Good morning. Here is a look at the top headlines as we start the day.
Weather: Sunny and mild by afternoon. Low: 37 degrees. High: 73 degrees. Wind: SW 10-15 mph.
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Democrat Doug Jones wins Senate election beating Trump-backed Roy Moore in Alabama
In a stunning victory aided by scandal, Democrat Doug Jones won Alabama's special Senate election on Tuesday, beating back history, an embattled Republican opponent and President Donald Trump, who urgently endorsed GOP rebel Roy Moore despite a litany of sexual misconduct allegations.
It was the first Democratic Senate victory in a quarter-century in Alabama, one of the reddest of red states, and proved anew that party loyalty is anything but sure in the age of Trump. It was a major embarrassment for the president and a fresh wound for the nation's already divided Republican Party.
The victory by Jones, a former U.S. attorney best known for prosecuting two Ku Klux Klansmen responsible for Birmingham's infamous 1963 church bombing, narrows the GOP advantage in the U.S. Senate to 51-49. That imperils already-uncertain Republican tax, budget and health proposals and injects tremendous energy into the Democratic Party's early push to reclaim House and Senate majorities in 2018.
Politics: The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee called on the president Tuesday to drop the nomination of Jeff Mateer, a top lawyer for the state of Texas who has described transgender children as evidence of "Satan's plan."
Legal fight over Brian Loncar’s estate gets uglier, with County Judge Clay Jenkins at the center
A legal fight over the estate of deceased super-attorney Brian Loncar that pits County Judge Clay Jenkins against a longtime Loncar employee turned even nastier in state court Tuesday.
Accusations and counter-accusations flew over a previously undisclosed fund valued at some $1 million. The fund, held by an Illinois-based corporation called KMA Capital, was apparently used to collect fees owed to Loncar's firm from other lawyers.
Through his attorneys, Jenkins accused Loncar's longtime chief financial officer, Toby Toudouze, of hiding information about funds Loncar had tied up in KMA. Jenkins' representatives want to question Toudouze under oath about the fund as well as other assets in the Loncar estate.
Dallas: Job-hopping millennials have proved tough for Dallas police and Dallas Fire-Rescue to recruit.
Frisco: The new National Soccer Hall of Fame will kick off in October with an induction ceremony and inaugural games.
DART spending millions on guards, cameras, lighting for safety's sake
Dallas Area Rapid Transit is boosting its security measures on buses and trains and at stations.
The DART board of directors on Tuesday evening unanimously authorized spending at least $14 million for improved safety.
The board passed a measure that effectively doubles the number of armed security guards by adding 30 more people to its force, agency spokesman Morgan Lyons said.
The increase means that by spring 2018, all trains in the rail system will have a guard, fare officer or DART police officer, he said.
Crime: Four people, including two juveniles, were wounded Tuesday night in a shooting near a Garland elementary school, police said.
Commentary: Valley View Center — and the plan to revive the area — is in shambles, writes City Columnist Robert Wilonsky.
Photo of the morning
Daron Babcock (left), founder of Bonton Farms, and District 100 State Rep. Eric Johnson talk about the farm's goats before Tuesday's groundbreaking and check-presentation ceremony for the Market at Bonton Farms. The southern Dallas neighborhood of Bonton, which is within a food desert, will now have a market with a cafe and classes for residents on nutrition and food preparation. AT&T donated $100,000 to the project.
Around the site
Editorial: If the FBI can't protect us from criminals, who can?
Courts: Ken Johnson didn't act like a police officer who feared for his life after chasing and fatally shooting a teen he caught breaking into his SUV, a detective testified Tuesday.
Dallas Cowboys: Here are four storylines to watch as the Cowboys prepare for Oakland, from Dak Prescott's odyssey to Zeke's return.
Real estate: Take a look by neighborhood at D-FW's hot residential real estate market.
Forget Taco Tuesay: Dallas barbecue joint Pecan Lodge is launching a new tradition -- Tamale Tuesdays.
Finally,
As tuition and fees continue to rise for college students, so do the compensation packages for university executives.
According to an annual report on private university executive compensation by the Chronicle of Higher Education, 58 private college administrators — including five in Texas — earned more than $1 million in 2015. Using the most recent Internal Revenue Service forms available, the Chronicle calculated that average pay nationally for leaders who served a full year was almost $570,000, a 9 percent increase from 2014.
In Texas, the largest and most prestigious schools paid top dollar. Top executives at the state's three largest private schools — Baylor, Southern Methodist and Texas Christian — all earned over $1 million in 2015: $1,362,956 for Baylor's Ken Starr, $1,088,246 for SMU's R. Gerald Turner and $1,578,750 for TCU's Victor Boschini Jr.
David Leebron, the president at Rice University, the state's most selective college, received $1,730,998 in total compensation, the most of any school executive, public or private, in Texas.
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