Dallas budget, medical fraud bust, Taco off the menu: Your Wednesday evening roundup

The Dallas City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a budget for the next fiscal year that bumps pay for mid-career officers and adds an estimated 19 cops to the police force, without a tax rate hike.  [Evening roundup]( 09/18/2019 By Wayne Carter Good Evening! Here is a look at the top headlines of the day. 🔎 Prefer the online view? It's [here.]( Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, flanked by members of the Dallas City Council, speaks in the Flag Room Wednesday at Dallas City Hall after the Council passed a budget focused largely on public safety. (Tom Fox/Staff Photographer) DALLAS CITY HALL [Dallas City Council approves budget focused on retaining, hiring cops]( The Dallas City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a budget for the next fiscal year that bumps pay for mid-career officers and adds an estimated 19 cops to the police force, without a tax rate hike. The $1.44 billion general fund budget focuses largely on the retention and recruitment of Dallas police officers. Mayor Eric Johnson said it's the first time the budget has passed unanimously since 2014 and believes it demonstrates "a return of civility" at City Hall. At a press conference shortly after the vote and joined by all council members, Johnson said the budget "is a win" for taxpayers and police and fire and "positions our city to meet the demands of the future, to invest in our people ... so that everyone can share in Dallas' prosperity." Amber Guyger trial: A Dallas police union's call to delay the trial till after the State Fair of Texas [drew a swift rebuke]( from the attorney representing Botham Jean's family. Podcast: Listen to Episode 3 of our audio report on Amber Guyger's murder trial: [What defense could she use in court?]( ADVERTISEMENT CRIME & COURTS [Feds take down alleged health care fraudsters in Dallas and statewide, costing taxpayers $66 million]( Two North Texas doctors who used their prescription pads to cash in by ordering medically unnecessary compound creams are among 58 people who have been charged across Texas with scamming $66 million from the nation's health care system. The statewide federal healthcare fraud "takedown" [involved all four federal districts in Texas and targeted opioid pill mills, Medicare fraud, federal workers compensation fraud, and illegal schemes that bilked the military's health care program.]( It was announced Wednesday by three Texas U.S. attorneys and a top Justice Department official. Dallas is one of more than a dozen health care fraud hot spots across the U.S. in which the government has established Medicare Strike Force teams. The multi-agency law enforcement teams analyze data and combine to investigate intelligence to "quickly identify fraud and bring prosecutions." The Dallas area has in recent years become the focus of numerous health care kickback indictments and investigations, focusing in particular on compounding pharmacies. The latest indictments indicate the government is not done cracking down on such schemes in North Texas.   Editorial: The courts can't fix asylum law, [only Congress can.](   Also: A judge cited terrorism fears in denying bail for [an American Airlines mechanic accused of sabotaging a jetliner.](  SPORTS [Cowboys release 2017 first-round pick DE Taco Charlton, source says]( After being unable to find a trade partner, a source has told SportsDay's David Moore that [the Dallas Cowboys will release Taco Charlton.]( The third-year defensive end and former first-round pick was not at the part of Wednesday's practice that is open to media, signaling the end of his time in Dallas. The Cowboys had to clear a roster spot by 3 p.m. Wednesday in order for defensive end Robert Quinn, coming off his two-game suspension for PEDs, to join the active roster for Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins. Charlton had taken to social media Monday, apparently banging the drum to be traded or released from the club. He wrote "free me" with an eyeballs emoji in one Twitter post before a slightly more lengthy follow-up.  Beat writers' roundtable: Why you shouldn't expect the Cowboys [to make a trade for Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey.](   Commentary: Quarterback luck is now just [one more thing going the Dallas Cowboys' way this season]( writes Tim Cowlishaw.  ADVERTISEMENT (Michael Hiller/Special Contributor) PHOTO OF THE DAY An installation of colorful, handmade glass flowers by Artist Dale Chihuly has guests  staring at the ceiling at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Contributing travel writer Michael Hiller says no matter where you are in Vegas, [you’re only steps from world-class art]( dreamed up by artists who figured out that there’s more than one way to leave a casino richer than you entered it. EDITORS' PICKS - Police blotter: A 39-year-old woman has been arrested [in connection with shootings at a Fort]( youth football game]( that injured two people Saturday. - Heat index: This summer was the hottest on record in the Northern Hemisphere, [but how did Dallas-Fort Worth fare?]( - Gardening: This opportunistic fungus [could be the final knife in the heart]( for sick trees. FINALLY... [A routine tackle almost killed him, but Flower Mound WR Carson Winters' story is one of mental and physical perseverance]( Carson Winters would do anything to make it stop, but no one knew how. He screamed for an answer inside the Flower Mound training room as pools of sweat covered the trainer's table and yellow Gatorade-colored vomit filled the trash can beside him, but the answer wasn't there. He waited inside Grapevine's Baylor Scott and White Medical Center for three days as the pain grew and grew, but the MRI and laparoscopic surgery couldn't identify the problem hidden deep inside. This could've been the story of the boy who loved football, and the injury that ripped away his senior season. Instead, it's a story of mental and physical perseverance, the likes of which sounded unimaginable to anyone not named Carson Winters. A tale of a relentless journey back to football, [even though the sport almost killed him.]( 👋 That's all for this afternoon! For up-to-the-minute news and analysis, check out [DallasNews.com](. Share the love! If you like this newsletter, please forward this email to a friend and [check out our other newsletters here](. Do you have feedback? 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