Newsletter Archive

Veteran Paul Coles became addicted to opioids after taking painkillers for injuries he suffered in Iraq. He’s one of the 2.5 million Americans addicted to prescription opioids, a dependency that often begins in a doctor’s office. Coles hit bottom when he was arrested on drug possession charges and ended up in drug court. But instead of tossing Coles in jail, the judge threw him an unexpected lifeline.

A Somali mother of 8 was stoned to death by Al-Shabab in a town about 400 kilometers south of Mogadishu. The militant group runs its own court system in an effort to impose a strict form of Islamic law on Somalia. Hundreds of residents gathered on the town square to watch the gruesome execution of the woman accused of bigamy and adultery.

UN Ambassador Nikki Haley’s visit to a UN camp in Juba, South Sudan, was cut short by a turbulent protest. More than 30,000 people live at the camp for internally displaced persons. Some camp residents accuse visit organizers of having a woman who doesn’t live at the camp meet with Haley in part to keep America’s UN ambassador from witnessing the miserable conditions they live in.

Haitian journalists are balking at a government request that they share video recorded during anti-government protests with authorities. The reporters feel complying would amount to spying on their fellow citizens. Two prominent Haitian journalism organizations have rejected the directive, calling it an extreme infringement on press freedom.

A Virginia-based company helps detained immigrants pay their bonds by fitting them with ankle monitors. They can leave jail as long as they wear the GPS device and pay the monthly fee. The monitors stay on until the immigrants’ cases make their way through the backlogged immigration courts. But there are questions about the service that often leaves immigrants struggling to pay the hefty fees.

Creating a diverse and inclusive technology culture is the focus of Wayne Sutton’s life’s work. When the entrepreneur learned that less than one percent of technology startups founded by blacks and Hispanics receive venture capital, he decided to do something about it by founding the first minority-led startup incubator in Silicon Valley.

The World Series is lifting the spirits of Houstonians still recovering from Hurricane Harvey floods, which affected about 6.5 million area residents. While not everyone is excited about the hometown Astros making it to baseball’s championship series, die-hard fans are happy to have a distraction that gives them something to cheer about.