THURSDAY, JAN. 29, 2026 VOLUME 100 ISSUE 6
NEWS
LA VIDA
OPINION
SPORTS
A Texas Tech archaeology team’s discovery of historic artifacts unlocked new knowledge of the Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo, a Spanish mission in South Texas.
Harper Thaxton’s unusual pet, Tucker, poses unique challenges and requirements. Thaxton said owning Tucker, a prairie dog, reflects some of the adventure she’s experienced in college.
Take a break from classes with The DT’s crossword and a new, original Sudoku/cryptogram puzzle created by our puzzles editor.
Entering the 2026 season, Texas Tech baseball is implementing pitching technologies used by Major League Baseball teams following the team’s worst season record since 1985.
Raider Red’s Food Pantry is preparing for an increase in student demand as the new semester begins, as the department often sees a spike in need following winter break.
PG 4
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PG 2
PG 3
NEWS
LAW
Clayton, Innocence Clinic seek exonerations By ERIN DEMBO Staff Writer
On an early Friday afternoon in 2016, the first innocence case of Allison Clayton’s career hit her desk, beginning her journey of attempting to exonerate those she believes to be wrongly accused by the justice system. Clayton, the deputy director of the Innocence Project of Texas and director of the Texas Tech School of Law’s Innocence Clinic, first began her work when she opened her own firm — Allison Clayton Law — in 2015. Not long after, she began working with a variety of different clients facing difficult legal battles. She said the emotions that come from seeing her clients become free are unimaginable. “The birds, the wind and the cars passing by all go gray,” Clayton said. “You’re weightless for a moment in time.” The average exoneration takes nine to 14 years, Clayton said. The Tech Innocence Clinic is currently
working on roughly 30 ongoing cases. Despite the many cases that have hit her desk since beginning her career, Clayton said there was one case in particular that stood out. In 1999, a Midland family died in a house fire. One of the suspects, Butch Martin, was arrested and charged with their murders. She said the evidence, mostly based on forensic studies, proved he was innocent, but the court still chose to convict him. Her class visited him for many years since 2016, and she said their hearts were moved by how difficult it was to see Martin struggling because of his conviction. “You get really close with people like that,” she said. “He made all the students a variety of presents, flowers and mugs from his ingenuity in prison.” In the spring of 2022, Clayton got a call from the Dutchess court coordinator in Lubbock — who is responsible for overseeing court operations — saying Martin would
JAKE COOPER/The Daily Toreador
Allison Clayton discusses the process of working through old cases to exonerate convicted criminals through Texas Tech’s Innocence Clinic Jan. 22, 2026. Clayton works alongside Tech School of Law students through the Clinic.
be released. Due to her family vacation at the time of the verdict, Martin was the first client she couldn’t personally walk out. However, once she made it back to town, she said she didn’t wait another second to go see him. “After all those years, I finally got to give him a hug,” Clayton said. “We had a party. All his family
was there.” Linzy Hill, an associate attorney at Allison Clayton Law, said she met Martin in prison when she was a student at the Innocence Clinic in the fall of 2022. Martin was freed in 2022, a year after Hill graduated. Despite him being released after her time at the clinic, she drove hours down the road to the detention center
to see him. She said she had never experienced anything as powerful as seeing Martin reunite with his family. “To see him walk out and his sister with all the grandbabies who had never gotten to meet him before in the car, I don’t have words,” Hill said. SEE LAW, PG. 3
ATHLETIC SCHOLARSHIPS
Kittley reflects on lack of Olympic sports funding By AUSTIN JACKSON Staff Writer
Before the 2025-26 academic year began, the NCAA implemented roster limits while simultaneously removing scholarship caps for all sports. The sudden increase left athletic departments across the country with a decision: invest in revenue-generating sports or Olympic sports that may be in contention for national titles. For Tech, that meant investing in its revenue-generating sports or maximizing scholarships for its track and field team, which won four Big 12 titles last season. “We had to make sure that football and basketball got the maximum,” said Wes Kittley, Tech track
and field coach. “They are the ones that are the bread and butter for our programs as far as financial.” Tech football was coming off a season where it finished sixth in the Big 12 conference with an 8-5 record, while men’s basketball finished second in the Big 12 with a 28-9 record. The Athletic department decided to go all-in on those programs and maximize their scholarships. Olympic coaches, like Kittley, were left to build their rosters without an increase in scholarships while some of their opponents received significant increases. “We didn’t get any (additional scholarships for track and field),” Kittley said. “Texas A&M and Georgia and all these people, they went 45 (scholarships) in the women and
35 (scholarships) in the men.” in hopes that the success those Before the scholarship cap was teams had would generate increased removed, track and field programs revenue, which could then be used to were allowed 12.6 scholarships for give more scholarships to Olympic men and 18 for women. The removal sports. of the scholarship cap Less than six allows for 45 track and months after Tech field scholarships for made the decision each gender. to invest in its rev“Some of them (Tech Athletics is) enue-generating (other schools) chose committed to helping sports, the football to do that and take us. I am real pleased team won its first Big the hit the first year,” with where we are 12 Championship and Kittley said. “Texas going for next year. received a first-round Tech chose to not bye in the College WES KITTLEY Football Playoffs. The hurt football and TRACK & FIELD COACH increased revenue basketball the first year, which I think from recent success was smart.” in revenue-generating sports will Tech decided to give scholarships allow the athletic department to to its football and basketball teams invest in its Olympic sports.
“It made it where it’s possible for them to help the Olympic sports now after one year,” Kittley said. Success from the football and basketball teams has increased Tech Athletics revenue, allowing larger scholarship allotments for Olympic sports. Kittley said he has been given an approximate figure of 25 scholarships for men and 35 for women to build next year’s roster. He has been able to use the number to recruit top high school and international talent to compete for Tech next season. “They (Tech Athletics) are committed to helping us,” Kittley said. “I am real pleased with where we are going for next year. I’m gonna be able to recruit with more scholarships for next year.” @AustinJacksonDT
PREPARATION
Winter weather affects Tech’s day-to-day facilities
JAKE COOPER/The Daily Toreador
Students walk on campus as cars line up to leave after Texas Tech canceled classes due to a winter storm that affected multiple states across the nation Jan. 23, 2026.
By SOFIA BUENO NeWS editor
With colder temperatures in the South Plains, the City of Lubbock and Texas Tech coordinate closely to keep roads clear, utilities running and residents informed. Joe Moudy, director of Emergency Management for the City of Lubbock, says the city begins to prepare for cold weather before it hits and intensifies as
forecasts become more precise. The city’s preparations start with the National Weather Service, where it communicates with emergency officials daily through email or chat platforms. Each morning, the NWS reviews the updated forecasts to see possible impacts, relaying the information to department heads, school districts and community partners, like the Tech Emergency Center. The City of Lubbock receives updates
from both the NWS and the Texas Division of Emergency Management. “We’re getting a lot of duplicate information, but we would rather receive multiple alerts and repeats of the same information rather than not at all,” Moudy said. For Tech students, the City of Lubbock’s coordination affects the routes they depend on daily. “The city’s biggest focus during winter weather is making sure that the
roads are passable,” Moudy said. “That includes University, Indiana, Quaker, 19th Street, 4th Street, 34th Street, 50th Street — making sure that you can get to hospitals or making sure that first responders can get around, or making sure that the power stays on.” Moudy emphasized how keeping utilities functional is one of the city’s top priorities and it works closely with LP&L and Atmos Energy to monitor the grid and gas supply during extreme cold. The City of Lubbock’s Public Works director, David Bragg, said his department focuses on clearing major roads and maintaining traffic infrastructure. He added how much of the preparation occurs months in advance. The city begins ordering materials used to combat winter as early as August. “We start meeting departmentally and planning our approach, what we’re gonna do, and make sure everybody knows their part so that when severe weather hits, we will be ready for that day,” Bragg said. Ahead of potential overnight weather, city crews will begin to monitor roads as early as 4:30 a.m. Traffic cameras positioned throughout Lubbock helping identify slick intersections allow crews to respond quickly and treat affected areas. “We focus heavily on the hospital districts to make sure that the roadways
around those are clear for our emergency personnel,” Bragg said. “From there, we just maintain the other roadways, the main roads, the arterials, as best we can.” The City of Lubbock has partnered with community partners like Open Door, the Salvation Army and Grace Campus to provide shelter for individuals without stable housing — including any off-campus students dealing with heating outages. The best way for students to avoid misinformation is to rely on official sources of information during a disaster or large-scale emergency. The city publishes verified updates through three social media channels, Lubbock Police Department, Lubbock Fire Rescue and City of Lubbock. The most reliable weather alerts come through LBK Alert, the city’s mass notification system. Residents can sign up by texting their ZIP code to 888-777 or visiting LBKalerts.com. Verified updates also are posted on the city’s emergency communications page at myLubbock.us. Tech students can stay informed by monitoring LBK Alert and TechAlert! — the university’s automatic emergency notification system. Both provide timely and important safety updates throughout the winter season. @SofiaBuenoDT