Here are things to know for Tuesday, April 27:
1. Houston officials, FBI warn against use of fake vaccination cards
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The list of venues, establishments and government entities that currently or will soon require proof of vaccination is growing, and so is vaccine card fraud.
The fake cards can be bought for cheap on the dark web and sometimes on public online shopping and social media sites.
“They’re very easy to get, and a lot of people are getting them,” Crime Stoppers of Houston CEO Rania Mankarious said in an interview on Monday.
The Attorneys General of 46 states recently signed on to a letter addressed to the CEOs of Twitter, eBay and Shopify demanding they do more to prevent vaccine card fraud.
“[F]ake COVID vaccine cards threaten the health of our communities, slow progress in getting our residents protected from the virus, and are a violation of the laws of many states,” the letter said.
2. Posthumous pardon requested for George Floyd’s Houston drug conviction
KPRC 2 Investigates has learned an attorney for the Harris County Public Defender’s office has filed an application requesting that clemency be granted for George Floyd for a 2004 drug conviction in Houston.
The application states it was filed on behalf of Floyd, now deceased, and on behalf of his surviving family.
On February 5, 2004, Floyd was arrested in Houston and charged with the delivery of a controlled substance. The arresting officer was Gerald Goines. Floyd was sentenced to time in jail.
This is the same officer Goines who was criminally charged in 2019 accused of lying to obtain a “no-knock” search warrant for a southeast Houston home. Two homeowners were shot and killed during the raid, and five police officers were injured.
3. Texas will gain two seats in Congress as residents of color drive population gains
Texas will continue to see its political clout grow as it gains two additional congressional seats following the 2020 census, the U.S. Census Bureau announced Monday.
Thanks to its fast-growing population — largely due to an increase in residents of color, particularly Hispanics — the state’s share of votes in the U.S. House of Representatives will increase to 38 for the next decade. The new counts reflect a decade of population growth since the last census, which determines how many congressional seats are assigned to each state.
More detailed data, which lawmakers need to redraw legislative and congressional districts to reflect that growth, isn’t expected until early fall. But census estimates have shown it’s been driven by people of color.
4. HPD officer accused of excessive force ‘no longer an HPD employee’
A Houston police officer named in a federal civil rights lawsuit alleging excessive use of force is now off the force.
An HPD spokesperson told KPRC 2 Lucas Vieira “is no longer an HPD employee” adding that his last day on the job was April 16, 2021.
Sources told KPRC 2 Vieira was fired and that he is appealing the decision.
Late last year, attorneys for Aundre Howard released 23 seconds of bodycam video from a traffic stop in July 2019. The clip shows Vieira and his partner, Officer Thomas Serrano chasing after a handcuffed Howard. Vieira repeatedly yelling at Serrano, “Just (expletive) shoot his (expletive)!” After the brief foot chase, attorneys say the video shows Vieira catches Howard and appears to hit him over the head multiple times while using a pair of handcuffs. Howard was heard on the video pleading with the officer to stop, saying “Alright bro! You got it, bro! You got it, bro!”
5. Houston restaurants seeing larger crowds, longer wait times amid staffing shortage
If you headed out for “Sunday Funday” this weekend or just out to eat recently, you may have noticed the crowds. More people are getting out and about and in some cases, tables are hard to come by.
“People are back. People are dining,” said Greater Houston Restaurant Association president Cameron James. “Right now, we are living in that kind of ‘boom’ and it’s everywhere.”
At Coppa Osteria in Rice Village, the patio and dining room were packed with people over the weekend.
“I would say the same or about 10 to 15% better than pre-COVID-19,” said Coppa Osteria owner of Grant Cooper of Clark Cooper Concepts. “We are happy to see people coming in. People are trying to do their little so-called hugs from afar, but now I think they are actually embracing each other a little.”