🌱 Jail Fail + Best Bars + Robot Big-Rig Hitch

Welcome back, Houston. I'm here in your inbox today to tell you everything you need to know about what's going on around town. Today you'll read about these stories and more...

• Harris County Jail receives failing grade.
• The Best Bar in Houston nominees.
• A self-driving big rig company faces hardship.

But first, today's weather: Times of clouds and sun. High: 66 Low: 51.

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Here are the top stories today in Houston:

1. Controversy continues to plague Harris County Jail after a new state inspection report determined that the jail fails to comply with minimum standards. Texas Commission of Jail Standards issued the report on March 8. The jail failed to measure up across multiple avenues of detainment including prompt health services, inmate holding cell length, and timely meetings with corrections officers upon jail admittance. Reviews in previous months have noted issues with the jail since the end of last year. Additionally, multiple inmate deaths in previous years have cast a shadow of doubt over the jail's safety. Nonetheless, the Harris County Sheriff's Office released a statement that they will present a corrective action plan to the City Commissioners Court later today. (KPRC Click2Houston)
2. The nominees for CultureMap's 2023 Best Bar of the Year awards were released and include both old-time favorites as well as splashy newcomers. Bars that Houstonians have known and loved for years include Anvil, Refuge, The Grand Prize, Johnny's Gold Brick, and Captain Foxheart's Bad News Bar. Newer nominees were Clarkwood, EZ's Liquor Lounge, Quiote, and the newly remodeled Double Trouble. While you can't go wrong with a visit to any of the bars listed, The Grand Prize is a personal favorite thanks to its dimly lit atmosphere, second story porch, projector film flicks, and incredibly reasonably priced drink specials. The well-hidden Quiote inside the Twisted Coconut restaurant is also very much worth a venture. (CultureMap Houston)
3. Self-driving big rig company Embark Trucks is closing offices in Houston and California as well as laying off 70 percent of its staff. As far as an explanation, CEO Alex Rodrigues said that the past year has been difficult for the industry as a whole. However, he remains optimistic that self-driving big rigs are the way of the future. He wrote in an email to employees, "While Embark may not be there to see the vision through in its current form, I hope you know that your work made a difference in pushing the industry forward. You held up your end of that bargain, I was not able to hold up mine — for that I am profoundly sorry." Autonomous trucking technology continues to be developed at A&M University and is used by Embark Trucks as well as a number of other self-driving big rig company hopefuls. (KHOU.com)
4. Vice President Kamala Harris weighed in on a potential abortion pill ban coming to Texas. The VP commented that the ban would set a dangerous precedent whereby government officials can override FDA approval of medications. She also said, "These attacks are not only an attack on a woman’s fundamental freedom to make decisions about her own body, but it really fundamentally is also an attack on the scientific process that is crucial for public health." The majority of abortions in the U.S. are currently performed via pill. (Houston Chronicle)
5. Four buses full of teachers and school support staff are headed to Austin today to meet with state legislators about the coming TEA (Texas Education Agency) takeover of HISD (Houston Independent School District). Later this week, the same lawmakers plan to meet with TEA representatives to hammer out takeover details and discuss the future of Wheatley High School in particular. Wheatley was one of the schools whose poor performance led to the TEA pressing for a takeover years ago. However, after taking years for HISD control to be settled in court, Wheatley received a passing grade in 2022 for the first time in eight years. (KTRK-TV)

Headlines you need to see:

• At Houston Rodeo, a live birthing center teaches kids about the miracle of life (Houston Chronicle)
• Harris County considers spending $6 million to expand reproductive healthcare services (Houston Public Media)
• Texas breaks all-time record for total jobs 16 months in a row (FOX 26 Houston)
• METRO’s University Corridor bus rapid transit line gets $150 million funding recommendation from feds (Houston Public Media)
• Houston man sentenced to 30 years in fatal crash during police chase that killed 19-year-old passenger (KPRC Click2Houston)

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Today in Houston:

• Dungeons & Dragons with Circle of Barhaven at Eureka Heights Brewery (6 p.m.)
• Gentle Yoga Flow and Sound Meditation at Discovery Green (6:30 p.m.)
• Concert: Skillet and Theory of a Dead Man at Bayou Music Center (7 p.m.)
• Concert: Preservation Hall Jazz Band 60th Anniversary at Jones Hall (7:30 p.m.)
• Concert: Machine Gun Kelly at the Houston Rodeo (9 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• The mansion from "Talladega Nights" hit the market for a price of $10 million. The house previously sold for $4 million back in 2017. (KHOU 11 News via Facebook)
• Popular Tex-Mex spot Gringo's Mexican Kitchen in Cypress went cashless a couple of weeks ago due to multiple robberies. Now, its spring location intends to do the same after being hit by robbers over the weekend. (ABC13 Houston via Facebook)
• Have you ever wondered what ranch flavored ice cream tastes like? Ice cream brand Van Leeuwen and Hidden Valley Ranch have teamed up to deliver the answer to this tongue-based conundrum. (FOX 26 Houston via Facebook)

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• Free Zoom meeting about Houston fibroid treatment! (March 18)
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Thanks for checking in y'all. I hope you're enjoying spring break and staying warm despite the cold front. Catch you tomorrow morning for the hump day special.