Reporter covering criminal justice, healthcare, housing and more at The Lab Report Dallas. @dallasnews alumna. El Paso raised. 📩 [email protected].
Dallas, TX
Joined September 2017
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Kelli Smith retweeted
Student journalists rock. Most people moved on from the 2024 report of a terrible rape at Cornell, but the @cornellsun wouldn't let go and pushed for accountability. nytimes.com/2026/09/29/nyreg… by @emmabgo
Kelli Smith retweeted
BREAKING @TexasTribune: Following a yearslong lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman has ordered Texas to air condition all of the state’s prisons by the end of 2029 — a win for the plaintiffs.
texastribune.org/2026/09/22/…
Kelli Smith retweeted
Terrific profile of my good friend @ehennekelsja by @kellixsmith in the @labreportdallas. Was pleased to share my thoughts in this piece on how Elizabeth and @Official_LSJA are transforming juvenile justice, making Texas both safer and more redemptive! labreportdallas.com/criminal…
Kelli Smith retweeted
BREAKING: The company in charge of CPS cases in Dallas has been ousted. Now what? labreportdallas.com/public-s…
Kelli Smith retweeted
It's that time of year again: Oxford’s Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ) has put out its 2026 Digital News Report. The Nieman Lab team broke down some key findings — including how people continue to abandon news sites and apps in favor of social media and, increasingly, chatbots to get their news.
niemanlab.org/2026/06/news-s…
Kelli Smith retweeted
‘Teachers Are Going to Hate It’: How Social Media Apps Hooked Teens at School nytimes.com/2026/06/04/us/so… via @NYTimes
Kelli Smith retweeted
Police officers have become fixtures in Texas schools since the 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde. Some have used heavy-handed tactics on children, often in response to minor misbehavior, an @nytimes @ExpressNews investigation found.
expressnews.com/news/educati…
Kelli Smith retweeted
Breaking @TexasTribune: Dallas PD revise ICE policy after Gov. Abbott threatened funding. Most notably, the new version cut language that says officers may not prolong detention to further investigate people's immigration status or to hold them for ICE. shorturl.at/n1Zhf
Kelli Smith retweeted
The foster care system is in big trouble in North Texas. A baby and an infant have died. A judge today appointed a receiver over the nonprofit handling case management. Before the ruling, @SharonFGrigsby had spent weeks in court watching things go wrong. labreportdallas.com/p/the-pr…
Kelli Smith retweeted
BREAKING: The Border Patrol's Greg Bovino has been ousted from his role of "Commander at Large"—and Kristi Noem and Corey Lewandowski could be next to lose their jobs, sources tell @NickMiroff
Kelli Smith retweeted
“As of Saturday evening, the family said they had still not heard from anyone at a federal law enforcement agency about their son’s death.” apnews.com/article/immigrati…
Kelli Smith retweeted
A non-profit fed thousands of hungry Dallas ISD students. A CBS News Texas investigation found that when the work stopped, the fundraising didn't. cbsnews.com/texas/news/dalla…
Kelli Smith retweeted
🧵: At Roseland, an Old East Dallas public housing complex, gunfire had become routine.
For years, a city–housing authority plan to curb the violence and improve conditions fell apart and was never fully followed, a @dallasnews investigation found. interactives.dallasnews.com/…
Kelli Smith retweeted
It's official: A Starbucks will be the next-door neighbor of the restored Forest Theater in South Dallas. My latest story for The Lab Report looks at why Forest Forward decided this was the right call for the project—and its neighbors. labreportdallas.com/p/why-st…
Kelli Smith retweeted
Two Dallas City Council committees will hold a joint meeting Thursday morning to discuss a proposal that would authorize city police officers to help enforce federal immigration laws. @dallasnews dallasnews.com/news/public-s…
Kelli Smith retweeted
Texas is notifying its 1.7 million Lone Star Card holders that there will be no November SNAP benefits issued if the federal government shutdown continues past Oct. 27. That’s more than $600 million that was due to go out next month to help low-income Texans buy food.
Kelli Smith retweeted
WASHINGTON (AP) — Journalists begin leaving Pentagon after refusing to sign Trump administration agreements on rules of access.
Kelli Smith retweeted
Dallas PD met its goal set by city council earlier this year, hiring 300+ recruits since last fall. They hailed the milestone even as debates over pension funding & voter-backed propositions are reshaping city hall's public safety obligations. @dallasnews dallasnews.com/news/public-s…
Kelli Smith retweeted
If you want to better understand the impact of this diversion program, @SharonFGrigsby spent weeks with the people who make it happen and the individuals they're helping: labreportdallas.com/p/dallas…
Dallas County saves mental health support team that diverts people from jail | Opinion dallasnews.com/opinion/edito…
