AUSTIN (KXAN) – For decades, Texas law gave police discretion to withhold information if a suspect died in custody. Legislative efforts to close that loophole failed session after session at the State Capitol, but it did not stop the families who were denied video and other records detailing their loved ones’ final moments from speaking out. Following a years-long KXAN investigation into police transparency, lawmakers voted in 2023 to close that controversial legal gap known as the “dead suspect loophole.”
KXAN’s coverage of this issue began with its “DENIED” docuseries and “DENIED Evidence” follow up series in 2018, and – 60 stories later – its reporting continues today, as our team monitors the effectiveness of the policy change. This week, on a “From the Vault” edition of our weekly “Inside the Investigation” program, KXAN Director of Investigations & Innovation Josh Hinkle and Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas (FOIFT) Executive Director Kelley Shannon revisit KXAN’s original project and discuss how it came together, along with updates to the topic still playing out today across Texas.
Related reports
- DENIED: Investigative Landing Page
- DENIED: Original Docuseries
- DENIED Evidence: Docuseries’ Next Chapter
- Dead suspect loophole closes after decades of denials
You can watch all new episodes of Inside the Investigation on the KXAN+ app every Friday starting at 1 p.m. The segment described above will follow a special viewing of “DENIED,” so you can watch the stories and the updated analysis back-to-back. Just search for KXAN on your preferred streaming devices, such as Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV. You can also listen to KXAN’s investigative podcast, where we feature audio versions of our weekly “Inside the Investigation” episodes. You can find new episodes every Saturday morning wherever you get podcasts — search for KXAN Investigates.
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