawyers to Lead BP Oil-Spill Cases Texas Business notes this story by Laurel Brubaker Calkins and Allen M. Johnson Jr. of Bloomberg Businessweek: A federal judge appointed four lawyers from three states to lead a 15-member steering committee for thousands of people and businesses suing over the BP Plc oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.Full Story »
Washex deal could pay off taxes, back wages Texas Business notes this story by Lynn Walker of the Wichita Falls Times Record News: Owners of the defunct Washex plant in Wichita Falls have asked a bankruptcy judge for permission to sell the plant’s assets, meaning some local taxing entities and former employees might soon get money they’re owed.Full Story »
Texas Business reports:DALLAS – The Texas Attorney General’s office resolved an enforcement action against a couple who improperly misrepresented the nature of their college entrance exam preparatory materials.
Texas Business reports:GREENVILLE—A lawsuit asserting claims for common law misappropriation and unjust enrichment was filed last week against MGA Entertainment Inc. in the 354th Judicial District Court for Hunt County.
Texas woman sues Chesapeake, seeking royalties Texas Business notes this story by the Journal-Record: A Texas woman has filed a class-action lawsuit against subsidiaries of Chesapeake Energy Corp., saying they shortchanged royalty owners in the natural gas-rich Barnett Shale.Full Story »
State grants air pollution permits for Matagorda plant Texas Business notes this story by Matthew Tresaugue of the Houston Chronicle: Texas' environmental agency granted air pollution permits for a proposed coal- and petroleum coke-fired power plant in Matagorda County over the objections of local officials and residents.Full Story »
Statewide immigration program raising local questions Texas Business notes this story by John Cuoco of KXXV: CENTRAL TEXAS - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced Wednesday that it's "Secure Communities" program will be enforced across Texas.Full Story »
Relizon (Texas) Ltd., Marketing Provider, Files for Bankruptcy Texas Business notes this story by Michael Bathon of Bloomberg Businessweek: Relizon (Texas) Ltd., a provider of marketing services also known as WorkflowOne, filed for bankruptcy, saying it has a restructuring plan to pay creditors and exit court protection.Full Story »
Valero Refining-Texas L.P. in Galveston County fined $186,400 Texas Business reports:The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality today approved penalties totaling $748,674 against 69 regulated entities for violations of state environmental regulations.
Federal Judge Chides SEC in Mark Cuban's Document Dispute Texas Business notes this story by Mark Scarcella of the National Law Journal: A day after an appeals court revived the Securities and Exchange Commission's insider trading suit against Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, a federal judge in Washington on Wednesday sharply criticized the agency over its handling of a public records request related to the investigation.Full Story »
Dell settles lawsuit that claimed it mishandled problems with computers Texas Business notes this story by Kirk Ladendorf of the Austin American-Statesman: Dell Inc. said Friday it had reached a tentative confidential settlement with a North Carolina Web services company that sued it three years ago after many of its Dell servers failed.Full Story »
Federal Judge Chides SEC in Mark Cuban's Document Dispute Texas Business notes this story by The Blog of Legal Times: A day after an appeals court revived the Securities and Exchange Commission's insider trading suit against Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, a federal judge in Washington today sharply criticized the agency over its handling of a public records request related to the investigation.Full Story »
Texas Business reports:An owner of a durable medical equipment (DME) company has been sentenced to prison for defrauding the Medicaid health care program of approximately $1 million by submitting false and fraudulent claims for incontinence supplies, United States Attorney José Angel Moreno and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott recently announced.
S.A. eateries targeted on illegal workers Texas Business notes this story by Guillermo Contreras of the San Antonio Express-News: In a rare criminal worksite enforcement case, a San Antonio restaurant company, its owner and four managers have been indicted on charges they conspired to hire illegal immigrants.Full Story »
Texas Business reports:AUSTIN – The State of Texas today filed four motions to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from implementing new federal regulations that it claims threaten the Texas economy and jeopardize Texas jobs.
Criminal Contempt Charges Against Immigration Counseling Service Underline a Big Problem in Texas Texas Business notes this story by John Council of Texas Lawyer: In an unusual case, a Houston jury on Sept. 1 found that a non-attorney business owner and his immigration counseling service were in criminal contempt after they violated a permanent injunction 1,023 times that restricts them from representing clients in legal matters.Full Story »
Texas threatens for-profit college with closure Texas Business notes this story by Melissa Ludwig of the San Antonio Express-News: Citing recruiting violations and financial aid fraud, the Texas Workforce Commission has moved to revoke the licenses of three Texas campuses of the for-profit Westwood College.Full Story »
Texas Cattle Rustler Sentenced In Phoenix Texas Business notes this story by Imani Randolph of ABC15.com: PHOENIX - Jason Lon Kirby, 34, of Datilo, New Mexico pleaded guilty for allegedly selling stolen cattle in Arizona and Texas.
Implementation of Payee Notification Policies Urged Texas Business notes this story by Mary Alice Robbins of Texas Lawyer: To prevent the "misdirection, misapplication and improper use of insurance settlement payments" by claimants' representatives, Texas Insurance Commissioner Mike Geeslin is asking insurers to implement "payee notification" policies.Full Story »
Big names on list of companies ICE fined Texas Business notes this story by Susan Carroll of the Houston Chronicle: Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have decided that they are no longer releasing information to the public on companies fined for hiring illegal immigrants.Full Story »
HP Faces Uphill Battle to Stop Hurd From Taking Oracle Job Texas Business notes this story by Amy Miller of The Recorder: Hewlett-Packard's legal team will have a hard time persuading a state court judge to stop former CEO and Baylor University graduate Mark Hurd from becoming president of Oracle Corp., employment law experts said.Full Story »
Turn around in the Texas Supreme Court Texas Business recommends this article by Gavin Parrish for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: The Texas Supreme Court issued a split ruling a year ago in the case of Marks v. St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, a rather unremarkable statutory interpretation case involving the Texas Medical Liability and Insurance Improvement Act. Full Story »
Red light camera firm files lawsuit over election Texas Business notes this story by Mark Fleming of the Baytown Sun: American Traffic Solutions, the company that owns and operates the cameras and sensor systems used to enforce red light compliance at several Baytown intersections, filed a lawsuit against the city Thursday seeking to overturn the city’s decision to call an election on an amendment to the red light camera ordinance.Full Story »
Texas probing Google on antitrust matters Texas Business notes this story by UPI: Internet giant Google said it would cooperate with an antitrust investigation conducted by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.Full Story »
Reklaw man sentenced to 14 years for cattle theft Texas Business notes this story by the Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association: A Reklaw man was sentenced to 14 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) for the theft of 14 head of cattle on two different occasions in Cherokee County. Full Story »
Texas company fingered in pipeline blast Texas Business notes this story by the UPI: Texas pipeline operator Enterprise Products Partners violated the law in a June gas explosion that killed one worker and injured eight others.Full Story »
The Texas News Scrawl is a handy reference to stories Texas Business recommends from other news sources. Some of the stories that Texas Business currently suggests include: Pipeline ruling strengthens Texas private property rights; Texas Bowl seeks new title sponsor; Insult to Injury: Texas Workers’ Comp System Denies, Delays Medical Help; American Airlines continues to shed jobs; Chemical Safety Board shut out of West probe by ATF; America’s greatest threat: Unsafe work conditions; The West News proves the value of a great weekly newspaper in a community torn up with grief and chaos; and more.
American Dollar Exchange Rate
