EL PASO TIMES: A U.S. district judge granted several requests by a defendant in a federal sex-trafficking case, including adding a lawyer to his defense team, hiring a private investigator's services, and obtaining the names of unindicted co-conspirators, court records show.

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EL PASO TIMES: Intelligence experts from around the world are discussing topics as varied as border security, the Cold War, game theory and biological terrorism at the International Association for Intelligence Education Conference hosted this week by the University of Texas at El Paso.

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EL PASO TIMES: El Paso County, for now, is not violating the Texas Constitution and can continue to provide health benefits to the domestic partners of its employees, a district court judge ruled on Tuesday. On May 1, local community activist Carl Starr filed a lawsuit in state court asking the court to issue a temporary injunction that would prevent the county from providing health benefits to unmarried partners of county employees. The lawsuit named El Paso County Judge Veronica Escobar, and claimed that the county was violating the state Constitution.

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EL PASO TIMES: Home prices increased at healthy rates in El Paso and many other metro areas in the first quarter, a new report shows. El Paso's median, or market midpoint, price for used, or resale, single-family homes increased 5 percent in the January-March quarter compared with a year ago, the National Association of Realtors reported.

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EL PASO TIMES: Average retail gasoline prices in El Paso have risen 9 cents per gallon in the past week, to $3.46, according to GasBuddy's survey of 296 gas outlets in El Paso. This is below the national average, which has increased 9 cents per gallon in the past week to $3.67, according to the gasoline price website GasBuddy.com.

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EL PASO TIMES: Public school districts across the nation spent less per student in 2011, the first drop in nearly 40 years -- while most El Paso districts spent significantly less than the national average. According to a U.S. Census Bureau report released Tuesday, the 50 states and the District of Columbia spent an average of about $10,560 per student in 2011, which is a 0.4 percent decrease from 2010.

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EL PASO TIMES: El Paso Community College students will pay 7 percent more in tuition this fall -- the third year in a row the cost has risen at the school. The college's Board of Trustees approved the increase, which will mean $5 more per credit hour for in-state students, over an alternative proposal to raise tuition by 10 percent.

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THE MONITOR: More than 50 families whose loved ones have gone missing while searching for the American dream may finally get the closure they seek in the coming months. The closure may come after a name is given and the remains returned to the families of some of the dozens of unidentified immigrants who are buried at the Brooks County cemetery.

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THE MONITOR: U.S. Rep. Rubén Hinojosa has named a new district director for his congressional office based in Edinburg. Cynthia “Cindy” Garza-Reyes, a former constituent representative and district scheduler for the Edinburg office, was named director for the 15th Congressional District office. As district director, Garza-Reyes will manage all aspects of operating Hinojosa’s local office.

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THE MONITOR: Hidalgo County commissioners turned down an invite Tuesday to join legislation designed to provide them the authority to regulate eight-liner game halls. Commissioners declined the last-minute offer by Willacy County Judge John F. Gonzales Jr. to include their county in pending legislation that provides counties greater control over the machines, which operate illegally only if they offer cash prizes. With support from state lawmakers, Gonzales has promoted a bill that would give his county the authority to require permits for the machines and makes it easier to check whether they are doling out illegal winnings.

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THE MONITOR: City commissioners voted Tuesday to give 120 days’ notice to terminate the services of CH2M HILL OMI, the private company that has managed Weslaco’s water and wastewater treatment for two decades. City leaders made it clear the move did not necessarily mean the end of OMI operations in the city, but was a way to buy time to make a decision.

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THE MONITOR: Joaquin Villanueva spent his Saturday morning at Donna High School learning everything he could to get his two teenage daughters to college. A good score on either college entrance exam, SAT or ACT, is key to getting academic scholarships. If the girls spend more than 51 percent of their time with him rather than his ex-wife, he can use his income level to apply for financial aid. It’s possible the girls could qualify for enough grants and work study funding that they wouldn’t need loans.

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VALLEY MORNING STAR: The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has revoked the San Benito Chamber of Commerce’s tax-exempt status because it failed for three years to file annual tax forms, the agency said. The revocation of tax-exempt status is automatic after the Chamber’s three-year lapse in filing the IRS Form 990 tax reports, according to the IRS website.

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BROWNSVILLE HERALD: U.S. District Judge Andrew S. Hanen on Tuesday denied a defense motion to acquit ex-Cameron County District Attorney Armando R. Villalobos of public-corruption charges at this juncture, but said that the sufficiency of the evidence on “some” counts is “pretty thin.”

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BROWNSVILLE HERALD: The University of Texas at Brownsville will receive $100 million in tuition revenue bonds from the Texas Legislature to establish a new campus. That amount is approximately $50 million less than what the UT System Board of Regents had approved in January for building classrooms, a library and information technology center, space for music instruction, and other necessities for the university.

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BROWNSVILLE HERALD: Homer Hanna High School ranks among the top schools in the nation academically, according to Newsweek magazine and The Washington Post. Newsweek named Hanna to its annual list of America’s Best High Schools, while The Washington Post included the Brownsville school on its list of America’s Most Challenging High Schools.

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